Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I believe the majority of Hawaii Island police use their personal vehicles. I've seen SUV's, sports cars (mustangs, chargers), sedans, pickups, etc.
Hope you enjoyed your visit! Did you also go up to the observatories?
Not yet. I've been driving a lot of miles all over the Big Island. We will have to figure out how to get there. I don't know if is along the old saddle road or if you get there on the new saddle road. The maps here don't show the new saddle road yet, either does my GPS, which I just updated last week. The new saddle road is on my wife's i-phone GPS though.
Are the observatories something to see in the day and night, like the volcano? The only restriction on the rental car s that you have to stay on the paved roads.
The " new" and " old" Saddle Roads are one and the same. The old road was a very narrow, twisting, poorly paved road that could be really hazardous given the way that people would drive down the middle. The new road has been widened, straightened out (relatively speaking) and repaved, making it a easier way to move between Kona and Hilo.
The paved road will take you up to the Visitors Center. It is unpaved from there to the observatories. Not a whole lot to see at the Visitors Center during the day, but at night people bring their telescopes and let you look through them.
One essential tip is to take a good jacket to wear at the Jagger, because it's at 4,000' altitude and the weather is often cold and windy and sometimes rainy.
Quote:
Originally Posted by davephan
We stopped by the volcano park today to check it out. We weren't prepared for the 62 degree temperature during the daytime, so we didn't stay too long.
---
We plan to go back there with jeans, jacket, and a hat, since it was way too cold for T-shirts and shorts.
Yeah, I ALWAYS tell people to bring a warm jacket and hat. You can always leave them in the car if you happen to hit one of the rare days they're not needed.
Quote:
I also saw the orchid garden along the way, but we didn't stop by. We will probably make a point to stop there, maybe tomorrow.
Also, don't miss the Volcano Art Center store inside the park, near the Visitor's Center, in the old low building with the long porch that was the hotel in Mark Twain's day. I think it has the best selection of fine Hawaiian arts and crafts you can find on the island.
Quote:
I've driven on most of the Big Island's hiways, and most of them at in very good condition compared to a lot of the roads in Minnesota.
Well, there's not that much of them... basically the belt highway around the island, Saddle Road across the middle, plus the feeders down to Puna and up to Hawi. What surprises most visitors is that these highways are mostly two-lane blacktop, with mostly 55 mph and 45 mph speed limits. Mostly.
Quote:
The new highway 200 saddle road that connects Kona and Hilo just opened about a month ago according to an article in a local real estate book. The new highway is very smooth. The article said it cost $290 million dollars to build, which is cheap when compared to a nearly billion dollar football stadium that is being built in Minnesota to subsidize the billionaire who owns the Minnesota Vikings.
If the article said that it was wrong. The $290 million figure is for repaving and improving. Saddle Road has been there forever, though for a long time it was a potholed mess, which was so rough that car rental agencies used to forbid its use. The work has been done in phases over the last few years, and has included some widening and straightening at the ends. It's definitely a big improvement for getting across the island, if you're not interested in taking the scenic routes to the north or to the south. But it's still a big pain to get caught behind a large military convoy from Pohakuloa Army Training Center, up in the middle of the "saddle".
Quote:
Another interesting thing about the highways is the lack of police presence, unless they use a lot of unmarked cars.
Two factors there... there aren't a lot of police, and they mostly drive unmarked personal cars, for which they receive a large stipend. The upside is that policy is that it greatly reduces the County's fleet maintenance responsibilities. The unexpected downside is that police are extremely reluctant to take sick or bleeding or combative individuals into custody, but instead call for a marked car to make the pickup.
That's if they show up. My experience, from having to call the police a couple of times from Volcano, is that if an officer is dispatched immediately, their best response time will be about 30 minutes. Oh, and there sometimes isn't an officer available to dispatch. The police station for Puna used to be in Kea'au, but they built a nice new station in Pahoa and moved operations there a couple of years ago, which is nicer for Pahoans, but much worse for us down here at the south end. Fortunately our fire protection is much better, with an excellent local VFD which can also call on the very well equipped NPS fire department for backup. Because otherwise the HFD trucks from Pahoa take about... yep... 30 minutes to show up.
Quote:
The people on the roads are very polite here, just like they are in person.
Drive Highway 11 near Hilo or Highway 130 through Puna at rush hour and you may be quickly disabused of that notion. Hint: That isn't the shaka people are waving at each other!
