10 Days in Hawaii - Day Three: Last full day in Kona

May 3, 2021

10 Days in Hawaii: Day Three

Once again we woke to singing birds, with one bird being particularly peppy, around 7am. With not many businesses open that early, and because I loved yoga so much the day before, I decided to take another class! This time with a substitute teacher by the name of Michelle. She kicked our asses! The whole hour she was kind and patient as she pushed us to our limit. She encouraged the class through to the end and we all came out of it feeling refreshed, energized, and powerful.

After the yoga class, Jake and I enjoyed a nice one-hour drive to the Na’apala Stables in Waipio Valley, anticipating our first official activity of the trip! Along the way, we stopped at the (1)Hawaiian Style Cafe in Waimea. As we entered the restaurant we were humorously warned by the host that took us to our table, “if you have anything to do today, I don’t recommend the pancakes, but if you don’t, I highly recommend the pancakes”. As we looked around the restaurant we understood why. Each plate had two pancakes the size of two heads on a ginormous plate. With a horse ride in the near future, we could only enjoy the pancakes from afar and instead ordered corned beef hash and loco moko! Our plates were huge and we could barely finish it all but 10/10 recommend!

As we drove to Waipio Valley, we were a little lost. We arrived at a small gift shop but were unaware of where the group for horse riding would meet. Yep! We were doing a 2 hr horse adventure and it was Jake's first time on a horse. He was a little nervous, I could tell, but wouldn't own up to it! :) I've ridden a few horses in the past, and have loved horses ever since I was a little girl, so I couldn't have been any happier. My parents owned horses when I was just a tiny kid before living in the Philippines and it has been a dream of mine to own my own. This is the closest I could get... For now!

At the gift shop, we found our group just as lost as we were. The tour guide met up with us, had us fill out waivers, and once we were all set we jumped into a van with the windows knocked out for airflow. We suddenly realized that this valley where our adventure would be is an incredibly isolated village. And this valley we were going to was exactly what you'd see in pictures and that the drive to the valley would actually require an experienced driver to traverse the steep and narrow road. The recently paved road was about a mile long, descending nearly 2,000 ft, and about 20 years prior it wasn't paved at all. For many many years, this valley has been a hot spot for those looking for a hiking challenge because as we descended we saw about 50 or so hikers huffing and puffing, looking at us with exhaustion a hint of jealousy.

On the drive, we experienced the most fascinating views with multiple narrow waterfalls, as tall as where we had just come from. The drive to the stables included a short drive through a narrow river... I nearly expected the van to turn into a hovervan. One can dream, right?! Arriving at the stables, we were greeted by 10 horses all saddled up, ready to meet us. After a short informative lesson later by the guide Kiera, one by one, we were paired with our horses. Jake, got to mount Waka! I had the handsome Coco. As we got used to our horses, Kiera instructed us to form up single file out the gate. Dalia rounded up the back and we made our way through the remote location of the Waipi’o Valley.

There was a lot to our adventure as we learned a lot about the history and present state of the valley. We bonded with our horses, each with their own quirky personalities, for the next two hours, guiding them through the quiet dirt roads in a single file. I will mention that this ride is easy-going and best for novice riders. I'm unsure if there was another ride for more experienced riders, which if I ever come back, I would love to look into!

The two tour guides took the front and back position, mindfully sharing information with those near them. Closer to the middle it was difficult to hear so I suggest riding towards the front or back, however, we were able to switch our positions around every now and then so each person had the chance to ask questions or listen to their stories. These two tour guides were actually sisters and granddaughters to the woman who started the tour 60 or so years ago. They've been riding horses their whole lives and were leading people on tours for as long as they could remember. Their knowledge of the valley was vast including what kind of plants, fruit, and vegetables were grown here. They also shared that the 50 full-time residents of the valley were mostly farmers, living off-grid with nothing but was in the valley. Residents had small generators for heat, but that was about it. Wild horses, with numbers close to as many residents, roamed the area.

Each of our horses had special stories too. We learned that Waka, Jake's horse, was born in the valley and his dad was one of those horses running wild. You could tell he was connected to them as he would cock his head in their direction, longingly, every time they came into sight. He would also get excited and like to trot if he ever got the chance. Coco, my horse, was a wild horse that came to the stables on his own. Kiera said that he adopted them, finding their home and choosing to not leave. It may have been (or definitely was!) the food as he is known for being a snacker! He wasn't too bad with me but there were times he would pull in the direction of a leaf or grass.

Two hours went by quickly, but sitting in that position for that duration was not lost on me as I dismounted Coco. Giving her a pat and a goodbye, my knees almost gave out walking back to the porch. Luckily, we made it to the van and reversed the trip, with our legs intact. I almost didn't want to leave. Something about living off-grid has always called out to me. I've teased about it for almost 8 years so maybe one of these years I'll get the courage to do it.

Back to reality, we gathered our things and got back into our car saying goodbye to those we just spent the past few hours with. Originally, we had planned a trip around the entire island today, through Hilo, and down south to check out the Volcana National Park(3). But horse riding proved to take more out of us than we anticipated. Instead, we opted for an easy-going night in the BNB, stopping at the same sushi place we loved two nights prior. Falling asleep came easy as we were fast asleep before 10:30.

(1) Hawaiian Style Cafe: https://www.facebook.com/HawaiianStyleCafe

(2) Na’apala Stables: http://www.naalapastables.com/

(3) Volcanoes National Park: https://www.nps.gov/havo/index.htm