Waimea and Lapakahi

We drove up (i.e., north and into the Kohala Mts) to Waimea yesterday morning to find cooler and rainy weather. We visited an exhibit on the historical leper colony Kalaupapa and I was surprised to learn how dire the conditions were there. Families were forciby separated once someone was diagnosed, and people often died withing just a couple of years after arriving. What I hadn't realized was that it was often due to starvation. Eventually the royal house of Hawaii stepped in and began delivering clothes and food and money for medical care.  Did not see much else of note in Waimea-Kamuela but did find some freshly made malasadas (big fat deep fried doughnuts covered with cinnamon sugar) to make it all worth while.
Back down to the hot coast of the Waimea peninsula to visit the Lapakahi State Historical Park which is an old fishing village. Beautiful setting once inhabited by about 600 people until the water table dropped and they had to leave.

Stopped for lunch in Kawaihae then continued on down the coast with the McMillen Bruddahs scouting for future snorkeling. We stopped at Kiholo State Park Reserve and while the beaches were interesting, it did not look promising due to rocky entry and steep drop off. We will be heading for another potential snorkeling area this morning (Monday). That's all the news for now.