Classic Galaxie & Wee

Our Vacation to the Tropical Island of Hawai'i is but a memory. Back to the daily grind of back to work and enduring the warm winter of British Columbia. This is shaping up to be the warmest winter in recent times. Vancouver is the host city of the Winter Olympics 2010 and it starts tomorrow. There has been so little snow that we had to truck it in from Manning Park over 3-4 hours away and unload it up Cypress Mountain. First they had to install a straw base by Helicopter at $900./hour and put the snow on top to form the ski runs.

Lately there has been great interest in photographing Bananas
(<-- click link) so I thought it was time that I put in my .02c


(Thanks to Iron-GRAN-dad, for the idea)

I am running out of Hawai'i vacation material but I still have a few things to say about the North Kohala area and the small town of Hawi on the northern tip of the Big Island. I just thought that with the major snow storms on the Atlantic Coast it was time to show everyone what the spring-like weather was like on the Wet Coast of Canada. If you wish to see some amazing snow pictures (<-- click link)

The weather last week was overcast with a slight chance of precipitation. I was wearing my Hawai'ian attire but decided it was more prudent to change into my usual riding outfit. For a moment it looked like Pink Crocs but in the end the riding boots won.



I envy those tropical riders in their shorts and T-shirts. Today it was jeans, with riding pants over, riding jacket with liner, leather gloves, riding boots, thick socks and the requisite GPS since we have more than one road in which to get lost or disoriented. Actually I usually use the GPS as a corrected speedometer. For some reason bike speedos are overly generous and I like to know the correct speed.

I had some errands to run and ended up downtown at my favourite parking spot



I couldn't find a photogenic place to pose my Wee. With the Olympics many roads are closed. They have special curb lanes for designated Olympic vehicles where you cannot stop or suffer a $167. fine/ticket and you cannot cruise the areas around the docks, so after a while on the way home, I stopped at my neighbours garage when I spotted this



It was a very nice old pickup truck. I used to have an old pickup truck which I traded for some computer equipment a few years ago and wished I kept it. I think it was a '53 Ford F something 6 cyl with 3 sp Hurst shifter. It was a step-side.



It appeared to be in very good mechanical condition and sported a recent green paint job . The owner of the truck was visiting my neighbour, Joe



Looking into the garage you will notice Joe, on the left. That is his recently restored 1963 Ford Galaxie XL500 convertible. It was a "basket case" when I first saw it towed in over 5 years ago. He stripped the whole car down to the frame



While he was busy dismantling the car and prepping it for paint he was accumulating all the parts necessary for the restoration



The Galaxie is better than new. Joe has done all the work himself, except for the excellent paint job. Joe used to own a gas service station and is adept at performing all the repairs himself



He completely rebuilt the engine to "as new" condition and took the transmission apart to rebuild it too



I asked Joe to pose one more time for the camera. He is very proud of this car. He basically rebuilt it himself doing all the work except for the paint. Last year he took it to a Galaxie club show & shine (car show) and won First Prize.



It was time for me to make my exit and I mounted my Wee to ride the short distance home, up the lane



No snow, No sand, No salt, No sun. Just another day on the Wet Coast, otherwise known as the Key West of Canada

Onomea Bay Scenic Drive, Hawai'i

It was early afternoon and we found ourselves in Hilo, Hawai'i



Hilo was an old fishing village and there are many historic buildings





We were actually driving up and down all the streets trying to find Joy's Gift Shop and found it by accident on the main drag in the tourist section



After we finished our shopping we headed north on Hwy 19 and I noticed a sign a few miles out of town pointing to a scenic drive, so naturally we had to explore. While not a long road the Onomea Bay Scenic Drive is a little gem. Too bad it was raining lightly so skies were a little overcast.

The following information comes from . . .

http://www.instanthawaii.com/cgi-bin/hawaii?Drives.onomea


Scenic Drive Overview


"This 4 mile scenic drive on the Hāmākua Coast is a must do drive... we don't care if your here for less than an hour, you do this drive, ok?

We personally take this drive at least once a month - just for the sheer beauty that exist in these four short miles.

The road twists and snakes through a lush tropical rain forest lined with streams. Several stops allow for breathtaking views of the ocean, coast, and the collapsed Onomea Arch. The Hawai'i Tropical Botanical Garden can be found about halfway and a nearby interesting and short hike down the old donkey trail to the ocean provides you with stunning photographic and scenic opportunities."

Cautions/Warnings

"While this road is a regular, paved road, it is a bit narrow. The road also twists and snakes around tight curves and there are several one-lane bridges.

In some places the road, on one side, is a high natural rock wall with no shoulder. This means that room is tight on the road especially on curves. Do NOT speed on this road. The curves are tight and if you stray into the oncoming lane there is no room for them to get over.

Likewise for you -- if the oncoming car is speeding they will probably stray around the curves, be alert and drive extra slow so you have more time to react. Locals know that this road is scenic and thus expected to be slow. Any local on this road is here for the view too. Nobody is in a hurry - except tourists (go figure).

It is preferable to take this drive from the Hilo direction - if you do so you avoid having the rock wall and no shoulder on your side. This is also the most preferable direction to drive for easy access to pullovers for photographs and scenic views. Most of the views on this drive are makai (towards the ocean), which would be on your right if you came from the Hilo direction.