Highway 130 is ranked the worst highway in the state, narrow and in terrible shape, and that's a huge issue for residents, since it is literally the only way in and out of Lower Puna, the fastest growing area. A new project to widen and repave it has been proposed, with an estimated cost of $140 million or so, IIRC, but nobody has any real idea idea where to get that kind of money.
Not trying to harsh your mellow whilst you are on vacay, but since you've expressed an interest in moving here, a little dose of reality to balance the glow seems prudent.
Oh, and pay attention to the advice... take a good jacket and hat with you to the volcano!
More on visiting Volcano, and the volcano - seasons, weather, sunrise
For the benefit of others, here is more info about visiting Volcano Village, and the volcano.
Tropical sunrise and sunset times can fool visitors, with summer and winter times varying less than the mainland, and no DST to think about locally, but time difference from the mainland states changing as DST starts and stops, so do check. Currently, sunrise is about 6:30am, sunset 5:45 pm. Windward side (Hilo) is the sunrise side, and gets light early, and also dark early. Leeward side (Kona) is the sunset side.
Dark nights are really dark on the Big Island, with fewer traffic lights than most places, and dimmer traffic lights than most places, and upward shining outdoor lights prohibited by law... all to help preserve dark night skies for the Mauna Koa astronomical observatories... so you may find that carrying a small LED flashlight is wise. I keep a small one on my keychain and a larger one in the car.
Another thing often overlooked to check during your trip planning is the moon phase, because it makes a big difference in how things look at night. Up at the volcano, on a clear night during a full moon, it is so bright you can read a newspaper by it. But during a new moon you can't see your feet without a flashlight, though the Milky Way is so clear you'll see things you never saw there before. This coming weekend will be a first quarter moon, so mezza mezza.
Check the weather reports and forecasts for each area you would like to visit at least daily. Weather can vary a great deal within short distances here, and it can change rapidly. For example, as of 6:00 this morning it is warmer in Volcano than in Hilo, the reverse of the usual, but that will flip around 8am. And the chance of precip (showers today) is 100% vs Hilo's 70%. And all of these communities but Nea'alehu are within a 30 mile radius, while Nea'alehu is only 30 miles further.
Hilo 69F (82 later) 70% chance of precip, rain forecast for Fri - Tue
Pahoa 68F (82 later) 60% chance of precip, rain forecast for Fri - Tue
Volcano 70F (later hi 68, lo 55) 100% chance of precip, rain forecast for Thu - Tue
Nea'alehu 55F (81 later), 50% chance of precip, rain forecast for Sun - Mon
We pretty much INVENTED microclimates on the Big Island.
And yes there's a lot of rain ahead, because the rainy season here* is November to March, and Hilo is typically the rainiest city in the country... but on the other hand it rarely rains all day. It tends to rain at night, clearing in the morning, then brief showers again in the afternoon. But you should be prepared for anything, and layering clothes is a must. Long pants and long sleeves in the morning, shorts in the afternoon, back to longs at night is usual up at 4,000' altitude. A warm jacket and hat with a visor to keep the rain off your face, a lightweight rain poncho, waterproof hiking shoes, and a small umbrella (I highly recommend Totes Titanium Auto Opening/Auto Closing umbrellas )
*Kona is the exception... it trends to be dry in the winter, and rainy in the summer. It's the only part of the state of Hawai'i that has this climate pattern. This is the reason that historically the classic old resorts and hotels in the Kona area labeled the winter months as "high season" and charged their highest rates of the year then, a pattern that continues today. But October - November and April-May are "shoulder" periods, when the crowds are generally smaller, hotel rates are best, and some tourist venues cut back hours or take a complete break.
It's also a fairly good idea to keep your cell phone in an inside dry pocket, or in a waterproof travel pouch. In high humidity, with rain, in and out of air conditioned public buildings, you can easily kill a smartphone with moisture buildup, even if you don't drop it into a puddle.
Driving the windward (Hilo) side of the Big Island.
This isn't strictly accurate, but it's close enough to be useful, and this is an easy way to remember approximate travel distances and times on the windward side...
