Big Island Day 3

Our last day on the big island began with with alarm blaring at 5:45 AM. Very early start for vacation, but we were on a mission to catch the sunrise from Waipio Valley – Valley of the Kings! Luckily, the Airbnb was only a 5 minute drive from the overlook. We parked our car and headed down to the valley in the dark.

We arrived at the beach just as dawn was breaking. The view was breathtaking – pink hues filled the sky as giant waves crashed on the black beach. You couldn’t help but ask if you had arrived on the set of Lost. Despite being one of the islands main attractions, we were alone on the beach save for a couple of surfers. We spent about 45 minutes taking in the sunrise and enjoying the solitude before heading back up.

The walk back up was tough – climbing 1000 feet over less than a mile. From the top, we stopped at the overlook which we had skipped in the dark. In the distance you could see a mountain peeking over the cloud tops. It was Maui! I had no idea you could see Maui from the Big Island, but there it was! After a few moments, we headed back to the hostel to pack up and head to a well-deserved breakfast!

We made a pit stop in Waimea for a simple meal of eggs, sausage and toast. Nothing fancy, but it hit the spot! We continued driving back to the Kona side. Leaving the restaurant parking lot, we were treated to a view of Mauna Kea, complete with snow on the top. I can now say I have seen snow in Hawaii – achievement unlocked!

We drove to a beach on the Kona side. Despite having spent almost 4 days on the island, we hadn’t gone swimming yet. We fixed that at the beach. The beach we went to had these monster waves and was apparently a big place for boogie boarding. It was wild to see adult men getting destroyed on boogie boards by giant waves.

After we finished with the beach, we head back up the hills to Mountain Thunder Coffee Plantation to take their free coffee tour. The tour guide started by asking us if we knew where coffee came from (Ethiopia, I answered correctly), and how it was discovered (goats, I also answered correctly). It was a pretty interesting tour and I think I now know enough to quit my job and open a roastery.

After the tour, it was getting close to our flight. We weren’t super hungry, but the flight was 5 hours and we wouldn’t arrive til bedtime so we figured we should get one last meal. We opted to checkout Broke da Mouth Grindz – an excellent choice. We finished with a smoothie and then head to the airport. We dropped the car off without ever gassing-up which I would consider a win! Overall, a successful Big Island road trip!