Hawaii, Day 6 & 7

Well tomorrow we are homeward bound. It's pretty sad, but in a way I am ready to get back. I have a lot to do! Anyways, so yesterday we drove to the north part of the island & went on an ATV tour. It was a ton of fun! The place was called ATV Outfitters, & they have a ton of trails leading along the coastline & through orchards. It was beautiful. Plus I was on a four-wheeler. Can't get much better than that! We did a 15 mile ride & stopped off at two different waterfalls. The first one we drove right to, but the second one you had to go on a little hike to get to it. They were both amazing! Our tour guide was named Fado, & he was pretty hilarious. I drove behind him & he kept grabbing fruit off trees while we road. So after our tour was over, we headed back south. By the time we got back it was already pretty late. We hung out for a bit & then went to dinner at the Big Island Grill. It was pretty good.

Today we got up, grabbed breakfast, & headed toward Hilo. It is a pretty big town to the east. On the way there we saw turkeys, nene birds, & a pheasant. Crazy! We did some shopping when we got there & then went to the Hilo Airport. We were there to go on a helicopter tour. It was so much fun! We checked in & then went over some safety stuff. After a little while we headed outside to get loaded up. It was us three & a German guy named Rudolph. He was so adorable. Anyways, we got into the helicopter (I was in the back with Rudolph), talked to the pilot for a bit (his name was Marco & he was pretty cute), & then we took off. It was crazy! I have been in a ton of planes, but never a helicopter. I was pretty nervous for the first little bit but got used to it pretty quickly. We were in the helicopter for about an hour & saw some amazing stuff. At first we flew over a harbor, saw a couple of waterfalls, but then we headed to the volcano. It was so amazing to see from above & there was even some lava flow! It was awesome! He said that the lava had just started flowing again last night so we were lucky to see it. Anyways, we flew back to the airport, got unloaded, & hit the road again.

When we got back to our place it was nearly time to set off on our next adventure. This time Ang & I were going to go night snorkeling. We got ready, & drove down to the dock to meet our guides. We ended up using the same company as we used the other time we went snorkeling, & our guides were the same. It was pretty funny. Anyways, we got the kayaks in the water, & headed out. We didn't kayak very far & then it was time to anchor & get in the water. It was a little cold at first but we got used to it fast. We swam around for a minute, & then a manta ray appeared! It was so amazing! He circled around below us the entire time we were in the water. He was beautiful! I was so happy we were able to experience that. Apparently, sometimes they take people out & they don't see any manta rays. So once again, we were lucky! We snorkeled for a while, loaded back into the kayaks (not very gracefully, I might add), & then headed back to the harbor. We said farewell to John & Booboo (the other guide), & went back home.

Well now it is time to pack. Sigh. I hate packing! Plus I am tired so I just want to go to sleep! Anyways, I have had a great time here but am getting ready to head home. I have a ton of work to catch up on at school & need to hop to it. Also, my new phone is waiting for me! I ordered an iPhone 4s & it arrived the same day I left. Gives me something to look forward too! And, I miss my kitties! I'm ready to visit them. Anyways, I best be off. Night!