Lindsay's Lessons

Today we arrived on the final island of our three island tour - Maui. After a big day yesterday with many stops we were ready for a little sunshine and relaxation.

While the big island of Hawaii was full of rock formations, lava flows and black sand beaches, Maui boasts the more traditional sandy beaches that you might expect to see when visiting paradise. As we flew into the island we immediately noticed the large fields of sugarcane. As we rode on the bus we learned that there are 34,000 acres of sugarcane on the island.

We were also fortunate to see many whales breeching and spouting as we drove along the coastline. Later in the trip, many of our travel companions will be enjoying a whale watching voyage.

When we arrived in Lahaina we visited the shops in the harbor and everyone enjoyed lunch along the water. Many members of the group dined at Bubba Gump's Shrimp Shack. We stopped briefly at another shopping center before making our way to our hotel in Kaanapali Beach where everyone enjoyed the remainder of the afternoon and evening on their own.

Some hit the beach to soak up the sunshine, while others explored the area. One of the big hits, at least for me, was the discovery of penguins in our hotel lobby! I will have penguin pictures and more posted for you on ABN Radio's Facebook page. Be sure to check out both albums as I had to add a second one today because I exceeded the number of pictures allowed in the first! Hopefully you are enjoying the stories and highlights and maybe you'll consider joining us on our next AgVenture!

I think the group would agree that yesterday was perhaps one of the best days of our Hawaiian AgVenture. Our morning began as we drove into the city of Kailua. It was amazing to see where many resorts have popped up in this beautiful town. It is also the site of the annual Iron Man Triathalon and we drove past the finish line for the event.

Our first stop was a visit to Kona Joe’s coffee plantation. This 20 acre plantation grows coffee plants in a way that is completely unique to their operation utilizing a trellis system similar to what grape producers would use when growing grapes for wine. This gives the coffee a flavor all its own.

After the coffee cherries (beans) are hand-picked, they go through a drying process before being brought into the factory. Once in the factory, they are sorted by size and roasted. Both the size of the bean and the length of time in the roaster determine the ultimate flavor of the coffee.

As you can imagine, everyone enjoyed the tour and many purchased their own Kona Joe’s gift packs to enjoy when they get back home.

Upon leaving the plantation, we drove back into town for a lunch and ice cream stop at a small shopping center where our travel companions had a variety of options for their meal.

Our afternoon bus ride took us back through the amazing lava flows, winding around phenomenal cinder cones as we made our way to the Kahua Ranch. This ranch is the 25th largest in the country, and is home to 3,500 head of Angus, Herford, Charolais and Wagyu beef cattle and 500 sheep.

Farming in Hawaii presents an unbelievable set of challenges. For these ranchers, you can’t just load up your stock and take them into town when it’s time. There are no stockyards or processing facilities on the island meaning that cattle are shipped or flown off the island. However, due to certain laws, they can’t be shipped directly from Hawaii to the mainland, so they must pass through Canada en route to the United States. When flown, they can load up to 50,000 pounds of cattle onto each plane.

Additionally, while the climate is temperate, there are drastic changes in rainfall across short spans of the island. So the Kahua Ranch can literally experience plentiful rainfall and a drought at the same time, thus making management of land and resources especially important.

We completed our day with a return trip to the hotel. Along the way, we noticed whales jumping and spouting in the water so our bus driver pulled off to let us watch. Later many in our group gathered for a spontaneous supper on the hotel patio. Some also gathered in the evening on the balconies over the water to look for mantay rays. Unfortunately, the waters were very choppy last night, so none were spotted.

Today we are off to the airport as we head to Maui – the final island of our AgVenture!

Wow - what a day it was! Yesterday we had a very early flight to island hop from Oahu to the Big Island of Hawaii, so everyone gathered at 6 a.m. to board the bus.

