Monday, January 6, 2014

Just out for a walk

The plan was to hike the trail at Mariner's Ridge, a 45-minute climb to some incredible views of Waimanalo and beyond. Takako, Izumi, Takae, and Javier got up early, drank a cup of coffee, did a bit of stretching, and headed out for a beautiful day of hiking. Javier promised them some wonderful views, and everyone was excited about the hike ahead. Check out the view from the top of Mariner's Ridge:



When they got to the trailhead however, a huge fence and a couple of warning signs kept them away. Mariner's Ridge is on land that's privately owned, and the landowners no longer want hikers on their land. Too bad; this was a beautiful and relatively easy place to hike. Our brave hikers felt a little sad that they couldn't go on this trail, but they weren't discouraged. They knew that other equally wonderful places were not far away. 
So off they went in search of a new trail. They didn't have to drive too far before stopping at Hanauma Bay, where there's a ridge that edges the bay and offers a very easy hike with some spectacular views. After parking the car and going up a few steps, they reached the trailhead and found, for the second time that day, a gate blocking the entrance and a sign that read: No Trespassing. This time however, our fearless hikers hopped the fence and went for a very nice walk.


Their walk offered them some very nice views of Hawaii Kai, Koko Head, Diamond Head, and the bay below. This was Izumi's first ever hike, and she was very glad that it wasn't a very difficult one. 






At the end of the hike, our four hikers came across a brick wall with a little graffiti, so they decided it was a good idea to pose by it and look a bit cool and distant. (If you look close, you can see Diamond Head in the back.)

Truly satisfied with with how the day had turned out, our daring heroes decided to make a quick stop at Halona Cove, which is a small beach located off the highway that requires a short descent. Nobody had brought a bathing suit so they couldn't go swimming, but they put their feet in the water and let the ocean carry back with it some of their aches. They were able to see a couple of turtles feeding in the ocean.



All in all, they had a great day. It's amazing the things you can see when you just go out for a walk in Hawaii.