Hawaii Trip Recap: Day 2 (11/14/10)

Pretty sweet sunrise view from our deck, huh? Unfortunately, I'd already been awake for a couple of hours at this point. After such an early turn-in the night before, I found myself wide awake at 3:43 AM (slept like a rock for almost 8 hours). This turned out to be not such a bad thing; infact, I was rewarded with some incredible stargazing out on the deck. Captain Cook is such a small and isolated place that there's very little in the way of manmade light to get in the way of this pursuit. A quick audible led me briefly back inside to fumble toward the fridge and grab a brew, the only thing I could think of that might possibly make the situation more enjoyable. (Yes, a beer at 4AM. Am I ashamed? No, I am not.)

After settling back into my chair and propping my feet up, it didn't take long to settle into a state of near hypnosis, lulled into complete relaxation by the twinkling of the impossibly bright stars, set to a soundtrack of light breezes, the lapping of waves down in the bay, plus crickets, frogs and assorted other critters with more legs than I. By 4:45, joining the mix were some roosters whose services were entirely unnecessary on this particular morning. At 5:30 the stars began to fade and the sky over the hill began to lighten. 6AM appears to be the designated wakeup time for every bird in the general vicinity, and the start of an uninterrupted chorus of mostly unfamiliar chirps, shrieks, whistles and warbles that lasted well over an hour. At 6:30, the sunlight began to pour over the hill (as pictured above), and shades of grey turned to brilliant greens. Just a wonderfully relaxing and recharging start to the day.

After breakfast on the deck, we loaded up our snorkel gear, rented a sea kayak and headed down the hill to Kealakekua Bay. A half hour paddle over calm waters brought us to the Captain Cook monument, where the captain met his unfortunate demise. There's a huge underwater state park surrounding the monument with the best snorkeling we've experienced. Very clear waters, plenty of sunlight, loads of colorful fish, coral, anemones and whatnot. The view from the kayak as we're approaching the monument.

And here's the view on the way back across the bay. The cliffs are called Pali Kapu O Keōua (forbidden cliffs of Keōua), and were once the burial place of ancient Hawaiian royalty.

We worked up quite an appetite with all that swimming and paddling, so after a brief stop back at the B&B, we headed north 20 minutes to Kailua-Kona, the main tourist hub of the Big Island. We ate lunch at Humpy's Big Island Alehouse , whose bar manager, Bill, I made contact with through the Beer Advocate website. Not a bad spot at all. Tasty (and gut-bustingly proportioned) food with a nice selection of Hawaiian and mainland brews. Friendly and informed service, nice waterside location, sunny and breezy lanai. Plus Bill hooked us up with a couple of complimentary drafts and tips on what stores to find the best selection of local beers (we soon took advantage of these tips). Good times all around.

We got back to Captain Cook in time to sneak in a trip to Pu’uhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park. This was the site of a pu'huhonua, place of refuge, where defeated warriors and those individuals who had broken a kapu (sacred law) could escape certain death. The National Park Service is really doing a nice job with the restoration and reconstruction of the complex.

This is the Hale o Keawe, a rebuilt version of a temple and mausoleum where ali'i (noble chiefs) were laid to rest. Ki'i (carved wooden images) guard the outside.

Rhonda getting chummy with another couple of ki'i.

The foundations of many buildings are visible.

Got back just before dark and briefly chatted with a young German couple (drinking Bud Light, naturally) before enjoying a couple of fine local brews out on the deck. Turned in early again.

Hawaii Trip Recap: Day 1 (11/13/10)

Much of this day was spent on planes, as it's a long trip from the east coast. A reeeeeallly long trip. Had a bit of a close call with our connection in Phoenix, as we got there half an hour early, but then there was a broken down plane at our gate. By the time we waited that situation out, we were pressed for time and had to undertake one of those frantic, bob and weave jogs through the airport (luckily our only luggage was backpacks). Made the connection and actually got into the Kona International Airport early, arriving mid-afternoon.

Our rental rig for the week was a soft top Jeep Wrangler. I've always kinda wanted one of those, so this was like a weeklong test drive. A fun vehicle once I finally figured out how to get the top down (it's not hard, you just need a little practice).

Our first order of business was to find the bed and breakfast where we'd spend the first couple of nights. A scenic 40-minute drive brought us to Captain Cook. This charming little town is situated high on the hills overlooking Kealakekua Bay. Our B&B, the Belle Vue did indeed have a beautiful view. Really a nice little place. Our host Viviane was warm and friendly without being intrusive, and was full of helpful hints about things to do in the area.

The driveway down to the B&B (much steeper than it looks here).

Not much in the way of picture-taking from the first day; we just wanted to relax, begin to soak in the atmosphere and get ready for the rest of the trip. But first, a hearty meal was in order. My never-ending search for culinary delights led us to little joint called Annie's Island Fresh Burgers. Great choice! ~Pats self on back~ These were without a doubt some of the best burgers that have gone down the ol' gullet. The (Big Island-raised) hand pressed patties were advertised as half pounders, but they seemed even larger. Juicy, succulent, perfectly cooked to medium rare (the only way to eat a burger) and not shy with the salt and pepper. The buns were appropriately sized to contain the monsters, and sturdy to boot, with a pleasant but unintrusive flavor, leaving the meat to be the rightful star of the show. The accompanying produce was very fresh. Decent fries, great tempura onion rings, and our first pints of fresh Kona Brewing Company beer rounded out the mail. A destination-worthy burger joint.

