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Big Island Off the Beaten Track, Part One

Guest Post by Amy Perry Basseches 

Traveling in Hawaii has long been on my bucket list of adventures. Finally, last month, I spent a week with my 20-year old daughter on the Big Island. Ahead of time, we rerouted our itinerary to avoid the small area in the southeast affected by the Kilauea volcano. And the journey was truly memorable. I’ll be sharing three separate aspects of our trip. Rent a 4WD vehicle, explore the full range of possibility, and enjoy. 
 
After landing at Kona Airport on the Island’s west side, we began our trip with several days in Holualoa. Holualoa is a small artist and coffee community in the hills above Kailua-Kona. Mamalohoa Highway winds through the heart of the town, past the wonderful Holuakoa Gardens and Cafe, where we relished several meals, including one with fresh "opah" fish and our first taste of Kona Brewing Company’s Longboard Island Lager. Most of the ingredients are locally sourced (organic fruits, vegetables, herbs, meats, and fish), and eaten under twinkling lights woven into the wood framing. 
 
Satisfied after eating, we wandered into a dozen or more art galleries, bought jewelry, and chatted with folks who have chosen to live and create in this historic island town. We also visited Hula Daddy Coffee Farm, which, like many other coffee producers on the upland slopes of Kona, use the high elevation, constant cloud coverage, and rich volcanic soil to create quality coffee. In fact, one of their coffees (Hula Daddy Kona Coffee, 100% Kona SL-28, Roast: Medium-Light) was selected as the No. 2 coffee on Coffee Review’s list of the Top 30 Coffees of 2017.
 
Our destination on yet another outing was to pay homage to Holualoa’s past as a small Japanese village. We stopped at several sites including a Japanese cemetery, many old buildings from the early 1900s, and Doris’ Place grocery. Japanese immigrants came to Hawaii primarily as sugar laborers in the late 1800s and then worked the coffee country. The cemetery was full of coral and lava rock headstones inscribed with kanji. The markers on buildings included "Dr. Hayashi’s Office and Home, 1897." Lastly, Doris’ Place, staffed since 1948 by Doris herself. We walked in on the store’s 70th anniversary celebration, quite a treat. 
 

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I’m off to the Adirondacks to see my high school buddies. Back on Monday. Enjoy the weekend and keep active! 

 
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Guest Post and Photo by Amy Perry Basseches

One last outing from Quito to describe: the Mindo Cloud Forest, a premier destination for outdoor adventure. Although relatively small in size, the Ecuador cloud forest is considered one of the top biodiversity hot spots, containing approximately 15 to 17% of the world’s plant species and nearly 20% of its bird species.
 
Led by our guide, Antonio Jaramillo, who runs a company called Wild Ecuador, we ventured 2 hours northwest of Quito to Mindo. This outing is best started in the very early morning to get the optimum weather in the cloud forest and the chance to do the most — we did not understand this fact, and had it scheduled for an afternoon visit. My loss is the reader’s gain.
 
While it is possible to visit Mindo as a day trip, spend at least one night to enjoy bird watching, hiking, butterflies, chocolate making, orchids, and adventure activities (tubing and rafting in rivers, ziplining over ravines, waterfall rappelling). Antonio is an expert birder — there are 1680 total bird species in Ecuador, and he has 1125 on his life list! Mindo itself is home to over 450 species. After we rode a chairlift high above the clouds, we really enjoyed sitting with him drinking a local beer at Sachatamia Lodge (which provides a link to all local service providers), while he named the birds we were seeing. Sachatamia is a rustic wood hotel with 13 comfortable rooms and a pool; I would have been happy there. There are many other options for overnight as well, plus places in the small town to grab food and beverage. Plan ahead and participate in more of the available fun.
 
Thanks to Brandi at Kensington Tours for connecting me with Antonio for this part of the trip. His expertise made it special. 
 
In general, Ecuador has 3 geographical regions beyond the Galapagos: the Coast, the Highland areas (including Quito and environs), and the Amazon (for example, Tena). Did you know that most of the roses in the US and Canada come from Ecuador’s Highlands? Make sure to explore as many areas as you can. Please contact ActiveTravels for advice and assistance. 
 

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