Sunday, December 21st-Waimea Valley Excursion

Our plan for the day was a trip to the Waimea Valley where you can see a water fall, swim in the pool below the falls and see up to 35 of their botanical gardens which feature plants from all over the pacific Islands and South America. They also have native craft demonstrations, a native village re-creation, and some representations of sacred sites.

It was a beautiful day and even the windward side had blue skies and sunshine. We stopped at The Times Supermarket because they have steak on the weekend and got dinners-Steak, brown rice and mixed vegetables, which have orange and yellow carrots, broccoli and snap peas, (not over cooked). We couldn't resist a bite or two of the meat right then, it is SOOO good, but saved most of it to have for dinner back at the room. Harry got fresh ice for his cooler so we could keep them good until evening.

The surf was big on the North shore, and there were crowds at the surfing competition. It may have been the last day for it, and the waves looked like they were good for it. I can't believe how many people were in the water on beaches clearly marked with warnings for dangerous conditions. Harry went on and on about ways we could figure out to be able to afford to come back for more island visits, including camping, which I'm not so sure about...

Waimea Valley is inland slightly on a river that comes down out of the mountain. I keep noticing signs along the way that show something like a pile of rocks on a brown sign and the word 'ahupua'a' and another word, a different one for each sign. I finally looked it up and found out that they indicate sections of land that historically were separate economic and geographical units. The people in them were subject to a local leader, a chief, and all were subject to the main chief, or king. They were self sufficient with wood and birds and so on from up in the mountain, crops mid way down and fishing by the sea. No on owned land individually, it was held in trust by the chief. Each of them produced what was appropriate to their area and traded with one another and with other ahupua'a so everyone could have what they needed. It turns out Waimea valley was one of the bigger ones but flooding a long time ago washed out the crops repeatedly until the population of 20,000 dwindled to half that and then the problems associated with outside contact reduced them further to about 3,000. Now only a handful of descendants still live down by the mouth of the valley.

Once we got to Waimea Valley we were both pretty hungry. The snack bar there had grass fed island raised beef hamburgers with fries, so we had bacon cheeseburgers (real cheese, too!) for about $8. They tasted really, really good.

It was military appreciation day, so Harry got in for $2:50 and it was $7.50 for me as a senior over 60. We also got the round trip tram ride to the falls. I was glad, even though it was only 3/4 of a mile, I had done so much on my feet Friday and Saturday that what I did do there left my heel really, really sore as it was. We took the tram to the falls first and took some photos, then took a tram back, enjoying the demonstration items on display there while we waited.

First thing we saw one of the resident peacocks

Waimea falls with swimmers 

Hula instruments and other items

When we got back to the start we walked along the trail a short way, seeing several interesting things while headed toward the ancient home site.

Cannonball tree-the hard fruits grow out of the trunk

Endangered Moorhen, or Alae 'Ula

The edible but nasty tasting Cannonball fruit has white flesh and seeds that turn greenish blue within seconds of being exposed to the air. 

Gourd Plant

We spent some time at the house site, Harry and I both taking quite a few photos. Having the buildings there, even though somewhat derelict and without much in the way of signage to explain the function of each building, helped make the visualization of the peoples who used to live there come to life.

We both felt we'd made good use of the day and seen and learned new things that helped us understand more about the islands and the ancient culture and plants of this and other areas. I felt hot, sweaty and bedraggled from the heat and humidity though. I had sprayed myself liberally with deep woods off, but either I didn't do it again soon enough, or something else went wrong, because I had multiple mosquito bites. Fortunately I don't react to the local mosquitoes especially, so the itching and swelling only lasts a few hours then goes away.

We headed home past the Dole Plantation and Schofield Barracks and planned another trip up that way for another day.