May 31, 2009–Kahalu’u Bay

This weekend, we ventured down to Kahalu’u Bay. We have just added two new condos to our vacation rental program which are located at the Beach Villas at Kahalu’u  and needed some pictures for the website listing. The vog’s still here , but, as the pictures attest, the scenery in Kona is second to none. Check out the Honu pictures and videos which were taken from the overhang at the Outrigger Hotel. They are beautiful creatures and amazingly graceful! The last video is of Ka’aloa Beach, commonly referred to as Magic Sands. All of these pictures and videos were taken today.

Kahalu'u Bay Beautiful Water

Nice Colors!

Lush Vegetation

Red Hibiscus

Honu

Kahalu'u Bay looking south

St. Peter's Church at Kahalu'u Bay

Heiau

Watch a Swimming Honu:

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Boogie Board at Magic Sands (Ka’aloa Beach Park):

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May 23, 2009–Kailua Bay

This weekend was the opening competition of the Big Island paddling season at the Kailua-Kona pier at Kailua Bay. It was a beautiful day with blue skies and crystal clear water.

Getting ready to launch

Koa canoe

Close race

Beautiful Kailua Bay in Kona

just wanted to say thanks…………this place is fantastic and is everything we could have asked for and  more.

Andy M

We had an amazing stay in unit 16B. Your condo is beautifully furnished making us feel right at home. Very clean & nicely decorated. Spacious bedrooms that can easily accomodate six people. We enjoyed using the Viking grill on the lanai, made it very easy to throw a few steaks on & have a glass of wine while you take in the amazing sunsets. Great location, just a short walk to the clubhouse pool or Anaeho`omalu Bay. Nice white sandy beach where you can soak up some rays or go for a nice stroll. Various boutiques & restaurants at the Kings’ & Queens’ Shops, all within walking distance. What a great place for a vacation, to be able to unwind, relax & enjoy spending time with your family. It was hard to leave but we will definitely be back soon!

Jan M

Unit 16B is PARADISE!! The owner has taken great care in making sure that the unit is well decorated and equipped to reflect the island style that we all love. As soon as you walk in the condo invites you to kick off your shoes and relax! You will LOVE the island decor, I can’t stress this enough. Unit 16B is on the 2nd floor and the coveted corner unit so you enjoy windows all around. Open them up! The clean ocean breezes will make you forget that there’s air conditioning. The kitchen has everything you need, very clean utensils, just bring your own food. Don’t forget the spacious lanai with the grill, you won’t want to eat inside. Lots of extra pillows in the closet, air beds, even a playpen for the baby! You won’t get this at the Hilton down the road that’s for sure! Head for the pool at night, see the stars then run over to the lava hot tub…. you won’t regret it. My little niece enjoyed the pool made just for kids especially. Nearby lots of shops and restaurants, Macaroni Grill was great. Overall, I give this place a high 2 thumbs up with a “will DEFINITELY be back” kind of review. MUCH MAHALO for a wonderful time!!

David & Daysha

We’ve made countless visits to Hawaii over the years and while we’ve stayed mostly at hotels, we have rented condos on two occasions. When we stayed at this condo, we had a whole new appreciation for condo vacationing in Hawaii. Especially THIS condo!

The location of the Kolea complex itself in Waikoloa is nearly ideal. Every place we wanted to go in Waikoloa was within walking distance for us. We especially enjoyed the selection at the new grocery store and restaurants in the Queens Marketplace. For years we’ve enjoyed the shopping and free, live, local music & dancing in the evenings at the King’s Shops. It too was a short walk from 16B.

Probably the most enjoyable short walk for us was to the Kolea Ocean Club Pool and ‘A-Bay’, just a stone’s throw from the pool. ‘A-Bay’ offers perhaps the nicest beach experience in the Waikoloa area with its calm, protected waters, sandy beach and abundant marine life.

The condo itself offered many luxury options that were never available to us at resorts we’ve stayed at. First the condo was so spacious and lavishly funished that we really felt at home. We had the options of cooking indoors in the well equipped kitchen or outside on the large lanai using the Viking BBQ. I loved the fact that in the early morning I could enjoy my coffee on the lanai in my pajamas.

