Kona, HI - Day 3

Friday, March 26

Another beautiful day in Hawaii!

This morning started bright and early with a workout on our outdoor patio. Unfortunately, the gym is closed at Kona Coast Resort due to COVID restrictions, so Andi purchased two sets of dumbbells for me to use while we’re staying here. Weights are one more thing to schlep around as we travel in Hawaii the next few weeks, but at least now I don’t have to worry about finding an open gym or sharing weights with others. My workouts are an important part of my day & Andi sees and values that — I’m grateful!

We were on a bit of a schedule today to fit in all the things we wanted & needed to do — school, the pool, and time to explore the island.

First, Tory, Aden and I did school on the patio after breakfast. We each exhaled a sigh of relief that it’s Friday and the last time we have to crack open our school books for a few days. It’s so wonderful that we’re able to take school with us while we’re traveling, but it does eat up a few hours of time each day. I appreciate a break from this activity just as much as the kids do!

Also since it’s Friday, we had to schedule an appointment to use the resort pool this afternoon. We chose a late afternoon time slot for the pool so we could spend the middle part of the day doing visiting somewhere new on the island.

Today, the four of us decided to check out Kaloko-Honokohau National Historic Park located on the west side of the island. This national historic park protects an area of land that was once an ancient Hawaiian community. We stopped by the visitor’s center first to pick up Junior Ranger packets for Tory and Aden, and to ask about hikes and activities in the park.

We’ve barely done any hiking since we’ve been in Hawaii, so Andi and I thought it’d be nice to walk the .7 mile trail to the beach instead of driving there. (In hindsight, I’m not sure why… it would have been a heck of a lot easier to have our vehicle at the beach with all our stuff readily available and there would have been a lot less grumbling from the kids.) Already by late morning, the sun was beating down on the black lava fields surrounding us with very little shade cover. It was hot, yes, but it wasn’t that bad. Tory and Aden were positively melting on the trail though! You’d have thought Andi and I were torturing them with a slow, painful death the way they carried on.

Let it be known that I advised Tory to wear her swimming suit because we were walking to a beach. She refused and insisted on wearing a t-shirt and jean shorts instead. Five minutes into our walk, she peeled off the t-shirt and spent the rest of the outing in her sports bra.

Stopping for a rest at the one shady spot on the trail …

The trail ended at a lovely, protected white-sand beach. I wished we would have brought our beach chairs! I offered to walk the trail back to the visitor’s center to get our vehicle (that way we’d have our beach stuff, Tory could change into a swimming suit, and we wouldn't have to listen to the kids complain how hot they were on the walk back), but Andi didn’t think I needed to. Instead, we waded through the lava tide pools watching green sea turtles swim by.

There was still more to see & do at Koloko-Honokohau National Historic Park, so Andi and I decided to we’d visit again before we leave the Big Island.

Driving back to the condo, Andi and I contemplated getting lunch to-go versus making something at home. We had a few veggies left in the fridge, deli meat and enough salad for one person. Definitely enough food to cobble together some sort of lunch for everyone. At the last minute, Andi pulled the car into the Keauhou Shopping Area across the street from our condo for take-out. There are a handful of restaurant options there and we’ve been itching to try Hawaiian BBQ. I imagined Andi returning to the car with a pound of kalua pork or similar, but instead he returned with fast-food chicken & fish tenders, a cheeseburger and fries. Turns out, L & L Hawaiian BBQ is basically the Hawaiian equivalent of Hardee’s.

The four of us ate lunch and then made our way to the pool for the rest of the afternoon. Checking in for our reservation was easy, and we practically had the place to ourselves. This pool isn’t as fancy as the place we stayed last week, but it’s nice that there’s pool umbrellas here offering shade and that we’re allowed to bring in our own drinks and snacks. There is a pool bar here, but it appears to be closed due to COVID.

Not a bad place to spend Friday night happy hour!

Tory and Aden swam for a few hours while Andi and I relaxed on some lounge chairs nearby. Just before 6:00pm, we decided to go across the street to the Keauhou Shopping Center to watch some hula dancers preform. Andi said he saw a sign posted there advertising a free show.

Unfortunately, the show must’ve been cancelled. We saw the stage set up in the middle of the pavilion and a few people milling around, but no dancers. Bummer!

Back at the condo, Andi grilled pork chops for dinner. Then, we curled up together and watched a show on Netflix together. Another fun day on the Big Island!