Waimanu Valley to Honokaa

I woke up to rain. Not much sleep. It is 7am and getting light out. I get up and look around. I have not seen the valley yet since I got here in the dark. It is beautiful! There are waterfalls in the back of the valley and the ocean is amazing!

It is still cloudy but has stopped raining. I am still nervous about getting back because of all the rain last night. I start to pack. It starts to rain! Hard! I frantically start putting my stuff away. I don’t want it to get it wet! The rain reinforces my need to leave.

I take some photos and video and get out of there! I have to cross the river again! Do I take my shoes off? Screw it. I walk through with my shoes on. My feet are now wet. I have to climb 1000ft abruptly. I have no lack of motivation. I scale that cliff face quickly. When I come to the first creek crossing, there is not much water. I am relieved. Creek after creek, not much water. Whew!

The rain stops and I take off my rain jacket and rearrange my pack. I grabbed a nice walking stick that was at the camp and it is nice to have for added stability. I meander in and out of the valleys that I walked through the previous day. There are a lot of spider webs in the trail that I keep walking into. That is super annoying.I try to stay attentive so that I can avoid them!

It felt like I was making great time going back. There is a metal roofed shelter that I stopped at to eat breakfast. Mmm… More peanut butter, honey and bagels. Yum! Eventually, I make it back to the top of the Waipao valley and reflect on how far I have come and the beautiful view! I left camp at 8am and it is now almost noon.

I take a few more photos and descend the “Z” trail. I make it to the bottom and look up. Wow! That is quite the climb. I walk the beach, cross another river and walk to where I stashed my bike. Whew! It is still there. I load up and start peddling back. It is great to be on the bike again. But! The challenging hills are not done.

Remember the 20-25 degree road that I descended. Yeah. Well. Now… I get to climb it. I get close, go into granny gear (the lowest gear) and increase my cadence. Yes! I’m ascending! I am out of the saddle giving it all that I have. I make it up the first section but then there is a car behind me and I need to dismount. Dang! I was doing great!

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The road is super narrow, only one car wide. I try to get on again and start riding. It is super hard to start. I get going again. There were certain sections that I ended up walking. I’d guess that I biked up 3/4 of it. Solid!

A car passes and the driver says, “stallion.” I look over and barely manage to say, “thanks.” There are many tourists walking down and watching as I try and bike up. Finally, I make it to the top. Whew! Alright, now only 10 miles till Honokaa for some water and food! The 10 miles are manageable and easier then the hike.

I cruise into town and return to Hotel Honokaa Club to retrieve my things. I need food! I go to a local eatery called, “simply natural.” I order two Toro pancakes, eggs, iced coffee and two smoothies. Mmm!!! So good! This is the life!

I return to the hotel/hostel and evaluate the next plan. Originally, I intended to bike to Hilo (50 miles) but it was 2:20pm and would be dark in 4 hours. I was crushed from the last two days. I decide to stay In Honokaa and enjoy the evening. I go to the local library to blog and the went to a local pizzeria to get pizza… Duh!

I met some local kids that I talked to for a while. We had a good conversation about local life and good places to surf. Now I’m back at the hostel writing away. Plan is to sleep soon and get an early start. At least I have a roof over my head and do not have to worry about getting washed away. Looking forward to tomorrow!