I was deleting files on my computer, and came across this file. It is a log of my trip in November 2019. I think this was my first solo trip to Hawaii.
4:30 AM SuperShuttle pick up at home and ride to Airport.
6:00 AM Delta flight from Terminal 3 at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport. Phoenix to LAX. Lax to Honolulu. 3 hours in Honolulu Airport. Honolulu to Hilo. Arrive Hilo at 4:00 PM.
Pick up jeep from Thrifty Car Rental. – Out of Airport about 5:00 PM. To WalMart in Hilo for groceries, and Home Depot to pick up concrete and block. Sign at Home Depot advertising 60 lb bags of premixed concrete for $7.89. Get to register, and the clerk tells me that they are all out of 60 lb bags. I tell her that there is a pile of it out on the front loading dock – maybe 30 bags – all I need are 4. She rings it up and I go out to load up. The yard boy points out that the bags I see are all 80 lb bags . . . they are all out of 60 lb bags. I load up my block and return into the store, to the same cashier, and I have to apologize and tell her that she was correct. The bags I saw were 80 lb bags, under the 60 lb sign. She has others in line, so she asks the cashier in Garden area to assist me. She credits my credit card the cost of the 4 60 lb bags, and proceeds to ring up the 80 lb bags. She says,” Because of the mix-up, I can discount these to the cost of the 60 lb bags”. I pay for the 80 lb bags at the 60 lb price, go out to the loading dock and load up my 4 bags and proceed to leave. All the while, I am thinking, “What difference did it make? – Why go through the exercise of refunding me $7.89 for the 60 lb bags I had purchased, that they did not have, and then charge me $7.89 for the 80 lb bags that they do have? Why not simply give me 4 80 lb bags and send me on my way?” Strange.
The place I am staying is in the Glenwood subdivision outside Hilo. I drive west on Highway 11 past the turn off to Pahoa, past the towns of Kurtisville and Mountain View. The map I have tells me that I need to turn on Glenwood road. I do not know if there is a traffic light at the intersection, or if this is one of the many minor roads leading off from the highway. It was dark when I was finished at Home Depot, so I am driving along Highway 11 in the dark with no streetlights, trying to find the names of streets that may or may not be well marked. I come to a well-lighted intersection with a traffic signal. Kulani Road. South Kulani Road to the left (Makai – towards the ocean), and North Kulani Road to the right (Mauka – towards the mountain) A few miles past this intersection is a small mini-market on the right side of the road, and just past this is a sign indicating that I am approaching an intersection with Glenwood Road. Just past the turn for Glenwood Road is a mile marker for mile 20.
I turn left onto Glenwood Road and head off into the jungle. Glenwood is a well paved road, wide enough for two cars – one each direction – but there are no painted lines on the roadway. The road follows the contours of the land through what appears to be individual farms of about 5 to 10 acres and it proceeds in a rather straight direction for about a mile, when it makes a 90 degree turn to the right, and another 90 degree turn to the left with about 100 feet between turns.
About 100 feet ahead is an intersection with a gravel road going left and right. Glenwood road continues straight south without stopping, while these two roads have stop signs. Off to the right is a gravel parking area about 50 foot square. Just past this is a speed bump with a sign telling you that it is a speed bump. 100 to 200 yards down the road is another speed bump complete with another sign.
Glenwood follows the contour of the land, is paved, as room for one lane each direction, but no markings on the pavement. Every mile or so is another intersection with a gravel road from each side. These gravel roads have stop signs, but Glenwood Road does not.
After traveling 3 or 4 miles past 3 or 4 gravel roads, I was concerned about finding Makoa Road, so I called my Air B-N-B host. I spoke with Jen. She talked to me as I made my down Glenwood for another mile until I came to a third speed bump, and about 100 feet past the speed bump is Makoa Road. Turning left, I was now heading generally East. Jen continued talking to me as I drove down this gravel/dirt/rocky road at about 20 miles per hour, for about a mile to another intersection with another gravel road traveling north and south with stop signs for this road but not for Makoa. Jen told me to continue through the intersection for about another mile. I passed an entrance to one of the properties off to the right where they have made a grand entry with curving rock walls about 2 foot tall and sloping up to 5 or 6 foot tall at the entrance with iron gates maybe 20 foot wide. Red cinders have been spread over the entire entry. I passed this and came to some entries on the left, but not the entry to the Air B-N-B I was staying in. Over a slight hill, down into a gully, there on the left is the large arched blue gate – made out of what looks like corrugated roofing. On a masonry column before the gate is a keypad, and Jen gave me the code for the keypad. After four or five tries, I finally got it right and the gate swung open.
