!i! Day 2 in Hawaii !i!
Our second day in Hawaii, we didn't wake up QUITE so early. We were struggling to fight the urge to adjust our time clocks to Hawaii standard time. However, we woke up that morning and got ready to go hiking. Today's destination: Diamond Head Crater.
Last time we hiked here, we hiked mid-day and due to the heat, we struggled to make it to the top. It didn't help that we passed the EMTs rescuing someone from the middle of the hike. This time, we decided to wake up early and hike first thing in the morning when it was still cool. The hike wasn't as difficult as I thought it was mainly because I knew roughly how many stairs lay ahead of me.
The scenery is not the prettiest on this side of the island. Quite a bit of it looked dead: similar to what we'd see if we were hiking in Utah. That is actually the crater of the extinct volcano behind us.
Eventually we made it to the top. Once you get to the top, there is a guy sitting at a desk asking if you'd like a certificate stating that you made it up to the top. I wondered about his job. I bet he has to climb that hike every single day of his life. He must be in GREAT shape!
The view from the top is pretty and refreshing, but claustrophobic as there are about fifty people on a single platform. So we took pictures as quickly as we could and then began our descent downward.
After our hike, we decided to go rent some snorkel gear from Snorkel Bob's. A.J. really wanted to try boogie boarding too so we rented a boogie board. I love snorkeling, but I am afraid of sharks so I told A.J. I would only snorkel in enclosed places that sharks couldn't get in.
We snorkeled the Ko'Olina lagoons and Turtle Bay. We decided to try an underwater camera so we bought one from Snorkel Bob's. It was a little disposable camera. I was convinced we would get some great shots. Ha! The clarity of the Ko'Olina lagoons was not so great. Exhibit A:
...and this is one of the better pictures. I was so excited to get these developed. I thought I would have some awesome pictures! Well...we have some pictures and I think there are some fish in there somewhere. The other thing that was tricky with the underwater disposable camera was the whole aim and shoot underwater without being able to view what you just took a picture of. I am definitely used to my digital camera. This took me back about ten years.
After snorkeling in the Ko'Olina lagoons, we decided to snorkel Turtle Bay. Turtle Bay was a great place to snorkel. We saw some tiny black clown fish which couldn't have been bigger than half an inch.
A.J. and I separated momentarily and the next thing I knew, I was right above a sea turtle! I yelled for A.J. to come over and look. He was small-medium in size. We watched him swim around and graze for quite awhile. He was not skiddish of humans at all. I wished I had my underwater camera!
After snorkeling, we went back to Laniakea beach to look for sea turtles. Sure enough...there they were. Last year, the turtles seemed to be basking in the sun on the sand. This year, they hung out on the rocks eating the green sea weeds.
After I got my fill of sea turtles, we headed over to Sunset beach to try out the boogie board. This was a complete failure as there are hardly any waves on Sunset beach in August. We were used to October waves which are bigger. A.J. gave it a valiant effort, but only caught one wave.
So...we went back to the turtles. You might think that I am a little obsessed with sea turtles. Well...you would be right. We decided to watch sunset on Laniakea beach with the turtles.
Laniakea beach
After the sun set, we headed home, but not before stopping at Hale'iwa beach to snap this gorgeous picture of the sunset.
Sunsets in Hawaii are absolutely one of my favorite things in life. There is nothing more soothing than sitting with your toes in the sand listening to the sound of the waves crashing onto the beach staring at the beautiful splash of colors laid out in front of you.
Last time we hiked here, we hiked mid-day and due to the heat, we struggled to make it to the top. It didn't help that we passed the EMTs rescuing someone from the middle of the hike. This time, we decided to wake up early and hike first thing in the morning when it was still cool. The hike wasn't as difficult as I thought it was mainly because I knew roughly how many stairs lay ahead of me.The scenery is not the prettiest on this side of the island. Quite a bit of it looked dead: similar to what we'd see if we were hiking in Utah. That is actually the crater of the extinct volcano behind us.
Eventually we made it to the top. Once you get to the top, there is a guy sitting at a desk asking if you'd like a certificate stating that you made it up to the top. I wondered about his job. I bet he has to climb that hike every single day of his life. He must be in GREAT shape!The view from the top is pretty and refreshing, but claustrophobic as there are about fifty people on a single platform. So we took pictures as quickly as we could and then began our descent downward.
After our hike, we decided to go rent some snorkel gear from Snorkel Bob's. A.J. really wanted to try boogie boarding too so we rented a boogie board. I love snorkeling, but I am afraid of sharks so I told A.J. I would only snorkel in enclosed places that sharks couldn't get in.We snorkeled the Ko'Olina lagoons and Turtle Bay. We decided to try an underwater camera so we bought one from Snorkel Bob's. It was a little disposable camera. I was convinced we would get some great shots. Ha! The clarity of the Ko'Olina lagoons was not so great. Exhibit A:
...and this is one of the better pictures. I was so excited to get these developed. I thought I would have some awesome pictures! Well...we have some pictures and I think there are some fish in there somewhere. The other thing that was tricky with the underwater disposable camera was the whole aim and shoot underwater without being able to view what you just took a picture of. I am definitely used to my digital camera. This took me back about ten years.
After snorkeling in the Ko'Olina lagoons, we decided to snorkel Turtle Bay. Turtle Bay was a great place to snorkel. We saw some tiny black clown fish which couldn't have been bigger than half an inch.
A.J. and I separated momentarily and the next thing I knew, I was right above a sea turtle! I yelled for A.J. to come over and look. He was small-medium in size. We watched him swim around and graze for quite awhile. He was not skiddish of humans at all. I wished I had my underwater camera!
After snorkeling, we went back to Laniakea beach to look for sea turtles. Sure enough...there they were. Last year, the turtles seemed to be basking in the sun on the sand. This year, they hung out on the rocks eating the green sea weeds.
After I got my fill of sea turtles, we headed over to Sunset beach to try out the boogie board. This was a complete failure as there are hardly any waves on Sunset beach in August. We were used to October waves which are bigger. A.J. gave it a valiant effort, but only caught one wave.
So...we went back to the turtles. You might think that I am a little obsessed with sea turtles. Well...you would be right. We decided to watch sunset on Laniakea beach with the turtles.
Laniakea beach
After the sun set, we headed home, but not before stopping at Hale'iwa beach to snap this gorgeous picture of the sunset.
Sunsets in Hawaii are absolutely one of my favorite things in life. There is nothing more soothing than sitting with your toes in the sand listening to the sound of the waves crashing onto the beach staring at the beautiful splash of colors laid out in front of you.
posted by A.J. and Steph at
8:38 PM
2 Comments:
We heard the guy at the top of the hike say to someone that he climbs Diamond Head about four times a day. He's insane. I think he should be committed!
I love your pictures! Yet again...I'm jealous of your sunset pictures. I have a big fancy camera and couldn't get one decent looking one! Yours are beautiful!
I have a secret. There is a setting on my camera of "Sunset". Ha ha.
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