Although other people were staying in neighboring condo units, we never heard a sound from any of them. This condo was very quiet.
Although it was just the two of us, we both felt that it could comfortably accommodate 6 people. Our bed was comfortable and the bathroom spacious. When we have the opportunity to return to Hawaii we are planning on staying in this unit again!
Mahalo Nui Loa for allowing us to stay in in your hale (home).

Sam and Brenda

This category was suggested by Sue Kellam who recommended:

“Old Airport for picnic lunch, Manini Beach, Pahoehoe Park”.

So let us know your favorite spots–don’t be shy!

CAK

This post was suggested by Sue Kellam–so, she’d better leave a post! Where are your favorite dive spots on the Kona-Kohala coast? Thanks, Sue!

Dances with Whales

Ours is usually Honaunau/Two Step–easy in and easy out. Great visibility and always great sites and relaxing time. This pic was sent to me by Scott Hansen who dives all over the world.  I believe this was taken in Tonga where it’s “legal” to purposely dive with the Humpbacks. Sue has some great pics of the Kona coast–send them and we’ll post!

In this blog, list your favorite meal or place to eat on the Big Island of Hawaii. Click on the numbered tab on the left of this blog to add your comment.

Click on this link for a list of our favorites:  Big Island Ono Grinz.

We have recently enjoyed the Macaroni Grill and Splasher’s.

The  newly opened Romano’s Macaroni Grill is located in the new Queens’ Marketplace at Waikoloa Beach Resort. We’ve been there twice already and the food’s great! They opened November 24th and have been very busy, catering to families as well as couples.

If you love a good burger (and, be honest, who doesn’t really?) be sure to try Splasher’s, located near the pier on Ali’i Drive in Kailua-Kona. It’s not fancy, but the food is really good and the service friendly. Be sure to go early during your stay here because I guarantee you’ll want to go back!

Send us your favorite picture of the Big Island and we’ll post it on our site. Preferred 640 x 480 px size but any size will do and we can adjust it. Click on the number link at the left to add your post. In consideration of copyright laws, please send us only those images that you have taken or know not to be copyrighted. We promise not to use the photos for commercial gain. You can e-mail the file to drkwiat@yahoo.com.

Thanks to Gary Orton and my co-worker, Joanne Lombardi, for the following great picture of Rainbow Falls:

Rainbow Falls courtesy of Gary Orton

Below is one of our favorites:

Mauna Kea courtesy of Charlie Kaminsky

And, from Karen and Dickie Huff (longtime Kona residents and some of my BEST patients):

Kona Sunset courtesy of Karen and Dickie Huff

We are at a unique latitude in Kona where it is possible to see the Southern Cross and the Big Dipper–at the same time! Check out the picture I recently took of the Southern Cross from our home in North Kona:

Southern Cross viewed in Kona, Hawaii

Probably one of the most beautiful places in the world (on a clear, sunny day at least!):

Waipio Valley

This nice Honu pic at Makalawena Beach was taken by my trusty assistant, Katrina Sheehan:

Makalawena Resident

This next picture was contributed by local artist, Scott Hanson. He emphasizes that it was taken in Tonga, and not in Hawaii (where intentionally swimming with whales is prohibited). It’s still so incredible, I had to include it here:

Dances with Whales

We live on a coffee farm in Makalei Estates in the north Kona district. In 2008, we’ve already picked over 25,000 pounds of cherry on two acres and are in the process of roasting it for sale. We feel that our farm produces the best coffee in all of Kona (of course, ALL of the farmers feel that way, but our cherry certainly looks the best!).

Most of the world-renowned coffee grown in the Kona district comes from 2-3 acre farms such as ours. The farmers usually take the freshly picked coffee cherry (within 24 hours) to a nearby processing plant where the cherry is sold. In 2008, the going price paid per pound of cherry was $1.10. Deducted from this is the cost of picking labor ($0.45 to 0.60 per pound), fertilizer (as much as $35 per bag  x 45 bags total for us this year!), weed killer, and pruning costs. To keep some or all of the coffee ourselves, we pay a processing fee of $0.35 per pound. So, it’s not really a money making operation. (At least I still have a day job!). “Estate Grown” coffee refers to farms who sell only coffee that they have grown and processed. Typically, we get about 1 pound of roasted coffee for every 7-8 pounds of cherry picked.

Our Coffee Label

2008 Coffee Cherry