A Visit to Diamond Head

The first stop on this adventure was a stop in Honolulu.  My oldest niece told me that I most likely would not be a fan of Honolulu as it’s a large city, and I’m not a fan of cities.  In that regard, she was correct.  However, Jeff and I boarded a hop-on hop-off bus that took us out to Diamond Head and that was a very nice excursion away from the city crowds.

Palm Trees and Folks along Waikiki Beach

On the way to Diamond Head, we did drive along Waikiki Beach, altho I’m not certain how many of areas we passed actually had beaches people swam at.  Still, it made for some lovely scenery!  Along one part of the beach, tho, there was a section of beach that was sort of a homage to a Hawaiian Olympian athlete.  I couldn’t resist catching a shot of one of the statues they had up along this section of the beach.

Duke and Banyon Tree

View off Waikiki

Wild Growth along the Beach

We did pass by a lighthouse that is maintained by the Coast Guard, and for whatever reason, they don’t encourage people to stop and visit the lighthouse.  So, it was just a quick stop to take a photo.  I thought I managed to get a pretty good shot, considering the circumstances! 

Coast Guard Lighthouse

Our bus driver also told us that they were having some great surfing waves at this time due to the number of tropical storms and hurricane that were in the Pacific this season.  We did happen to see a few people trying out the waves on this bright sunny day!

Surfer Girl

When we got to Diamond Head, I learned something – you actually visit the Diamond Head Crater, not the rim!  Reaching the rim requires a hike up a switchback trail, and then 99 stairs, if the guide on our bus is to be believed!!  When I checked the charts along the area at the base of the crater, it seemed like 99 might have been a bit of an undercount!  

Diamond Head in the Distance

Trek up Diamond Head

Due to my asthma, making the climb to the top of the rim was not something I could do, so we walked up the trail a bit, so I could get a nice shot of the trail, and then enjoyed the picnic area at the crater.  The area is actually a state park, and is very nicely kept.

Picnic at Diamond Head

Tree at Diamond Head

Among those visiting the picnic area with us was what we came to find was a gopher, and what looked to be a smaller pigeon.  They must get tidbits from those actually having a picnic, because they were very social in that they seemed to have no fear of being around humans!

Gopher Portrait

Diamond Head Pigeon

Enjoy!