Last Day in Hawaii

Today was jam-packed. We decided we wanted to see more of the rest of the island so we headed out fairly early in the rental car. We drove straight up the middle toward the famous North Shore, which has the monster waves for surfing in the winter. On the way, we stopped to see the birthing stones where female royalty went to deliver their children so that they would be blessed by the gods and thus suitable to continue the royal lineage. This occurred from the 12th century through 1800.

Then we went to Pupukea Beach Park which has three separate sections. We rented snorkeling gear for the first beach, Three Tables. We saw a green sea turtle swimming as well as lots of reef fish. After lunch on the beach, we went snorkeling at Shark's Cove on the other end of Pupukea. We saw another green sea turtle, this time eating, plus large parrotfish and surgeonfish. On the way back, we stopped at another beach where sea turtles were basking in the sun. It was very neat to see, although once again the tourists were getting way too close despite all of the warning signs. It's been amazing how many turtles we have been able to see on this trip!

We then drove to the west shore to see some sealife in tidal pools. We didn't see much other than crabs but we got to see a fantastic sunset out on the point. After a wonderful Thai dinner, we came back to the hotel to blog and to pack for tomorrow. We have to get up early tomorrow to return the rental car and to catch the five-hour flight back to the mainland to visit Neil in San Francisco. So little time left!