I just had the good fortune of spending a week in Hawaii on the island of Oahu. I picked one day to rent a bike and travel around the island. The weather was great for our entire week except for one day, the day I rented the bike. No worries I still decided to go and since it was the last full day of the trip it was now or never. I am also going to throw in a few extra photos from the other adventures I had on the island, at least those pics will be bright and sunny.
The breathtaking view from our 31st floor room. The beach of Waikiki.
This is the tunnel leading in and out of Diamond Head Crater park. The tunnel is gated and closes at 6pm. If you are not out of the park by then plan on spending the night. We made it out about 5:45pm.
This is the view looking down into Diamond Head crater from the highest point. There is a fairly easy winding path with switchbacks, stairs and tunnels that lead you to the top. You have to crawl out through a bunker to get to the tippy top platform. The view is spectacular.
Looking in the other direction from Diamond Head you can see Honolulu.
There were a few of these tress scattered about the beaches. The vines or branches hang all the way to the ground, about 25 feet long.
A tourists delight. The famous Puka Dog. This is a polish sausage, hot dog or veggie dog that is placed inside of a roll. The roll is is stuck onto a heated spike and it creates a hole. You then let the server know what kind of relish and sauces you want and voila, an island treat. Some of the relishes that I remember are sweet onion, mango, coconut and banana. They are pretty tasty and a bit messy. The work Puka means "hole" in the native language.
A friend I made along the way.
The next day I went to the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor. I also visited the Battleship Missouri and Bowfin submarine.
The inside of the Arizona Memorial. The battleship Arizona was sunk during the attack on Pearl Harbor. Most of the crew perished and are entombed with the sunken vessel. Ironically the night before the attack the crews of the ships were at a party and the Arizona mates won a contest that allowed them to sleep in the next day. Which accounted for the loss of so many sailors afterwards. The battleship sits perpendicular to the memorial and you can view the ship from either side and an opening at the center. Sad to hear the story of the attack which was a near success by the Japanese partially due to US incompetence or poor planning. The first wave of Japanese planes were picked up by radar but a commanding officer told the workers to dismiss the signal as a flight of bombers was due in from California that day. The US Navy thought the ships were safe in the harbor because it was too shallow for enemy torpedoes. The Air Force planes were staged with no ammo wing to wing in the fields and runways because of the threat of sabotage. The only event that went right for the US is that all three of it's carriers were out to sea that day so they survived and allowed the US to conduct the war in the Pacific after the attack. The entire museum and memorial will leave you very emotional, both sad and angry.
One of the few exposed parts of the Arizona. I believe this is one of the forward turrets.
Not sure if you can make it out but the upper right of the photo the water is discolored. That is oil that is still leaking from the Arizona. It was said to have 1.5 million gallons of fuel stored when it was sunk. There is still half a million gallons in the ship, the park rangers say that anywhere from a few quarts to two gallons escapes daily.
A salvaged Japanese torpedo. It was designed specifically to work in the shallow waters of Pearl Harbor.
The USS Bowfin nicknamed the Pearl Harbor Avenger. Commissioned after the attack the sub was responsible for 22 sunken enemy vessels. There is no wasted space in a submarine, an instrument, bed or storage panel will take up any free space.
The galley kitchen of the Bowfin.
Crew quarters.
Instrumentation.
The deck of the battleship Missouri with it's two forward turrets.
The shell for the guns.
Battleship chains. One of the few stats I remember is that each link in the chain weighs about 100lbs.
The following day was more uplifting.
We kayaked about four miles to reach the Mokulua Islands. Would have made a great beach landing but the guide decided to help and essentially flipped Serena and I into the surf. It was kind of fun. We hiked around the island edge which was essentially volcanic rock, very sharp. The islands are bird sanctuaries and you are not allowed on the grass. We made it around the back to a cove where some of the group plunged in the water. Later we went snorkeling along the reefs. My first time at that and I look forward to the next opportunity.
One of the guides trusted me with his hand made knife/machete/sword thing. Our guides were excellent and were friendly and knowledgeable.
I had picked Friday because it worked best with our schedule to take a bike ride around the island. I checked the weather and the only day with heavy rain forecast was Thursday. Well nature took a day off and decided to bring the rains on Friday. I still did the ride as it was still looking favorable in the morning and a little warm island rain may be refreshing. Let's just say that at certain points of the trip I got very refreshed.
I was so happy to find Cruzin Hawaii shop. Not only was the owner Glenn great to deal with but he really cared about his fleet of bikes. I happened to pick out his favorite ride and he told me to be careful with his baby. I think he knew I was serious and probably careful as I was one of the very few to come to the island with riding gear. He went over a recommended route with me and told me roads to look for and places to eat. With that I hopped on my Triumph Bonneville and headed out. I would like to add here that finding the Bonneville was rare as most places rented Harleys. He had just gotten in a Ducati Monster that day, he told me he wanted to expand beyond the Harley and attract other riders. Also that most of his Harleys become problematic after 15,000 miles. There was one BMW 650 and a few supersport bikes but that was it. Some decent scooters here and there I found a SYM RV250, Burgman 400 and Yamaha Morphous too.
Just want to add a mini review here. The Triumph Bonneville is about the sweetest bike I have ever been on. It's not the most powerful but it has a pleasing sound to the motor, torquey get up and go plus it has great handling. The only way to describe it is you just feel good riding the bike.
On HWY 72, dark clouds are starting to form. I met a group of four Russian tourist riding bikes. At first they thought I was a local because of all the gear I was wearing plus my tailbag. They started asking me directions and I told them what I knew but didn't have much to offer. They were a great bunch, only wearing shorts, t-shirts and sunglasses. At that time we were heading in the same general direction and thought we might see each other throughout the day. I saw them one more time and then the heavy rain hit and they disappeared.
It was at this stop that I could see the rain coming in from the sea. This was a beautiful pull out point with many opportunities for great shots but I had just enough time to snap a few images before I put on my rain pants (yes I brought them) and cover my tail bag. Then boom the rains hit and kept on coming for quite some time.
The fog shrouded Koolau Mountains. Oahu has about four separate ecosystems that get different amounts of rain and weather on the same day. While the rainstorm lasted almost the whole day it was far worse in some areas than the others.
Finally got me a little sunshine and I was able to dry out a little bit.
A neat little twisty road that I would have completely missed if it weren't for Glenn's suggestion.
The island just off the point of land is called Mokolii Island or Chinaman's Hat.
A statue to one of the Hawaii's kings. Outside of a downtown courthouse.
My last bit of sunshine before the next rainstorm hit.
This is the end of HWY 930. The road heads west alongside the Mokuleia Forest Reserve and the Waianae Mountain range.
The Waianae Mountains. Then it started raining again.
The rest of the ride home was essentially in the rain and at times very heavy rain. I was stuck on the H1 expressway in gridlock traffic trying to find my exit in Honolulu. Had the weather been more favorable it was recommended to take the H3 expressway as it is built through the Koolau Mountains and is supported by pillars. Maybe next time.
Sunnier times before all the rain. Aloha friends, thanks for taking the adventure with me.
It wouldn't be Hawaii without hula dancers!