As I drive thru the gate, off to the left is a lean-to type building with the tall side towards the driveway. This building is a post and beam structure 12 foot tall on the high side sloping down to about 8. It looks to be 12 foot deep by 30 foot long. It is cluttered with workbenches and there are two SUV type vehicles pulled in under the roof with their hoods up. Obviously, a mechanic shop of some sort. Off to the right is a structure that looks like it might be a house of some sort. The architecture appears to be beach driftwood classic. Sitting out front on two folding lawn chairs are two adults. I assume that they are Jen and Keith. I stop and get out as the husband gets up and walks over. The driveway is not very level, not well marked, simply dirt and rocks. About 30 yards ahead is a car parked off to the left, it looks like there are white chalk lines on the ground to indicate parking places. There is a sign with the number 3 straight ahead at what would be the end of the parking space. There is a tall building past the parking stalls – 18 to 20 foot tall, 4 or 5 foot off the ground.
He introduces himself and I promptly forget his name. He tells me to park straight ahead, but keep to the left as much as possible to leave room for another car to the right. I thank him for the instructions that Jen gave me, I comment on the gate. The person who had rented unit 4, which was the unit I was to occupy, extended his stay, so I will be in unit 3. The only difference is that unit 3 has a queen sized bed, where unit 4 has two twin beds. He talks about his business as an auto mechanic. We talk about coqui frogs and general stuff. I proceed to park.
I gather up a few items and proceed down the path towards the tall building. It appears to be about 36 feet long from left to right and the path drops down from the parking area through a slight depression towards the left side of the building. As I descend about halfway to the building, a motion sensor kicks a flood light on to light up the path. The path is covered in red cinders, as is the parking area. As I round the corner, another motion sensor kicks a second light on showing me a few steps of concrete and beyond these, is a set of three wooden steps leading to a porch that runs the length of the building opposite the parking area.
My unit is the first one at the corner, and when I get to the door, I try to enter the code into the door lock to unlock the door. There are no lights on the porch. I cannot see the buttons, much less the numbers on the buttons. I put down my suitcase and get my phone out of my pocket to use as a flashlight. I can now see the numbers and the keypad.
The door is a Stanley metal door with a window in the upper half that slides up. The unit is two story. The first story looks to be about 8 foot wide and 12 foot deep. Straight ahead and in the far left corner is what would be described as the “stairs” –
not much more than a ladder in an area 3 foot deep by 4 foot wide. To the right is a small room with a 3 x 3 fiberglass shower stall.
Immediately to the right as I enter from the porch (or Lanai) is a shelf in the corner at about 5 foot high with a small microwave.
To the left is another shelf at 3 foot above the floor with what appears to be a low voltage camping refrigerator – 18 to 24 inches long, 12 inches deep and 12 inches high – with a lid that opens from the top. In front of these two shelves and between the refrigerator and me is a 4 foot round glass table. There are two plastic patio chairs at the table. In front of the stairs/ladder is a folding table 24 inches wide, and 3 foot long. Above this is a wooden pole at a 45 degree angle with three plastic hangers.
I put my suitcase on the table, hang up my jacket and proceed up the ladder. At the top of the ladder, the ceiling is about 4’6” high and slopes away to the south where it is probably 8 feet high. The walls and the ceiling are covered with a plastic/melamine board with wooden strips over the joints – well, most of the joints. This same 1 x 3 is used in some areas as the baseboard. At the far south wall, there are two aluminum sliding windows at 4’6” off the floor.
To the left of the ladder is a 2 foot vanity and in the corner is a toilet. In front of the toilet is 3 foot of wall to provide privacy to the toilet.
Between this wall and the windows is a queen sized bed. Hanging on the wall is a 48” flat screen TV. The floor upstairs and down is covered in what looks like sheet vinyl. The seam in front of the vanity is held down with staples.
I return to the jeep and get the cooler and my backpack. I unload the stuff from the cooler into the fridge, heat up some roast beef I brought from Phoenix and make myself a sandwich.
I turn on the TV. I can get NetFlix, Hulu, and others, if I have them downloaded on my computer and have my computer hooked up to the TV. I turn off the TV and go to bed.
