Week 2b:

On Tuesday morning we left early in Vince’s car. By now the group had been weaned down to Vince, Ida, Liam, Tarn and myself, which I was both happy and sad about. I would miss the others, but a smaller group was easier to maintain and also easier to fit into Vince’s car!

First stop was the famous sandy beach, which we could view from the road. We parked up along the side of the highway, and spent a short time watching the famous tidal blow holes and the small bays filled with clear water and white sand. The beach looked great, but it was a long climb down and we had plenty of other places to go. We set off along the south coast towards the east, and quickly reached Kailua beach. Just before we arrived however, we were driving along the coast and spotted a seal on the beach. We pulled over and realised it was cordoned off and just resting. It turned out to be a rare monk seal, that had come to the shore for a rest. A local agency that looked after protected species had set a rope around her, and were stood by making sure nobody bothered her. It was a surreal experience but not the last of its kind that day.

10 minutes driving, and a bowl of fried prawns from a Shrimp Shack later, we arrived at our destination. Unbeknown to us, it was described by locals as the best beach in the world, and was ranked as one of the top beaches in the USA. The sand was beautifully soft, and we parked up to sunbathe and snorkel. The main aim for the day was to find some great snorkel spots, so I set off at a pace into the water. It was crystal clear for the first 15 meters, but then become murky and you could see some dark patches under the water. After 10 minutes snorkelling with Ida, we became aware that we weren’t going to find any fish. The water was great, but it wasn’t a snorkel spot – it was ideal for swimming and sun bathing. We stayed for another half an hour before deciding to carry on the road trip.

The next fleeting visit was to Laie Point which was a look out point across the ocean. There was a small island just off shore, with a hole directly through the middle. It was a nice touristy attraction but it offered nothing for us so we set off again towards turtle bay on the north shore.

Turtle bay is a resort and beach at one of the north most points of the island. Again it was a lovely beach, but there were little snorkel opportunities and the water was cold and rough. We stayed momentarily but moved onto Shark Cove fairly quickly. Just before we reached Shark Cove, another surreal situation happened. We were driving along the coast, and there was a giant sea turtle
resting on the beach. We pulled over, and once again the animal was cordoned off and was being protected by some workers. There was a small crowd building, and we were able to get some great pictures of a turtle in the wild.

Moving onto Shark Cove we were finally blessed with a great snorkel spot, filled with exotic fish. The water was little over a foot deep, meaning several people were injured in the short time we were there, walking out the water with scratches all over their chests. Despite this I quickly ran to the water, GoPro in ha

nd, and got some great footage. The cove was a great place, but when the waves were large from the sea it would spill into the cove water and send you spiralling around in the surf. This wouldn’t normally be a problem, but with the water less than a foot deep, and the coral as sharp as anything, it was dangerous. I found myself just letting the water take me, protecting my face, and hoping for the best. I managed to exit the water with a few scratches on my legs but nothing major, and some great videos of the coral and wildlife.

After our visit to Shark Cove, which by the way had no sharks, we went onto the Benzai Pipeline to watch the surfers. The waves have been known to reach 30+foot and is a popular spot for professional and experienced surfers. The weather had started to deteriorate so the waves were huge, some of them topping off at 20 foot. It was a good break from swimming, and we sat on the beach watching them for a while. After purchasing a great turtle design t-shirt to remind myself of the north shore, we started the long drive home. It was great being in the convertible, but it was windy and loud. We made it back in time for the free pasta dinner, and had some drinks to cap off a great day.

A few drinks turned into a lot, and the next day I was hungover and tired. A hungover beach day seemed like the best thing to do, and I even managed a mid afternoon nap. I went to the beach with Liam, Adam, Tim and Kieron. After a slow day, we agreed to walk the stairway to heaven hike the next morning for sunrise, as only one of the 7 other guys had done it before (me). I was excited to do it again and hopefully actually see the sunrise this time.

Like last time, we woke at 02:30am and set off towards the bottom of the Haiku steps. This time there was a much larger group, and without realising we had chosen a popular day to attempt the hike. We arrived, walked up the muddy slope and had just got round the barbed wire fence when a giant bright light shined in our face, and a voice shouted from the local house saying ‘I have called the police, what you are doing is trespassing – you will be fined’.

