Hawaii Trip Day 2 Makaiwa Bay and Hapuna Beach

We were up early again today but we slept a whole hour later than yesterday.  We were still up before the sunrise though, we were all up around 5 am.  Maybe we'll sleep until 6 am tomorrow! 

We had breakfast as the sun was coming up.  We all were anxious to get to the beach, the kids wanted to try out their new boogie boards and I wanted to do some snorkeling.  We made a plan to do both, first we'd head to a snorkeling beach and after that we'd head to a beach with some waves for boogie boarding.  By 7:15 we were done with breakfast, we'd packed a lunch for the beach and I was on my second load of laundry! 

We headed out a few minutes after 8:00, the snorkeling spot we were headed to is about 30 minutes north of the condo.  The road north to the beaches goes through lava fields, the kids have a lot of fun trying to read the Big Island graffiti.  Throughout the black lava fields there are messages written with pieces of white coral.  We also came across a group of goats who were walking about 20 yards off the highway. 

Our first stop was Makaiwa Bay.  Makaiwa Bay is located in the Mauna Lani resort area.  There is a public parking lot that offers beach access, there are only 19 spots so it is a good idea to get there early, although when we left mid-morning there were still a few spots.  We were the first ones there today.  It is a 3/4 mile walk from the parking lot to the beach.  The walk is beautiful though.  The paved path goes through a lava field and past ancient Hawaiian fish ponds that date back to 250 BC. 

This is a lava cave formed by a lava tube.

The path to the beach

Fish ponds

Our reward after the long walk

After our long walk we were rewarded with a near empty beach!  Honestly there were only 4 other people at the beach.  We set our stuff down and put on our snorkel gear.  It was a bit chilly still, the sun hadn't burned off all the clouds yet.  We were all a bit whiny about the cold water, well I probably whined the most.  It is kind of like taking off a band-aid though, once you get in all the way it isn't so bad. 

We didn't have to swim out far at all to know this was a great spot!  There were tons of fish and beautiful coral.  We were in awe! I highly recommend snorkeling at Makaiwa Bay, it is very easy snorkeling perfect for beginners.  The reef is amazing and there are so many types of fish!  Dan saw a sea turtle but the kids and I didn't venture out quite far enough to see it.

Ali did a bit better snorkeling today but still not as good as we'd hoped.  I can't quite figure out what she's having a hard time with.  She went out for about 10 minutes with us but then she was adamant that she wanted to go back to shore.  Dan took her back and then he and I took turns snorkeling while the other stayed with her.  Connor snorkeled longer than Ali but he also spent some time playing on the beach.

We stayed at Makaiwa Bay until 10:30, when we left there were probably 15-20 other families there.  It was definitely more crowded than when we'd arrived but there was still plenty of room to have fun!

We headed a couple miles north to Hapuna Beach.  We'd been to Hapuna last year and Dan and Connor had tons of fun boogie boarding.  Hapuna is a gorgeous beach with soft white sand.

After we staked out our spot the first thing we did was eat lunch, everyone was hungry after snorkeling.  We don't picnic much at home but we sure love to picnic on the beach!  After lunch we reapplied sunscreen and Dan and the kids went in the water to play in the waves. 

Last year Ali struggled with boogie boarding but this year she seemed to get the hang of it.  The waves weren't too big so it was a perfect day for her to build some confidence.  I sat in my beach chair and watched the 3 of them play in the waves.  I love to snorkel but other than that I'm not a big fan of playing in the ocean.  Dan and the kids love to be in the water but I'm content hanging out on the sand with a good book. 

We stayed at Hapuna for a couple of hours.  By 1:30 everyone was getting tired and a little bit crabby.  We decided it was time to head back to the condo to clean up and rest.  Ali fell asleep shortly after we left the parking lot, she slept most of the way back to Kona.

After we all rested for an hour or so, Dan took the kids to the pool.  The pool isn't fancy here but my kids seem to love it.  They come back each day and tell me about the new friends they've made. 

We ate dinner at the condo again tonight.  Dan grilled hamburgers on the outdoor grills by the pool, Connor even helped with the grilling!  We ate out on the lanai and watched the ocean, the kids decided that dinner tastes better in Hawaii.