This is not a road to do if it is raining. You should do this road on a bright sunny day. Any time of day is fine though we personally prefer the morning because the additional sunlight helps penetrate some of the darker areas for better photos."

There is lots more to read on the site, and also there is a Donkey Trail (<-- click link)

It had just stopped raining so we did not venture down the trail, but it leads to the beach which was a former site of an original Hawai'ian village. The shores are also prone to flash flooding after rain storms.

I now attempt to show you parts of the road as we ventured onward



there are many one lane bridges. You have to be on the watch for oncoming traffic



The vegetation was lush and tropical.



We came across a small community of a few houses & a church which looked like they were being restored



The tree canopy covered much of the roadway



It was a delightful road just made for 2 wheels. All the while I was wishing I had my V-strom with me



The road was narrow, windy with no shoulders. I did stop a few times to take photos and was lucky that no other vehicle was around. I made sure to stop on the straight stretches and not on a blind corner

Finally we found our way to Onomea Bay





Not much further along was the road leading to the Onomea Donkey Trail, and to the beach below



I lost count of how many one lane bridges there were



Near the end of this scenic drive I noticed these . . .



but I don't think they are FREE range

Food & Flying Food

The other day I had a chance to have lunch with Robert, the Reverend. (<-- click link) . He is still scooterless. It's like a slow boat from Italy is taking the scenic route around Cape Horn with his Vespa parts. We are hoping that soon he will be riding with the rest of us. We decided that we would go to Havana



It's like travelling to Cuba without leaving the Commercial Drive area of Vancouver



It had been sprinkling a bit and we notice there are lots of tables available. If this had been a warm day during the summer they would be taking names for tables. We head inside



We are lucky to be able to be seated without having to wait


(Robert, The Reverend)

While I have never been to the real Havana, I would imagine that this place captures the ambiance sort of like you are transported to Cuba in your mind



It is very interesting to look at all the pictures on the wall.



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Today was a double header. I would be having dinner with Robert again later in the day at a Korean BBQ AYCE Restaurant (AYCE = All You Can Eat)



There is a gas grill built into every table for you to cook your own meal. Everything is prepared for you. The raw food is served and separated on individual plates. You cook, talk & socialize and eventually eat



It seemed to me that food was flying everywhere; from the uncooked plates to the grill, from the grill to the cooked plates, back and forth the plates were being passed to each other and back for refills



Evenutally we were finished, stuffed and were on our way home



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The next day we visited a noodle house which was recommended by a friend. Here you are able to view the chef making your noodles which is cooked to your specifications. From stir-fried to soup, vegetarian or choice of meats, it's your decision. There is a large window for you to observe the status of your order



I ordered the stir-fried noodles with beef



along with a side of boiled dumplings



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Kona Hotel, Holualoa, Hawai'i

The most recoqnized landmark in Holualoa is the Kona Hotel, which is also known as the "Pink Hotel". I don't think there is any way you can miss it. It has been operated by the Inaba's since it was constructed in 1926 .



As soon as I saw the Pink building I just had to find somewhere to park. Even though there was a sign requesting you not to park in one of the Hotel's spaces, I ignored it and went inside. What a photo op this was. There was a staircase on the right leading to the rooms upstairs and the entrance went straight through the building and exited out the rear. I noticed people sitting in the lobby on the left watching a small TV in the corner. I just assumed they were the local residents.



Looking directly at the front entrance, your eyes are directed straight to the back of the building. It was as if I just had to walk and see what was at the other end. No one seemed to mind my being there so I just wandered around snapping photos.

As I passed the lobby, I noticed another room to the left. In the meantime one of the residents came down the hall and while I did not know who he was he seemed to be a person of authority so I asked his permission to enter the room to snap a few more pictures. There was a small kitchen on the right of the hallway directly opposite this room which resembled a hotel restaurant from the 50's



On the walls of the restaurant were displayed many period photos of times past. Group photos, family photos and other memorabilia



I cannot tell from this Black & White photo whether this hotel was originally pink or not, but from the shade of black I don't think so .



At the rear of the building there is a small field full of coffee plants



There were a lot of personal collectibles on display throughout the room



There was an official document framed and displayed in the hallway from the State of Hawai'i dedicating this Heritage Building . Finally we made our way back to the lobby and started talking to the lady watching TV. She was Yayoko Inaba, one of the owners of the Hotel. We did not get a chance to meet Goro.



She was very unassuming and never once did she interfere with our wanderings around her hotel. She told us that she was originally from Honolulu and moved here to Holualoa when she got married to Goro. She also graduated from University which I think was very rare back in those times. As we chatted I was thinking to myself that it seemed like we were old friends who had stopped for a visit.


(Yayoko Inaba & Mrs Skoot)

This hotel has two secrets, at least that is what I am calling them. There is a skywalk leading out the rear of the building which leads to . . .


(a washroom, what else ?)

Kona Hotel sits high on a hill overlooking Kailua-Kona and one of the best views of the landscape is from, where else, but the urinal .



There is a lot of smoke being generated from the wild forest fire on the mountain. It has been burning for weeks and they cannot get equipment up there to put it out. The smoke has cast a layer of smog over the landscape as you can see.

The other gem is the undisturbed restaurant where the tables appear not to have been used for "years". You get the impression of a place where the people have just walked away to never return and by walking into this room it is like you are visiting a place where no one has been for 50 years. It was like I was in a time warp and transported back in time.