Sunday – Drive to Holowai – 7:00 AM to 9:00 AM 11/3
Sunday morning, November 3rd. I wake up around 6:30. I go downstairs and take a shower. The shower head gives off a very fine spray which makes the water cooler than it is. The faucet is a single knob with a sign taped to the wall that says: “Turn valve all the way for cool, ½ way or less for hot”. I turn the valve to about ¼ to ½ turn and it is warmer, but not hot. After getting dressed, I have a bowl of frosted flakes. The electrical power is off from 11:00 PM until 7:00 AM, so the microwave does not work. The low voltage must be on 24 hours a day, because the lights and the fridge work. I rinse out my bowl, put the bottle of Pepsi and the carton of POG juice that I bought in the Jeep and head off to Na’alehu.
I stop in at the gas station/convenience store/grocery store in Na’alehu and get a bag of ice. At Holowai, I dig out the red cooler and put the Pepsi, the juice, a couple of bottles of water and the ice in. I start to unload the block and the concrete, putting the concrete on top of the pallets by the platform, and the block next to it. I have to stop and rest and wipe the sweat off many times.
Once the block and concrete are out of the Jeep, I put the buckets and the plastic bottles into the back of the jeep. Then I find some gloves and begin to move the pile of branches that I left at the northeast corner of the first lot, where I am planning to have a driveway. I move the branches into the gulley where I had started throwing rocks on the last trip. Then I go get the Jeep. Using the Jeep, I drive over the branches, crushing them into the rocks below.
I look at the driveway. Not a bad start, but it still needs more fill. Just past the gulley, is a small hill. I get the hammer, use it as a pick, and dig out this rise to the level of the driveway, throwing the rocks and dirt onto the crushed branches. To the east of this is another pile of branches. I move these branches into the drive way also using the jeep to crush these, back and forth, back and forth. I still need something to make a driving surface – I need a load of cinders.
A trip in the afternoon to the park in Waiohinu to get water to water the trees.
I move the block to the bottom of the hill, and cover the concrete with a black plastic bag, and head off to Glenwood.
Monday – to Hilo for Lumber 11/4
Monday morning, November 4th, I wake up a little after 6:00 AM. Have a bowl of frosted flakes for breakfast and take a shower. I found that if I took off the showerhead, the water comes out of the hose in one steady stream, and feels a bit warmer. Under the far end of the front porch are the top half portions of some buckets that have been used as concrete forms. I “appropriate” these to use on my deck/platform at the bottom of the property. Also, I “borrow” a 4 foot level leaning against the wall in the third unfinished section of this building. I get into the Jeep and head off. Instead of turning left at the highway to go towards Na’alehu, I turn right and head into Hilo. I need to pick up some lumber for the deck at the bottom of the property. The trees on both side of the street are about thirty feet tall, and there is thick under brush growth. This is definitely a very wet area of rainforest jungle. A few miles down the road, I come to the Mountain View elementary school on the right side of the road. A modern well kept school complex – like most elementary schools today, there is an iron fence around the entire school. Further on, I drive past the town of Kurtistown and I notice that gasoline is priced at $3.79 per gallon at the 7/11 convenience store. I’ll check the price of gas in Ocean View later in the week. After Kurtistown, is the town/area called Keaau. At Keaau, there is a large intersection to the only highway down to Pahoa and the Southeast end of the island. There is always lots of traffic here, but this morning it is extremely heavy. Before getting to the bypass that connects Pahoa road to Highway 11 heading back into Hilo, traffic comes to a halt. We are 8 or 9 miles out of Hilo and traffic is moving at about 5 to 10 miles per hour. It is Monday morning, around 7:30 in the morning – must be the morning rush hour of people going in to Hilo for work from the outlying towns and areas. Slow and steady, it takes 45 minutes to get to Home Depot in Hilo. I pick up some 2 x 6’s and head out to Na’alehu. I drive back up past Keaau, Kurtistown, Mountain View and Volcano, before passing the entrance to the Visitor’s Center at Volcano National Park. I’m at about 4300 foot elevation and beginning to descend towards Pahala. Mauna Loa looms off to the right, the top shrouded in clouds and the slopes covered in green vegetation. Past the turn offs to Pahala and after the macadamia nut farms the road to Punalu’u Black Sand Beach goes off to the left. The ocean and shore views stretch out before me as I descend into a small valley with a flat bottom. At the bottom of the hill is the gated area that leads to a ¼ mile walk through the trees and grass to a crescent bay of black pebbles. Along this pathway, there are a few signs telling about historical events, and information about the plants along the way. At the other end of this valley is the other entrance to Punalu’u Black Sand Beach and Sea Mountain Condominiums. About half way across the valley there is a corral area off to the right under the Monkey pod trees. Directly opposite the corrals is a road with a yellow gate that is open and leads off through the tall grass towards the ocean. I have driven past it before seeing that the gate is open and decide that there is no time like the present to go exploring. I turn around and go back to the gate. Less than 100 feet past the gate, there is a rocky hill that would be difficult in a 2-wheel drive vehicle and impossible in a rental car.