Upon arriving in Hawaii, we met our bus driver Derrick. He turned out to be amazing! Not only did he know everything about the area, but he kept us laughing the whole time. When he wasn't cracking jokes, he was trying to convince Japanese tourists to board our bus by mistake as a prank!

Our first stop was the Mauna Loa macademia nut plantation. This 2,500 acres plantation also houses a factory where the nuts are dried, processed and turned into hundreds of different macademia nut treats! The group enjoyed samples of the different products and bought all sorts of things to bring home from the gift shop. Many also enjoyed macademia nut ice cream!

We were fortunate to be running ahead of schedule, which allowed us an unplanned stop at a breathtaking orchid garden and shop. Inside we saw thousands of orchids, including one from Japan that was for sale for a mere $20,000! We also saw an orchid called the Big Stinky, which proved to be a big hit as way to prank members of our group. Yes, they told me it would smell like chocolate and I fell for it. Believe me, it didn't smell anything like chocolate and instead smelled like something I'd expect to smell at the cattle ranch today!

In the only disappointment of the trip for me, we went to the Volcano Golf Country Club for lunch. Lunch was fantastic, but the disappointment came when I learned I would not be playing 18 holes, or even any holes, while I was there. By the way, we had macademia nut pie for dessert - think pecan pie with macedemia nuts - yummy!

After lunch we ventured into Volcano National Park. The scenery along the journey was simply breathtaking. We were in awe of nature's work in the islands. The dark lava flows, black sand and different terrains formed by the lava flows were amazing. Everyone enjoyed seeing the expansive craters and active volcanos. We even went underground into a lava tube (where the group tried to leave me with some Japanese tourists....but that's another story). Everyone took lots of pictures, and had plenty of time to tour the museum and gift shop.

The beaches in the this area of the island are not the white sandy beaches you expect in Hawaii. As a matter of fact, they are black sand from the lava flows. We visited one of the black sand beaches and walked along the shore. We were fortunate to get to see one of the many sea turtles lounging waterside as we passed by.

Our next stop was the southernmost bakery in the United States! This bakery offered up Hawaiian breads, Portugeese sweet breads and all sorts of goodies. And, of course, ice cream!

We arrived at our resort around 6 p.m. with plenty of time for everyone to relax. As it happened, everyone wound up downstairs and a spontaneous group supper kind of took place. Our group is simply wonderful and everyone gets along so well, that even after spending hours together on the bus today, everyone enjoys gathering for meals as well. We worked in a couple of impromptu table tennis games, some took walks along the beach, a few scouted for manna rays (like sting rays without the sting) and some enjoyed the fruity Hawaiian drinks at the ocean side bar.

All in all, it was another great day in paradise! Pictures are posted at ABN Radio's Facebook page, so become a fan and check them out!

The third day of our trip got off to a bit of a rainy start. However, we were scheduled to do a bus tour of Oahu, so it was a good time to be inside the bus and stay dry, while still being able to enjoy the beauty of the island.

We had a wonderful bus driver named Patricia who kept us very entertained along the way, while providing us with great information and stories. As we traveled outside of Honolulu we were treated to beautiful mountains and gorgeous scenery that can hardly be captured in photographs. We stopped at the Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve where we saw some folks learning to snorkel. We also visited the beach where the movie "From Here to Eternity" was filmed years ago.

Along the way we passed by the mansion that was built by Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft. And, we saw the home and streets that were used in the opening sequence to the television show Magnum P.I. We also passed by the beach area where President Obama likes to body surf, and where the ashes of his grandmother were scattered. Later in the day we saw the school that he attended, as did the professional golfer Michelle Wie and Kelly Preston, the wife of John Travolta.

In the midst of the mountains, we entered the jungle and drove back through a rainforest to a scenic overlook. Unfortunately, the heaviest rain of the day came as we made our way to the scenic overlook, so we didn't spend as much time there as we might have otherwise. Fortunately, for the majority of the morning the rain was light and intermittent, so it certainly didn't put a damper on our plans.

