The first big tour with baby on board. Still learning how to organise ourselves around the new situation but at the end of the day, we did pretty well :)
At the Wailoa River State Recreation Area in Hilo.Right at the main parking, some Muscovy ducks have made a bench their home.These guys were very friendly and not shying away from passing pedestrians.Speaking of… this park is great for walks around the Waiakea pond.The three bridges, two two-arched, one three-arched, make for a playful distraction from the paved path.The first leads to the coconut grove and further to the Shinmachi Tsunami Memorial, a wave-shaped lava amphitheater with a ceramic mosaic set in the courtyard, honors the people of Hawaiʻi Island who were lost to tsunami. The mosaic, titled “Submerged Rocks and Water Reflections” was designed by Maui-born abstract expressionist artist Tadashi Sato.Parts of the reserve are dedicated to preserve a memory of the past, to honor the veterans and the victims of the 1946 and 1960 tsunamis.The now reserve also was hit hard and only the most resilient trees, coconut, banyan and mango, survived.Across the Waiolama Canal from the Vietnam War Memorial is a statue of Paiʻea Kamehameha, we’re getting great in Hawaiian history.Bow after bow we cross the fingered lake.Until we reach the Wailoa river and harbor.A handfull of boats are moored here.Over the bridge, on the beach side, the Hilo waterfront shines.But the reserve is not the only place to explore, (street) art is also a factor.A random crossing in Hilo.After leaving the town, we went south into the Puna district. The belt road suddenly ends here and was never rebuilt after the 1990 Kilauea eruption that destroyed Kalapana.A memorial for Robert Keli‘iho‘omalu, a well loved Hawaiian sovereignty activist.Stories, believes, hopes, all painted on volcanic rock at Kaimu beach.Following the red cinder gravel path to the sea.While the old Kaimu beach was only a few yards from the parking lot where this hike begins, the new beach is more than a quarter-mile farther ahead, where the trail ends at the new shoreline. We rest and take in the beauty and power of lava.The Kaimu black sand beach, unfortunately the waves are a bit rough so bathing is not an option.More of the lava shore, frozen in time.
