We arrived in Hilo on the big Island of Hawai'i on Sunday, May 10th. But now it's June 18th and it's taken me over an month to make time to update our blog. A while ago, it dawned on me that most people come to the islands with a return plane ticket (or to work or to retire). We were able to come and enjoy being here with only a vague departure idea based on inclinations and weather. We also had people we wanted to see, places we wanted to go, and mountains Vicky needed to run.
So here's the first section of our travelog starting on May 10th.
We anchored in the rather small but well protected Radio Bay, Hilo. Radio Bay is in the industrial section of Hilo with the Cruise Ships, Cargo Ships and a lot of Homeland Security presence. There is a nice shower house/covered picnic area/book exchange/fresh water facility for cruisers. To go into town, we rowed our dinghy to the beach of the paddling club, then a walk past the water treatment facility and up to a rather busy road. We decided to rent a car for a week which worked out perfectly as we were able to cover most of the island during that time.
Tom had been hoping to see the C&H Sugar sign that he had remembered from sailing to Hilo in 1991. But alas, the only C&H sign remaining is just three miles from our home in Port Costa -- Crockett. Almost all sugar interests in these islands were sold in 1993 to Alexander & Baldwin, Inc. and the "H" in C&H no longer originates in Hilo. 
Kids from the traditional canoe rowing club enjoying an after row dip in the Bay!
We enjoyed meeting the cruisers on the 6 other boats who came in about the same time as us and stayed about as long as us (~10 days). It was $9.10 a night plus a $17 initiation fee...but you had to pay with a cashiers check (no cash, credit card or check) which want an occasional visit to the Payday Loan shop. Crazy or amusing!
A fun potluck dinner for all us Radio Bay'ers...the party went well past cruisers midnight!
All of these people we have continued crossing tacks with up the islands.
One raining morning, Vicky and I hiked along the shoreline in search of the
Hilo Yacht Club (about 2 miles south of Radio Bay). We brought Tom back for a very nice dinner and were warmly welcomed. We exchanged our Point San Pablo Yacht Club burgee for a Hilo YC one. The unprotected windward location of HYC made it impossible to anchor or place a marina. So HYC is more of a social/swimming/tennis club than a boaters club. But hey any good reason to get together in a beautiful setting!Things to fix, places to go and people to see!
Vicky up the mast -- this time to discover our jib halyard was seriously chaffing!
We stopped in Captain Cook at a Car Repair/Machine shop so that Tom could make replacement parts for our mainsail batten that had lost it's plug.
We had a terrific afternoon/evening/morning with longtime cruising and Sausalito friends Dawn and Jeff Stone who now live on Hawai'i.
And on the South Shore, we had to stop at Shaka's Restaurant for a beverage at
"The Most Southern Bar in the USA"
No trip would be complete without a trip to the Recycling and Transfer Station -- actually it was the closest we could get to the most recent and active lava flow.
The Big Island with Plush tropical terrain, Mountains, Volcanoes and Lava Rock
This is the tropical paradise viewed from the windward side of Hawai'i.
As you travel West and Inland, the waterfalls and mountainous terrain unfold.
Vicky shot this looking down from Mauna Kea's observation trail (9,200 ft above sea level) during a little run from the ranger station. The top of Mauna Kea is the location of some of the most powerful telescopes on Earth. Scientists are searching for what ever is out there in the beyond. The mountain rises 13,700 foot high above sea level, It feature snow much of the year and offers international scientist a clear view of the heavens with no competition from city lights or atmospheric disturbance.
And on the Southeast side of the Big Island...
There's active Volcanoes! We visited Volcano National Park and looked over steaming craters and walked through lava tubes.
This is from the 2010 lava flow the wiped out a large area of the SE corner of the island.
This is the house that "the Lava Man" rebuilt a small home over his land/home that had been completely destroyed and covered by lava in the 2010 flow. And do you like his toilet? See below.
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New life pushes through these lava rocks. It's rather amazing.
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