 |
| Waipio Vally Beach |
We rolled out of bed at 5:30 AM today to get ready to drive to the Waipio Valley and go horseback riding in the Valley of the Kings. Julie is less than enthusiastic about the adventure. We looked for a place to have a quick breakfast, but the navigation system I was using must not have had the latest maps because the McDonalds we were looking for was nowhere to be found. We gave up looking and headed down the highway towards Waipio so we could be at the meeting point by 9:00 AM. We finally stopped in at a supermarket in Honokaa for apple turnovers and coffee and that would be breakfast.
 |
| Waipio Valley |
We arrived at the rendezvous location, boarded a van with 7 other guests for a ½ hour drive to the floor of the Waipio valley and our awaiting steads. The drive was more the interesting on a narrow, winding, steep road with views of Waipio bay and beaches, ocean and the valley walls that went almost straight up. At the bottom of the valley we passed by a few houses, but our leader told us that most of the large population of Hawaiians that used to live in the valley were gone after 3 major tsunami waves had devastated the area since 1946.
 |
| Ann and Julie Almost Ready to Ride |
We arrived at the stables and were shown our designated horses according to how much riding experience you had. Our traveling partner, Ann McDonald, and I got horses that were supposed to be a little harder to handle. Ann and I mounted up and watched as Julie, who is not so comfortable on horseback, was given a little more instruction on getting on, sitting in the saddle and letting her horse, Shady Lady, know who was in charge. It is only vaguely clear that Shady Lady was buying the bit about who was in charge of the ride. She had her own idea of the peck order between the 2 of them. Actually Julie did quite well and it was not long before she had figured out Shady Lady had a need to bit horses next to her or to close in front of her and occasionally take a swipe at her rider.
Once everyone relaxed and was comfortable on their horses, we started a leisurely ride through the valley, across small streams and up a sandy bottomed river. The valley floor had beautiful trees, bushes and flowers and the sides of the valley with it waterfalls were really spectacular. Our ride lasted about 1 ½ hours and that was plenty for all of us. Both Julie and Ann were ready to dismount. We jumped back into the van for the ride up to the top of valley and back to our car for the trip back to Hilo.
 |
| Riding the Waipio Valley |
We stopped in Honokaa and had lunch at Jolene’s Kau Kau Café. It was a small, homey place with great, fresh seafood. We were also told that Tex’s driving had the best mallasadas on the island and had to try them. Personally, I found them to be too big and not nearly as tasty as the one I had had in Honolulu, so in my opinion, I doubted they were the best on the island, buy they were hot and fresh. We bought a pack of 6 and munched them on the drive back to the ship. We leave at 8:00 tonight for San Diego and home.
 |
| Ann, Julie and Dave in Waipio Valley |
 |
| Julie on Shady Lady |
No comments:
Post a Comment