Horses and a Lazy Day

We woke up, fixed coffee and set out for Waipi'o Valley Artworks in order to be picked up for the horse ride that we booked the day before. I didn't sleep very well the night before, due to the downpours of rain and my anxiety of riding a horse for the first time in my life. The valley was still obscured by clouds as we left the house, and our hopes were up that it would clear by the time we started the ride. We were excited about the prospects of roaring waterfalls with the overnight storm. We packed a small lunch of a couple hard boiled eggs and some sweet bread. The guide with the van was a little late picking us up....apparently, he had to change a tire before coming down. He drove us up a steep farming road, five minutes out of town, to the horse stables. We signed waivers and they placed us on two horses. Susan was on Noni and I was on Kapa'a. Noni was the leader horse and always wanted to be in front. Kapa'a was more mellow, liked to follow, and his name means "sure footed."

The ride was wet....it rained really hard several times on the ride and I gave up wearing the hood to my provided overcoat as it obstructed my view and ears and it directed water down the back of my neck. The ride was still great, despite the rain. When we made it to the falls viewing point, a ledge on the edge of the valley, it cleared up just enough so that we could see the full falls and the valley floor below. The ride took us through a planted and never harvested eucalyptus forest, and the hawai'ian guide picked orchids for the girls and shared strawberry guava from the trail and macadamia nuts from his home. The other guide, Gary, was a houlie who had been on the island since the early 1970's. He was a former music arranger for Motown after they moved to LA. I took the opportunity to pick his brain about what life is like for a former musician on the island. We might go see him play with a few of his friends on Sunday night in South Kohala. The hawai'ian guide took two of the riders, natives from South Kona, on the 5 hour adventure.

Luckily for my butt, we were on the 2 1/2 hour adventure and we returned after making it to the top valley lookout, where the clouds cooperated for just a few minutes and we saw a spectacular view of Waipi'o Valley and the coastline. I really enjoyed the horse ride, and Susan and I plan on doing it again some time...even while back on the main land.

We decided to enjoy the house this day. And so, after the ride, we headed into Honoka'a and did a little shopping. I got a great Hawai'ian shirt with matched pockets and bamboo buttons. Susan got a hand painted sarong and a really cool coffee mug for her states of the US collection. We also hit the grocery store and a fruit market. In the middle of our adventure in Honoka'a, we went to a local hamburger stand called Tex's, and ordered a Hawai'ian 12" with Kahlua Pork and fresh pineapple. Kahlua Pork is made from the local wild pigs that roam the island. They bury the pig in a bbq pit and roast it for an entire day. It's very flavorful, and a bit gamey, which we really enjoy. Needless to say, once again, the local food is great.

We returned to the cliff house and spent the rest of the day making fresh fruit pina coladas and hanging out with Black Kitty and the horses. Susan fed the horses a banana and the three of them almost got in a fight over it. At dusk, I saw a rare Hawai'ian Hoary bat out our front window.

For dinner, we had grass-fed, free range, local ground beef burgers with pineapple and local greens and onion. They were so good, that we each had seconds! We turned in after dark and attempted to watch TV, but I think we were both asleep as soon as our heads hit the pillows.