I shift into 4-wheel drive and proceed up and over the rise of about 6 feet, and then descend approximately 8 feet. A 4-wheel drive is absolutely necessary to navigate the potholes at the bottom of this hill, and without 4 wheel drive, it would almost be impossible to get back out.
The road meanders through the tall grass, passing under monkey pod trees, and more rocky 4-wheel drive required areas.
The grass ends and in front of me is a small bay/lagoon that is relatively calm, with the waves breaking at the shoreline and reef line at the entrance to this small flat “pond”. On the opposite side, there are a dozen or so coconut palms.
To my right is a pole shed structure large enough for two full sized vehicles to park under with a shed roof sloping towards the ocean. The shoreline is covered in black smooth round pebbles smaller than a golf ball. The ocean stretches towards the horizon as I look south, broken only by the waves no taller than two feet that are breaking on the rocky shore. I stop the jeep on a flat, grassy covered parking area and walk out towards the fish pond. It appears to be no more than a foot or so deep, and the water is warm enough to be comfortable, yet still refreshing.
I fill my five buckets with small black pebbles, pull out the fishing pole and try a few casts across the surface of the fish pond. Nothing reacts to the lure I have on the end of the line as the waves slowly and caressingly cross from the ocean towards the back end of the pond. If I stay much longer, I will be tempted to stay all day, so I get back into the jeep and head back out to the road. Three or four times, I am grateful for the 4-wheel drive, and just before entering back onto the highway, I shift into 2-wheel drive.
I stop at Punalu’u Bake shop and buy a loaf of guava flavored bread rolls. Then I go across to the convenience store/gas station and get a bag of ice, and drive to the park at Waiohinu to fill up the bottles with water. It is noon before I arrive at the property on Holowai. I back into the parking spot I have created and place the buckets of rocks where the tires would go as I cross where I believe the property line to be. Using the jeep, I crush the branches and pebbles more into the driveway. It’s going to take a lot of trips for small pebbles.
I unload the 2 x 6’s from the jeep and take them down to the bottom of the hill where I am planning the next deck. The humidity is making itself known and I stop to rest many times. I move the concrete blocks to the bottom of the hill, and proceed to plan on how to construct this deck. I try leveling out the small hilltop and remove the dead limbs and branches. I stack a few rocks at the north side making a small rock wall.
I empty the water bottles onto the trees and plants and use a couple to wash my head, and arms and hands. I load up the bottles and the buckets, and call it a day.
Tuesday – 6:30 AM to 9:30 AM – Drive into Holowai 11/5
Stop at Fish Pond – 4 wheel drive – gather stones
Stop at Waiohinu Park for water
More digging and rocks into driveway area
Pour columns for lower platform
Ice in Ocean View
Home Depot in Hilo in evening – floor joist
Wednesday – 6:30 to 9:00 AM 11/6/
Cinders and rocks along road by sign to entrance to park
Water from Waiohinu park
Install beams on pillars
Get Chipper from Lorenzo
Chip pile by front entrance
Chip branches at driveway
Home Depot in Hilo for floor joist
Thursday – 11/7
Chip branches at south end of walkway – north End of house clearing
Back to Fish pond for more black pebbles.
Install floor joist over beams
Friday 11/8
Cinders from along the road near bridge construction
Chip pile at top of slope to bottom portion of property
Install fascia on ends of floor joist and two sides of platform
Water from Waiohinu Park
Saturday 11/9
Sand at ocean bath area
Ice in Naalehu
Community meeting about Fire Ants
Sort and organize –
Tarp from Ace Hardware
Back to the mainland.
TTFN
TropicalCastaway 