Kona, Hawaii by Kristen & Kenny

Exploring Kona After extensive research, I found that most of the snorkeling trips on the Big Island do not accommodate women in their third trimester of pregnancy… I’ve heard that kayaking out to a snorkeling spot could be an option, but that didn’t seem conducive to bringing a toddler. Instead, we decided to hike down to one of the more popular snorkeling spots on the island – Captain Cook. Ironically, Kenny decided not to rent snorkel gear to bring with us, so we were really just in it for the hike and scenery. The Captain Cook hike starts just off the main road, about 20 minutes past Kailua/Kona. We definitely recommend getting there early – parking fills up fast and the hike will be more comfortable the earlier you start, given half of it has very little shade. We ended up running later than expected because we hit up WalMart for a diaper restock and some breakfast. This was Quin’s first vacation WalMart breakfast run with us (a frequent occurrence during van travel). We ended up starting the hike around 10:30. A very nice local saw us get started and kindly recommended that we bring tons of water and gave some warnings to me being pregnant about the heat and steep climb. I did end up grabbing an extra Gatorade and I was really glad later (plus we forgot to lock the car at first). The hike was about 2 miles down hill. The first ~1.2 miles had a fair bit of shrubbery and tree cover, which was nice for the shade. There were also a ton of wild goats! After the first bit, we reached a rockier cliffside where it opened up with really pretty views of the water and volcanic rock shoreline. The very end of the hike finally flattened out just before reaching the shore. The path leads down to a rock shore that is a lot less crowded than the actual Captain Cook monument and snorkeling spot. If you follow it around to the left you’ll get to the more famous spot. There were at least 3 snorkeling boats there at any given time while we hung out. The shore was covered in rocks, so it was difficult to get in. We ended up sitting with Quin in a few tide pools but opting not to risk jumping all of the way in.  The hike back up was pretty tough between the heat and the steep incline, it took us about an hour. By the time we reached the top we had drank all of our water and Gatorade and were definitely ready for lunch. A quick google search suggested a nearby tacos place – Shakaz Tacos. And it was one of our favorite meals since getting to Hawaii. We split some Ono tacos and a steak quesadilla with Shakas sauce, lime crema, and homemade green salsa. All of the food was super fresh and flavorful, even Quin liked it. After lunch we grabbed some shaved ice and then headed back to the Air BnB for nap time. Quin wasn’t cooperating with napping, so it was a while before we were ready to head out again. Around 4 we decided to check out a nearby beach that was supposed to be better for kids – Magic Sand Beach. There were still a lot of rocks, but not nearly as bad as some of the others. It was also full of coconut trees, which were scenic, but also came very close to dropping a coconut on a nearby kid. We brought a towel and staked out a spot to watch the sunset around 6. The beach was full of tourists and locals alike. The coolest thing was watching the locals boogie board – I’ve never seen ‘extreme boogie boarding’ (my name for it) before, but it was crazy. They were riding in on huge waves, doing 360’s, riding through the pipe – it was super impressive to watch. The sunset was beautiful – the sky lit up with all sorts of pretty pinks. All in all, it was a nice end to an exhausting day.  Afterward we grabbed a quick dinner at the local grocery store - KTA. We’ve been trying to eat at least one meal a day from groceries we bought or ready to go meals at the grocery store so that we spend less of a fortune on food here. The poke selection at the grocery stores is quite impressive (although I haven’t been able to try it this trip). In short – Captain Cook is a tough hike that requires lots of water and it’s best to start early. The views were great, but I don’t think I would recommend doing the hike unless you’re bringing your own snorkel gear for the bottom.

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