On the way back to Belle Vue, we stopped at the local supermarket for some more beer. Home cookin' (Deschutes Inversion IPA) for me, the surprisingly excellent Kona Big Swell Golden Ale for Rhonda. The day ended with a couple of brews on the deck and going to bed with the chickens when we couldn't make it any longer (6:30 for Rhonda, 8:00 for me).

Hawaii Pics

Stories to come later, but for now,
here are some pics.

Catching up- Brewgrass 2010, Asheville

Back in September, Rhonda, myself, cousin Ryan and friend Anthony met up in Asheville for the annual Brewgrass (like it sounds, brews and bluegrass) festival.

The fellas scoped out seats nice and early.

It got real crowded, real quick, but the tunes were good and the delicious microbrews were flowing freely.

We've been to several beer festivals since moving here, but Brewgrass in Asheville and Brewvival in Charleston are definitely a notch above the others. Which one reigns supreme? Lemme

talk it out.

LOCATION

Brewgrass is walking distance from the compact downtown area of Asheville, with multiple hotels, plus several breweries and restaurants with nice beer lists. While Charleston is a great city, the Brewvival location is right beside the COAST brewery; excellent brewery, but isolated venue, meaning shuttles/cabs/public transportation of questionable reliability. No contest here.

Advantage: Brewgrass

TIMING

Brewgrass is in September, still plenty of nice warm weather. Brewvival is in February; we were wearing tobaggans and fleece, even in sunny Charleston.

Advantage: Brewgrass.

VENUE

This may have to do with the number of tickets sold to the respective festivals, but Brewgrass almost seemed like an antfarm of camp chairs at times, and until things settled down, all the brewery tents had sizeable lines. At Brewvival, we had no little problem hitting any brewery we wanted, and had plenty of room to spread our wings.

Advantage: Brewvival

ENTERTAINMENT

An assortment of garage quality bands at Brewvival. A steady stream of smooth bluegrass at Brewgrass.

Advantage: Brewgrass.

FOOD

Reserving commentary until 2011. Didn't have food at either festival, although options seemed to be plentiful at both.

INTANGIBLES

Asheville's just a really cool place to hang out, but my folks live a short drive away from Brewvival, so lodging/transportation is taken care of!

Advantage: Push

BEER SELECTION

The most important category of course. Both festivals were great in this area, but in different ways. Brewgrass was able to capitalize on the thriving small brewery scene in North Carolina, with loads of local breweries showcasing their elixirs. The few breweries in attendance with widespread distribution- Sierra Nevada, Lagunitas, etc.- in general didn't bring anything all that interesting. By contrast, Brewvival had a smaller local/regional presence (although it was hosted by COAST, the best brewery in the state). What was really impressive was how many heavy hitters they recruited from across the country, not just the brewers, but the beers they brought. Some of the barrel-aged imperial stouts were particularly effective in cutting through the chilly February temps, including the bourbon barrel Stone Imperial Russian Stout (Stone's Greg Koch was the keynote speaker).
Advantage: Push

VERDICT

Brewgrass by a slim margin for now, but Brewvival put on a helluva festival in their first year. Very much looking forward to Brewvival take 2 in February 2011.

Catching up- Jack turned 4 in October

I'm not sure when the "calm down" switched gets flipped in Labs, but let the record show it doesn't happen at age 4.

Halloween 2010

Halloween is officially a "big deal" in our neighborhood, with most homes decorating, a costume parade and kids coming from all over town to trick or treat (or, in the case of our girls, from 45 minutes away). Rhonda escorted the girls up and down the street while I stuck around for candy-slinging duty. We ended up plowing through 18 bags(!) of candy in about 2 hours. Here are a few pics from the festivities.

Courtney as some kind of cheetah/cat.

Katheren went as a mummy bride. She did her own "undead" makeup.Aunt Rhonda went as Alice (the grown up version from the most recent Wonderland movie).I had no less than 3 moms ask to take pictures of my homemade "chick magnet" costume.A few of the neighborhood kids.

Daytrip to Carl Sandburg home

The former home of Carl Sandburg in nearby Flat Rock, NC, is home to a nice 264 acre national park. You can tour the house and walk the surrounding farm, plus get in some decent hiking as well. Definitely recommended for a visit if you find yourself in the area.

Rhonda and Jack taking a rest on top of Glassy Mountain.


Looking up toward the main house.
The Sandburgs moved here from Michigan in 1945, paying the princely sum of $45,000 for the house, a large farm with barn and outbuildings, plus plentiful woodland acreage.

Among the possessions that made the trip were Mrs. Sandburg's prized goat herd and their 16,000 volume library. Every room in the house has at least one bookshelf, even the dining room.

Slideshow of pics here.