From jungle to desert to high alpine to arctic-like, the Big Island of Hawaii has them all. It is incredible that that many climates and that many types of flora could exist on one island. There are places you could build a Swiss chalet and it'd fit right in with its surroundings. Other places a grass hut would fit. There are calendars with 12 very distinct landscapes all photographed on the Big I. It is the most unberking believable place I've ever been.
The only thing about Hilo is that at this time of year it will rain. Every single day. Just hop in your car and drive to Kona. It won't be raining there. And in the summer it cools off instead of getting warmer.
aircooled said:
In reply to Docwemple :
Well, which side? I am going to guess Hilo side (eastern, wet side). There is definitely a car culture there. I even stopped by a car show near Hilo when I was there a few years ago, and ran into a group of hotrods touring up near the Kohala area (north side).
I had a friend who spent a number of years managing some of the federal parks on the Kona side. I am not a huge fan of the Kona side (dry side) since the weather / land is very dry (at least near the coast), similar to SoCal where I am, and of course there is the Vog... argh.
The Big Island is actually big enough (!) to do some actual semi-long distance driving / cruising on, and gas, I am pretty sure, is cheaper than CA.... (!!!!)
BTW, you WILL learn where the Costco is and how long it takes you to drive there. It is an important statistic to anyone who lives there! And yes, the hotdog and soda are $1.50 there! (quite popular as you can imagine!)
Hahaha, my mother has bunch of stuff bought at that very Costco at her house in Ohio because my aunt and uncle in Hawaii send her photo calendars made there each year.
Docwemple said:
In reply to A 401 CJ :
Do you miss it
I'd like to go back. I was working for a short time at HELCO (HI Electric Co.). Of course I was all giddy about the place and I guess it showed because the people at the job site explained to me that my reaction was normal but that a main lander would generally want to leave after only a few years because they would start to feel it was a fishbowl. They'd seen it happen many times. Very laid back people. They wore sandals in the machine shop. I wanted to try surfing and I inquired about it at work. They told me not to. They said that unless I was highly experienced or went with someone who was that it was a terrible idea. A handful of people like me try it around Hilo every year and are never heard from again they said. So I didn't. I watched a homeless man come out of his tent, grab a spear, dive in the ocean and spear his dinner. It occurred to me then that that was the only place I'd been where you could survive year round with only a modicum of shelter. The weather won't kill you - or really even make you uncomfortable. I often eye-rolled at overly zealous environmentalists, but when you go to a place like that you begin to appreciate it. It's a gem.
In reply to A 401 CJ :
My son spent 5 years in Grad School @ UC Irvine, CA. I told him to take one or two surf lessons so he can drop that story the rest of his life.
listen up youngsters, when I was living near Newport Beach after I went surfing one day I.......
Still working on things here. I'm hoping I won't take too much of a hit on FMV as I'll have to sell quickly.
Anyone who is aware of what I have, please let me know what you're interested in. Thanks