Obviously we all froze. We had been warned that it was illegal, and people got fined all the time, but we had never been threatened so directly before. We stayed on the hill, and chatted about what each person wanted to do. The whole time the light stayed on us, and just when we were about to carry on despite the threat, a blacked out 4×4 came streaming round the corner and pulled up at the barbed wire fence. A Hawaiian police officer jumped out the car, and ran up the hill to confront us at the barbed wire. We immediately climbed back down, apologising, and were advised to sit on the side of the road when we got back to the housing estate. As we sat down, another 4×4 pulled up, and another police officer came out. All 8 of us lads were obviously worried, as we had been warned the fine was 25 cents per stair on the hike… there were 4000 stairs so you can do the math. After a short chat, which was mostly us playing dumb to the fact it was illegal, we were advised to walk away down the road and catch an uber home. It turns out because we hadn’t actually set foot on the stairs, we hadn’t yet broke the law. Thanking our lucky stars we weren’t fined, but ruing ever being caught, we slowly walked away to the mall and caught 2 busses home. I was gutted for the other lads who never got to experience the hike, but was relieved I wasn’t $1000 out of pocket.

After the hectic start to the day, we all returned to the hostel for a nap. We went back to the beach in the mid afternoon, and rested after being denied the chance of a great hike. I made it to the my final Hawaii Harlequins session that night, and was given a championship winning t-shirt from the women’s state championship win the previous year. It was a great final session, and I’m very glad I reached out to them for some training time. That night we had some casual drinks as I had to be up at 04:30am to get my shuttle to the airport the next morning. Unfortunately a recurring theme was starting to form, and a few casual drinks turned into a crazy night and morning which I will never forget…

The next morning my alarm was set for 04:30am, with my shuttle picking me up at 05:00am to get me to the airport in plenty of time for my 08:30am flight. To make a long story short, I was out till an ungodly hour. I woke up at 06:30am, ran around my room to collect my things, got in a taxi and got to the airport just before 07:30am. I can remember parts of the night, but have no idea how I got home and how I slept through or turned off my alarms. When I arrived at the airport, the man at the checking desk obviously felt bad for me, and gave me speedy boarding so I could jump the queue at the security gates. I went quickly through, and made my boarding gate just in time to make the flight. I couldn’t believe my luck. I had missed the shuttle, messed up completely but still made the flight. It was laughable really, but it was just the start of my problems that journey.

The flight from Honolulu to Sydney was easy, and after I nearly missed the flight all together, I was so happy it felt like I was floating. I watched 3 movies, 3 episodes of Family Guy and ate some nice food. The troubles started when I needed to change at Sydney to get my connecting flight to Melbourne. Chatting to the lady at the counter, she became confused as to why I didn’t have a visa for Australia. It turned out because I was supposed to fly in Australia, I would have needed a visa. However Jetstar had given me the flight, so it was their mistake. The airport officers told me they would have to contact Jetstar and either fine them $5000 or they would have to put me on a direct flight from Sydney to Auckland that afternoon. Luckily there were no Jetstar flights for that evening, only Qantas, meaning I got an upgrade onto a flight that was only half full on a better airline.

However first I had to get through airport security, which wasn’t a problem in Hawaii so I wasn’t worried. I was the only person going through the security at Sydney, and was ‘randomly selected’ to do an in-depth bag search and explosive check. Naturally I wasn’t worried, and emptied my pockets, opened my bag and took my shoes off to help with the process. For some inexplainable reason my bag tested positive for traces of explosives… twice. Not once, but twice. It was a best of three test, and I had failed on all fronts. All of the security guards were called, and I had to be doubly checked over and asked several questions about what I had been doing. My bag had to be taken off the plane and checked over, meaning I was delayed even further. By this point I had given up caring, and just sat and waited for the whole situation to blow over. Before leaving I was asked to produce my boarding card and proof of bag, both things I did not have. After my flight was changed, my bag was taken to the plane by a JetStar representative, and Iw as sent straight through. It took a further 30 minutes for me to be given the all clear. Eventually I collected my bags and boarding pass and made my way to the boarding gate.

The food was free and there were unlimited movies, meaning the flight was carefree and fun. The lack of people on the flight meant I had a row to myself, so I could catch up on my journal and enjoy the food. I arrived late into Auckland, and was close to tears / hysteria when I realised my bag had been ripped open in the flight and had a tear down the side. I complained to the airline, and was given a place to drop off the bag and get a replacement or money to buy a new one. It was the end of a long list of troubles, so by this point I had given up.

Luckily Ash was able to pick me up, so I had a safe ride and a bed to sleep in that night. I had been away for less than a day but I already missed Oahu like crazy.