Hilo to Pahoa 20 miles, 35 minutes (often longer with current road work)
Hilo to Kalapana 30+ miles, 45+ minutes
Hilo to Volcano 30 miles, 45 minutes
Volcano to Nea'alehu 30 miles, 45 minutes
Volcano to Pahoa 30 miles, 45 minutes
There is heavy rush hour commute traffic into Hilo mornings, and out of Hilo afternoons. And also a lighter reverse commute at the same times to the National Park and Volcano House and the Hawiian Volcano Observatory. And all of these roads are basically undivided two-lane blacktop. Being on the road at these times, especially when it is dark and rainy, is not for the faint of heart.
That's why I advise staying in the Volcano Village area overnight after a night time visit to see the molten lava lake at Kilauea Crater, inside the park.
So for Aloha88, who asked about going up to the volcano from Hilo in the morning, back in the afternoon, then up again for night viewing... I wouldn't do it that way because of the travel patterns mentioned. For an early visit to the park I'd head up (south on) Highway 11, get off 45 mins later at Haunani Road, go to the next intersection to stop at Volcano Store (opens 5 am) or Cafe Ohia (opens 6 am) for coffee and breakfast items and restrooms.
Visit the park and hike around and stuff all morning... maybe more, then after lunch head south to the black sand beach and the sea turtles at Nea'alehu. Back to Volcano for dinner, and then a night visit back to the volcano. Stay in the park or village overnight, have a great breakfast st Kilauea Lodge or the Rim Restaurant in the park (or at KMC or Cafe Ohia or the general stores for the budget minded) then catch some art, some orchids, some macadamia nuts, maybe some farmers market on the way back down to Hilo.
The park is open 24 hours, with Rangers at the gate collecting fees during daylight hours. Admission pass $10 per carload, good for 7 days.
Visitor center open 7:45 to 5, with a big 3D topographic map of the parks, and free guide brochures with maps, showing roads, trails, etc.
Volcanic eruption films (good overview) shown at the VC hourly 9 - 5
Jagger museum at the volcano (excellent displays, including realtime displays of seismic recorders that are an eye opener!) 8:30 - 5 and there are always at least a couple Park Rangers and volunteers around at the viewing site, often with telescopes, until way late... at least, later than I've ever been there, and I've been there many times after midnight.
Several of us have written a lot about this topic before, so a Search here will pull up lots of info. And a quick check on Yelp or TripAdvisor is always a good idea, because things change. But here's a quick rundown off the top of my head... see the others for more details:
Places to Eat Inside the Park:
Rim Restaurant, at the Volcano House Inn, near the Vistor Center. Recently opened after a long rehab, it's lovely, tasty, has scenic views, and is quite pricy, but the weekend buffets get rave reviews. Checkout the picture on their website! http://www.hawaiivolcanohouse.com/dining/
Volcano House Cafe, at the Inn. Quick casual eats, grab-n-go sandwiches etc. Good quality, a bit pricy. See above.
Kilauea Military Camp (KMC) Restaurant, Cafe, Snack Shop, Bar (and bowling alley and laundromat). About midpoint on the road between the VC and the Jagger, KMC is an old military base, now a military-only resort, but the restaurants and such are open to the public. Not fancy, but decent and affordable. Weekends the evening meal is often done luau style, with hula dancers. Saturday night in the lounge is usually live music, sometime open mic or karaoke. But like most Big Island venues, it's usual pau (done) by 9pm https://www.kmc-volcano.com/0food.asp
Places to Eat Outside the Park:
Starting from a little south (away from Hilo) of the park entrance... Volcano Country Club... not well marked, but a lot of people like it for breakfast or lunch, mainly) Newly spiffed up and reopened. Volcano Golf & Country Club Restaurant - Volcano, HI
Then north of the park jog mauka (toward the mountain) onto Old Volcano Road. You'll pass the local charter school, and the Volcano Art Center, a few residences and a huge estate (Shipman family) that are all pretty well hidden behind trees and ferns and stuff. Then you'll pass the little Volcano Post Office as you approach Haunani Road, THE major intersection. The big building houses The Volcano Store, an old style general store with a little grocery section, coffee, plate lunch, some hardware, orchids, plate lunch, liquor, propane, and a gas pump. Very nice people. Volcano Store the - Volcano, HI
Unfortunately the restaurant to the south of the store is still closed after a year, because it was a fave of mine. But around to the Haunani side is Cafe 'Ohi'a. Everything is good there. Coffee, pastry, soups, salads, sandwiches, plate lunch, roast pork dinner, mahi mahi burgers, loco moco, breadfruit salad, everything. Tiny place, very Hawaiian, serves Ka'u coffee. Only downside is all the seating is outside... a few picnic tables under cover, then some umbrella tables in the open. But I've probably eaten there more times than every place else combined, because the food is so ono (delicious) and the prices are reasonable. 7 am - 7pm Volcano's Cafe' OhiaCafe Ohia - Volcano, HI
