Sackett/Pasquale - Week 2 - Molly and Thanksgiving

Molly caught up with her family for the middle week of their visit.

Hanging on the beach at Lanikai.


This seahorse was floating in the water at Lanikai Beach. We could not tell for sure if it was alive or not...either way it was pretty cool and a rare site.


Sage and Jacqui at Aikahi Playground.


We rented sea kayaks for a day and paddled to Flat Island and the Mokolua Islands. It was a gorgeous day and everyone did a great job pulling their own weight in the paddling!

It is seabird nesting season. We saw lots of shearwaters on both of the islands that we visited.

We explored the perimeter of Flat Island and found lots of crevices to explore.








We ate lunch and spent some time sunbathing on the left Mokulua Island, before we attempted to circumnavigate it.


We made it about two-thirds of the way around before we were turned back by the tides!

Hanging out with Hawai'i and Massachusetts friends.



Gabbi and Jacqui had a hip-hop performance (along with our friend Zoe)

Jacqui with her reverse coffee grinder.

Gabbi with her cool shades.

On Thanksgiving morning, we hiked the Old Pali Highway. It is a nice hike with great views and we have found avocados on the hike in the past.

This time we hit the jackpot with a load of papayas, a bunch of bananas (totaling about 40), and some avocados.

The hike follows the original Pali Highway that ran from the windward side of the island over to Honolulu. Much of the hike is paved.

Climbing for papayas...

For Thanksgiving dinner, Khris, Bruce , Zoe, and Cristoff hosted us for a potluck with about 7 families. It was a great way to spend the holiday, so far from home...

Pasquale/Sackett Visit

Gabbi and Jacqui giving River and Sage their leis they made.

We have been here for almost 2 years now and the girls (and us) have been anxiously awaiting a visit from one of their friends! Well, it finally happened. After Andy and Molly moved back to Massachusetts from England, they decided that now that they weren't almost half-way around the world from us, they would make the trek. They did and we really appreciated it. It was so awesome to have some of our best friends be in our space and share our lives for 3 weeks.

Hiking the pillboxes in Lanikai

On our first full day with our friends here, we decided to stay in Kailua and do a hike then go to the beach. We went to the pillboxes in Lanikai and then went for a dip at the beach. Hiking was great...there is always such great views from on top of these hills. The days started off with blue skies, but then clouds came in after the hike...and by the time we went to the beach....it got cool and cloudy. Not great swimming weather, but the kids went in anyways.

Andy and I on top of one of the pillboxes

Jumping in the beach after the hike

Lanikai looking as beautiful as ever...even on a cloudy day.

A couple of days later, we went on Gabbi and Jacqui's favorite hike, to Olomana. They love it because it has ropes to help you get up the steeper sections and there's some rock climbing toward the end. At the very top, it is very exposed. I must say, I was a bit nervous with 4 young ladies being up so high, with drop offs so dramatic. In the past Jacqui had never made it past the rock climbing part because she was afraid of the exposure up top. But this time, she did it. I was really proud of her (and of me for not totally freaking out!)

The girls in front of Konahuanui (the highest mnt. in the Ko'olau range)

Windy up on top

On top of Olomana

Halloween

Again, it was a bit weird to be dressing up for Halloween and not having a concern about being cold. Gabbi was a cowgirl, Jacqui was a scary vampire, Bill was a pirate and I was a gypsy.





We had a really fun night. We went over to our friends' Sari and Iam's house and had a potluck. We also ended up having an "impromptu" dance party. The kids had a blast. Then we went trick or treating into their neighborhood which reminded us a lot of our old Dana Woods neighborhood. We saw a first this Halloween....someone was giving out cotton candy, had the machine and everything. We would have gone, but the line was pretty long (darn!!). A great night overall!

Big Island Ladies' Trip

Gretchen, Khris and Toni

A few weekends ago three girlfriends and I took a trip to the Big Island. It was a weekend filled with lots of girl talk...hiking....drinking wine and just plain relaxing. We had a wonderful trip! I am blessed to have these ladies in my life here (although Toni lives in Oregon)

Our first stop was to hike up the side of Mauna Kea (a dormant volcano, which when measured by the ocean floor...where it originates...is the highest mountain in the world). To read more about Maunea Kea, check out this link (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mauna_Kea). The top of the mountain is home to approximately 10 telescopes representing several different countries. This summit is above the clouds and is clear about 360 days a year. The altitude and isolation in the middle of the Pacific Ocean makes Mauna Kea one of the best locations on earth for ground-based astronomy.

Views driving up.

Gretchen and I being silly

The hike that we did started at the Visitors Center which was at 9000 ft. Coming from sea level, it was quite an adjustment. We didn't hike all that far, but sure did enjoy the views. It felt lunar-like and was absolutely incredible. Our family is going back there next month with the Pasquale's and we're looking forward to taking the day to acclimate and making it to the top (13,803 ft) and doing a hike to a glacier lake. I'm very excited for this!!


Near the visitor's center, there is a short trail that leads to a few of the rare and endangered plants below called a silversword. The only exist here and in Hale'akala Crater on Maui. I've heard it can take up to 20-50 years for the plant to flower and then the plant dies shortly after. No wonder they are so rare and special.

Silversword past it's flowering phase.

We stayed at Kalopa State Park which is on the Haumakua Coast. We stayed in a cabin, the same one that our family stayed at last Christmas. Can't beat the price and we were the only ones there this time.

Hanging out in front of the cabin

Hiking in the rainforest of Kalopa State Park.

Pretty Trees

On Sunday, we had to drop Toni off to go back to Oregon and Gretchen, Khris and I headed to Volcano National Park. We hiked the same hike that I've hike two other times. It travels down, across, and back up the floor of a crater. Very cool hike.

A view of Halema'u'ma'u Crater

A couple of tree-huggers

Halema'uma'u Crater is responsible for all of the "vog" that the islands recive on days in which the eastern "trade winds" aren't blowing. The towns located south and west of this crater are suffering pretty bad air qualitly these days.

Thanks for a great weekend ladies!!