Exploring Hawaii’s Breathtakingly Scenic Hamakua Coast

Hello from Hilo! The Grand Naniloa Hotel by Hilo Bay is our home for the next couple of days and what a view!

We got in late last night from Kona, checking in around 11pm. We were pretty much driving in pitch black darkness, since there’s so little light pollution here. After settling in, Sean passed out from all the driving and I watched the Royal Wedding on TV. Were you watching?

So it came as a wonderful surprise to us when we woke up to this gorgeous paradise. But as we had only sandwiches on the drive in, we were quite famished. We drove to the legendary Ken’s House of Pancakes nearby. This diner is popular with locals and tourists, is opened 24 hrs and has a ginormous menu to match its ginormous portions. We spied someone ordering pancakes and it was as large as the 10 inch plate it was served on. Not to mention it was stacked 6 or 8 pancakes high!

Plus they’re famous for their sumo size saimin (noodles in shrimp broth with teriyaki chicken stick, char siu pork, egg garnish, fish cake, green onions and topped with 2 eggs) and sumo size loco mocos (6 scoops of rice, choice of spam or 5 oz lean beef patty, gravy + 3 eggs). Whenever a customer finish these dishes, a gong is struck and the staff yell “sumo!”

Even though we brought our appetite, there was no way, we could’ve finished any of these American sized portions, much less sumo sized portions!

Fun fact: Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson loves this diner, and has been a regular visitor slash supporter through the years. There’s a wall of fame behind the cash register, plastered with photos of him (from when he used to sport jheri curls and a fanny pack to his movie star self today), AND a photo of The Rock’s grandfather too. Other notable celebs include Danny Trejo and Jason Scott Lee.

Although Hilo is the second largest port in the Hawaiian Islands and about 1/3 of the population on the Big Island live here, visiting Hilo feels like stepping back in time. You get a sense of old Hawaii, especially where we were staying. Banyan trees line Banyan Drive, creating this beautiful, dense canopy of shade. The trees were long ago planted by celebrities such as Amelia Earhart, Cecil B. DeMille, Franklin D. Roosevelt and Babe Ruth and is known as the Hilo Walk of Fame.

Since it was such a beautiful day, we drove the ridiculously scenic Hilo-Hamakua Coast, spanning 40 miles from Hilo to Honoka’a. Remember, we came in close to midnight last night, so we had absolutely no idea what we were in for. There is a reason why the Hamakua Coast, which means ‘breath of God’ in Hawaiian, is a must see on the Big Island. With verdant coastal highlands, cantilevered bridges, deep ravines, so many ocean views, waterfalls a plenty, and canyons of rainforest, you’ll feel inclined to pull over at every opportunity!

At the tiny town of Honomu, we turned inland to go to Akaka Falls State Park. Akaka Falls are one of the most popular, natural wonders this side of Hawaii. Depending on if you park in the lot or further up on the street, you’ll either pay $5 per vehicle or $1 per person for pedestrian. If you’re a local, entrance to the falls is free.

Getting to the falls itself is not difficult. The .4 mile loop trail takes you through a rainforest of ferns, bamboo groves, tropical trees, orchids and exotic plants. You’ll come across the 300 feet Kahuna Falls first, which can be visible from an overlook point. Continuing on the trail, you’ll come across the 422 feet Akaka Falls, the highest free-falling waterfall in Hawaii. And when it’s sunny, it’s hella stunning.

Fun fact: Akaka Falls is twice the height of the more famous Niagara Falls.

On the way back to Hilo, we detoured and took the scenic Pepe’ekeo route in the Onomea Valley, between Honomu and Hilo. This 4 miles windy, one lane road runs parallel to the Hawaii Belt Road (Highway 19) and is known as the “old road through old Hawaii.” Part of the drive overlooks Onomea Bay, while the rest of it plunges you into thick, tropical growth, punctuated by mango, banana and Hala trees.

When we got back to our hotel, we were hungry! Blame it on all the gorgeous scenery. We headed downtown and found ourselves at the hip and trendy Kanpai Noodles and Sake.

Sean ordered the inari (deep fried tofu pocket filled with sushi rice, topped off with spicy ahi poke, unagi sauce, spicy mayo, green onions, shiro goma and tobiko) and rainbow roll (surimi and cucumber topped with fresh ahi, salmon, avocado, shiro goma, green onions, tobiko and unagi sauce).

I order the mermaid roll (shrimp tempura, cucumber, avocado topped with spicy ahi, unagi sauce, spicy mayo, tobiko, shiro goma and green onions). Delish!