Keep traveling north a block or so, past some great old homes, and you may pass a vegetarian taco truck that is quite good, and then... still on the mauka side... award winning Thai Thai restaurant, probably the best Thai restaurant on the Big Island, pricey but very much worth it. Thai Thai Restaurant - Volcano, HI
Then a short distance later a small complex with Aloha Gas and Kilauea General Store in front... locals call it the "Lower Store" vs Volcano Store being the "Upper Store." ... which has coffee and breakfast stuff and plate lunch, and the best Portugese Bean Soup anywhere! Kilauea General Store - Volcano, HI
Behind is Lava Rock Cafe, a popular place, especially for families with kids, for burgers and "American" food. Not my fave, because nothing really stands out. Volcano's Lava Rock Cafe | In the heart of Volcano
Another half block or so north is Kilauea Lodge and Restaurant. Very nice, good chef, good gourmet dinners, no bar per se, but a nice lounge area around the historic fireplace where you can enjoy a nice cocktail or glass of wine even if you are not dining there. I highly recommend the Lilikoi (Passion Fruit) Margarita, with the glass rimmed with tangy sweet-n-sour Li Hing powder. You can get a mai tai anywhere, usually from bottled mixes these days, but a Lilikoi Margarita, garnished with an orchid, is really special. Kilauea Lodge
And that's it. That's all your food choices, currently.
Oh, except the Sunday morning farmers market at the Cooper Community Center, up Wright Road. There's no better place to grab some ono grindz (delicious food) as long as you're up and attem early... 6 am to 10 am, but the best stalls often are pretty much done by 9:15 or 9:30, so don't dawdle. Hot Filipino specialties, breakfast burritos, breakfast sandwiches, free-range egg plates, pastries with such exotic fillings as guava and passion fruit, artisan breads, vegetarian specialties, and of course lots of small-farm fresh fruits and produce and several kinds of local-grown coffee. And flowers. And crafts. And kids running around and folks catching up with friends and neighbors. It's the best show in town... and hey! It starts late morning by MBT! (Mainland Body Time)
The village of Volcano, as outlined in my last post, doesn't fit many people's mental picture of what a village should look like, even though it's been a landmark community since the 1800s, and before that was a place where kahuna (priests) lived and honored the fiery goddess of the volcano, Pele, and where there was a kapu (taboo) against any but royalty visiting. By the late 1800s it was an area where mattresses and pillows were manufactured from the silky fibers of the Hapu'u tree ferns. In the early 1900s it was home to many Japanese truck farmers and workers on the sugar plantations, and was also a popular summer house area for wealthy Hilo merchants who wanted to get away from Hilo's summer heat. That's why so many houses on the mauka side of Highway 11 date back to the 20s and 30s, and are largely shielded from view by abundant vegetation. And until Kilauea began erupting continuously in 1983, and the volcanic gasses and acid rain wreaked havoc on local farmers, it was home to a lot of orchid and fruit growers, and the delicious Japanese Plums were highly prized. Today the orchards are neglected and the remaining orchid growers have moved inside greenhouses, because vog +rain spot the leaves, making them unsaleable.
The modest house with the generous rolling lawn at the corner of Haunani and Old Volcano Rd, opposite Cafe 'Ohia, the one ringed by the towering cypress and redwood trees, has been in Polo Lee's family more than 100 years, and his grandfather hosted an overnight visit by the last King of Hawai'i when he came to see the volcano.
Or look for the big gate just south of the post office, on the other side of the road, and you may catch a glance of the long driveway back to a largely hidden palatial estate, long the property of the Shipman family, major landowners and business operators in Puna District for 150 years or so. Their principal offices are in Kea'a, a former center of the sugar business, at the place where Highway 130 forks off from Highway 11 to go down to lower Puna, where Pahoa and Kalapana are.
The subdivisions makai the highway in Volcano are much more recent, and hardly seem part of the village to old timers, though they are part of the count in the Census. After WWII Volcano became a renowned arts colony, home to many noted painters, sculptors, ceramic and textile artists, writers, and the like. It's also home to professors from the U of H, Hilo; scientists from the observatories, NPS rangers, professionals from Hilo, and others who favor the unique ambience of the community.
