Hawaii Cruise
Opposed to most conceptions, Hawaii is a land of contrasts: rain forests to deserts, limited sandy beaches to lava coast lines, and lush foliage to scrub plants. Typically resort hotels are grouped next to each other where a good beach is available usually on the arid side of the island. Since the resort areas have manicured premises, these areas don’t look any different than other tropical resorts in the world. Property values are extremely high forcing a lower living standard for the residents. More than 75 percent of the 1 million population live on Oahu.
Although we have traveled to more than 40 foreign countries and 44 states in the U.S. as of December 2005, almost everyone we know has been to Hawaii except us. When we select places to visit, the excursion itinerary is most important. Although we considered visiting Hawaii in the past, we didn’t want to hang out at a beach resort and see other islands by way of island-jumping aircraft and car rentals. Therefore, if we were to visit Hawaii, it would be by ship.
Some ships stop in Honolulu on their way to other foreign ports. Others such as NCL Cruise Line offer a Hawaiian cruise that stops at some of the islands but must go to a foreign port wasting some four days at open sea because it is not a U.S. registered vessel. Recently NCL America was formed to operate ships in accordance with U.S. maritime law that dictates that the ship must have an all-American crew. NCL America's first U.S. flagged ship was Pride of Aloha followed by the new 2005-launched Pride of America, which took us to four of the eight major Hawaiian Islands in December 2005. On December 10 (Saturday) we arrived at Honolulu (Oahu Island) after almost an 8-hour flight from DFW. The ship departed port that evening.
Our first stop on Sunday was Hilo (on Hawaii Island also known as the Big Island). Our morning excursion included a bus tour through the tropical northeast coast and visiting the tropical botanical gardens on Onomea Bay. The garden contains many beautiful flowers and plants that are not indigenous to Hawaii. Most of the beautiful flowering plants and trees on the islands have been imported by man from places all over the world. The Hawaiian Islands were created in the middle of the Pacific Ocean from volcano magma and the nearest mainland is the U.S. west coast, which is some 2,500 miles away. After the islands were formed, indigenous plants took hold from a few seeds that either floated by air or sea to the islands and/or were brought in by birds. The trade winds from the northeast bring moisture to the northeast half of the islands and the other leeward half is either arid or desert.
On the afternoon of the 11th, I was privileged to take a helicopter tour over Kilauea Volcano, earth’s most geologically active environment. This remarkable air tour by Blue Hawaiian Helicopters flew over the current areas of volcanic activity on the Big Island, which was originally formed by five volcanoes. Today only two active volcanoes exist—Mauna Kea and Kilauea.
The smoke venting from Kilauea is sulfur dioxide, a very corrosive gas. Hikers are no longer allowed near the vent. Viewed in the middle of this photo, lava temperatures are measured at 2,100 degrees.
The steam rising from the shoreline contains hydrochloric acid.
Unfortunately I sat in the middle of the rear seat with three other passengers and had limited access to clear shots through the windows. However, I was able to capture acceptable images using my telephoto lens. Chris, the pilot, gave an excellent narration of the history and facts about the area over which we were flying.
We flew over a waterfall known as Hawaiian Falls that can only be seen from the air since there are no roads leading to it. At the end of the flight, I purchased a memorable 53-minute DVD recording of my actual flight with the pilot’s narration and background music.
On December 12 we landed at Kahului, Maui Island, where we had an enjoyable submarine adventure. The 48-passenger submersible allowed us to witness underwater wildlife including fish and the coral reef.
We attended a traditional luau. The luau included complimentary drinks (Mai Tia's, blue Hawaii's, beer wine and sodas) and buffet (not that good!).
The Haleakala Crater is the world’s largest dormant volcano. The crater measures over seven miles long and over two miles wide. Having last erupted in 1790, it is the highest point in Maui. The views from the top at 10,032 feet above sea level are magnificent. The Haleakala Observatories, off limits to visitors, were seen at a distance. They are set in the summit’s lunar landscape to assist scientists mapping movements of the Earth’s crust. While observing the lunar-type beauty of the crater, strong cold winds caused wind chill temperatures of 25 degrees.
On December 14 we docked at Kona on the Big Island. We took an excursion known as “Explore Kona by Land & Sea” that included a coastal bus tour and visiting a coffee growing area where we tasted the famed Kona coffee. Afterward, we boarded a catamaran and cruised up and down the coast. While cruising, a group of spinner dolphins playfully followed our boat.
The next day we landed at Nawiliwili, Kauai Island, undoubtedly the most beautiful of all four islands. Our “Mountain Safari Adventure” was unforgettable. Twenty-one of us were parceled into two 4-wheel vans driven by husband-wife guides Charlie and Tanya Cobb-Adams. We rode in the back seat of the lead van driven by Charlie (his real Hawaiian is Sole). The rough roads that swung us back and forth and bopped us up and down in the van were almost ignored as Charlie projected his enthusiasm, humor and knowledge of the area. We traversed over gated private roads where most tours did not dare to explore. Waimea Canyon, known as the “Grand Canyon of the Pacific,” was created by earth movements that almost split Kauai in two. Over time, heavy rains helped form a gorge 3,000 feet deep. Of course, it is still being eroded today. The red mud is carried to the ocean by the Waimea River.
Foreign competition has led to the demise of the sugar cane industry in Hawaii.
We drove by a defunct sugar cane factory leading to a 2,200 feet long tunnel that was used to transport sugar cane from fields on the other side of the mountain.
After transiting the cane tunnel, we entered the area where Jurassic Park was filmed.
My personal trainer, Flossie, at the health club back home encouraged me to workout on the ship. So, Flossie, I have photographic proof of my "working out."
Hey Flossie, I took your workout advice and see the results of my new body! (Actually Photoshop allowed me to use my head with another traveler’s body.)
On Saturday morning, we docked back in Honolulu. We disembarked the ship for a tour of Pearl Harbor and Honolulu before taking our evening flight back home. We toured the Arizona Memorial. The memorial straddles the hull of the U.S.S. Arizona. This is the final resting place for many of the crewmen killed on December 7, 1941.
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