We also enjoyed a stop at a small shopping center where some of our travel companions bought macademia nuts, hawaiian jewelry, aloha shirts and other island novelties.

Our next destination was the Punchbowl Crater to see the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific. On our way there we also drove by the Royal Mausoleum, which houses the remains of Hawaii's past Kings and Queens.

It's hard to believe that we accomplished all of that in one morning, and still arrived back at the hotel by noon. During the afternoon everyone had the opportunity to enjoy their own excursions. Some visited the U.S.S. Missouri. Others walked around Honolulu and visited shops. And, as you might imagine, many in the group headed for the beach.

Andy and I enjoyed a walking excursion with our friends Chuck and Debi Wood. We visited the International Market where Andy and I purchased our outfits for the Hawaiian luau we will enjoy later in the trip. And on the way back to our hotel, we stopped at the Westin Mauna, which is the oldest hotel in Honolulu and even has an area dedicated to the history of the hotel and area for visitors to stop and enjoy.

We spent the remainder of the afternoon lounging on Waikiki Beach, before joining together with a dozen of our other travel companions for supper. This evening, we enjoyed a prime rib and seafood buffet featuring all-you-can-eat crab legs. And yes, I ate all of them that I possibly could!

Our day tomorrow will begin quite early as we must board a plane to island hop over to the big island of Hawaii. It's hard to believe that our time on the first island, Oahu, has already drawn to an end. We have a terrific group of travel mates and everyone seems to be having a great time! As always, pictures from today are posted on ABN Radio's Facebook page.

This morning our group boarded the bus bright and early to make our way to Pearl Harbor. As you can imagine, lines are long as many flock to see the memorial, so you must arrive early to reserve a place on the boat.

Upon our arrival, we took a group picture in front of the anchor from the U.S.S. Arizona and everyone was eager to take pictures of the memorial across the water. We also watched a video that explained the events leading up to the invasion of Pearl Harbor and the horror of the attacks that fateful day.

After taking the boat out to the memorial that is erected over the sunken remains of the U.S.S. Arizona, we gathered over the water with our Hawaiian leis and removed each flower dropping them into the waters below in memory and honor of the many lives that were lost. It was a touching tribute as the flowers floated out to sea amidst the wreckage.

We returned to the bus for a brief tour of the city, including the Capital Building, and stopped at a brewery for lunch. From there, we made our way to the Lyon Arboretum where we hiked through winding trails that showcased the beauty of tropical vegetation here in the islands.

Naturally, the highlight for me was the discovery of a chocolate tree! I got to thinking that if I built my own arboretum back in Ohio, perhaps I could grow both coffee and chocolate trees in hopes of one day creating a unique hybrid mocha tree! It also makes economic sense because I am certain that if I grew my own chocolate, I would realize significant cost savings in chocolate consumption over the course of a year.

Of course, there was much to see beyond the chocolate tree. Some of our group members took a steeper climb into a rainforest. Others opted for a tour focused on the plants that are native to Hawaii. However, everyone agreed that it was a wonderful stop and that our cameras couldn't begin to capture the beauty of what we were seeing.

This evening we were free to make our own plans, so we opted to join four other couples for dinner. That decision turned out to be quite an adventure on its own! To make a long story short, let's just say that it involved farmers and chopsticks, and leave it at that!

And, our walk back to the hotel just happened to lead us right past the door of a Haagen Dazz ice cream store. Well, maybe not right past so much as right into the store. We all had to laugh because as we exited the ice cream shop, we noticed it was next door to a 24 hour fitness place, which happens to be located next door to a bikini shop. Coincidence? I think not!

Tomorrow will be a fairly relaxed day with some sightseeing in the morning, but our afternoon and evening will be free to do as we choose. I would expect tomorrow's update to contain some stories from the Waikiki Beach!

If you'd like to see the pictures from our Hawaiian AgVenture, be sure to become a fan of ABN Radio on Facebook. I'm posting new photos everyday.