But through it all, the two general stores, associated restaurants, the post office and the nearby park entrance were about all that visitors ever saw, and it remains today misty and a little mysterious, cool and unique, and maybe 95% hidden behind all that splendid and lush greenery.
So yeah, "This is it! That's all there is. Not much to see, but we love it here. Welcome to Volcano!"
Since it's 45 minutes drive back to Hilo, on a dark narrow road, after a night-time volcano viewing or a concert in the park I recommend staying overnight in Volcano.
The historic and very recently nicely rehabbed Volcano House hotel, on a rim overlooking Kilauea, is the premier lodging for the entire area. It's expensive (currently about $225 -350/night... check for various available discounts), but lovely and very convenient, and the Rim restaurant at the hotel is very fine. At the other end of the scale, they also manage the budget priced ($80) rustic camping cabins in another part of the park, also recently rehabbed, and now reopened... sadly, with higher rates than before. Still a bargain though, if it suits your style.
The second is Kilauea Military Camp (KMC) which is a unique resort inside the National Park for current and retired military. Surprising cheerful for an old military base, check out the profusion of stained glass windows by local artisans! It also has amenities like restaurant, bar, bowling alley, video arcade and laundromat that are open to the public. Kilauea Military Camp - www.kmc-volcano.com
Third is Kilauea Lodge, in the heart of the village, a magnificent restaurant and lodgings on the site of a historic youth camp from the 30s, it's very convenient to everything... even a healthy walk to the Sunday Morning Farmer's Market at the Cooper Center on Wright Road.
And then... there are literally dozens of B&Bs within a radius of a mile or so. Many you could drive right past and never know it, because big signs are not the Volcano style. Some are seasonal, some are modest, some are detached cabins, some are quite grand in big houses. I can't verify this, but I've heard it said that there are about 250 beds available in the area, and there is something to fit <ahem> everyone's taste and budget. Consult the usual travel guides like Yelp and TripAdvisor to see what's currently well rated in your range of travel.
One final unique offering, definitely not for everyone, but a special delight for a select few... The Holo Holo In (roughly means "wander in") is a very clean, very well run "adult" hostel... Japanese country-inn style, popular with Japanese tourists, hikers and back packers, and academics. Currently from $24/night dorm style, $60 night for a spartan private room. Includes very hot and wonderful showers, use of a large and fully equipped kitchen with beautiful handmade raku dinnerware, free internet. A couple of blocks from The Volcano Store, where the $2 HeleOn busses stop, to-and-from Hilo, and to-and-from Ka'u.
Not yet. I've been driving a lot of miles all over the Big Island. We will have to figure out how to get there. I don't know if is along the old saddle road or if you get there on the new saddle road.
As DoH said, there is only one Saddle Road, old and new are same same. The only part that has been changed with all the recent work is a bit of straightening of the approach on the Hilo side, and a slightly shorter and more direct access on the Kona side, but the signs are good in both cases.
Quote:
The maps here don't show the new saddle road yet, either does my GPS, which I just updated last week. The new saddle road is on my wife's i-phone GPS though.
How would you know, if it has been updated?
A word of caution about Smartphone GPS features... don't trust yours to work in fringe areas, like down Kalapana way, or up on the saddle. As opposed to dedicated GPS units, some cell-phone based "GPS" functions don't work unless you have a cellphone connection, which you can't get just everywhere on the Big Island. .
To me the best bet for visitors is to rent a car with GPS navigation.
Quote:
Are the observatories something to see in the day and night, like the volcano? The only restriction on the rental car s that you have to stay on the paved roads.
For the astronomical observatories on Mauna Kea, there's nothing to see at the top except the outside of some buildings and one of the most amazing views in the world, at nearly 14,000' altitude. You can't go inside.
And you can't go past the Visitor's Center (9,000') in a rental car, because the road above is unpaved. But even the view from the VC is amazing, if not as panoramic as it is up top.
Also check the weather, and dress appropriately. The temp at 1:15 this afternoon was 38 F, heading for a high of 41 F, wind gusts up to 21 mph, low tonight around 31 F. Up at the top the ground is year round permafrost.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
More on visiting Volcano, and the volcano - seasons, weather, sunrise
) 
