Hawaii Island is the largest island in the Hawaiian Chain, having more land mass that all of  the other islands put together. The Island also has 10 out of 13 world climates and was the favorite island of relaxation for King Kamehameha.  As the youngest of the Islands the ocean is the clearest as found anywhere with many fine beaches on the Kona side of the island.  Hawaii Island is the least  populated of all the islands and still very provincial in many ways.  Much to see and do, lots of Historical sites and places to explore and go back in time. 

Hawaii Island revised 2/20/98

The Big Island, The Volcano Island, The Orchid Island

The Big Island of Hawaii Swim, snorkel, sunbathe, snow ski, parasail, hike, kayak, paddle a Hawaiian canoe, watch whales, surf, go boogie boarding, scuba diving, fine dining, sail, go big game fishing, hunting, bird watching, take pictures, go in a submarine to see coral reefs, visit historical Hawaiian sites, take bus tours, boat tours, helicopter tours, hiking tours, sailboat tours, and mountain bike tours, go to a luau, learn how to hula and weave lauhala, ski, mountain climb, get a tan and relax on some of the finest beaches in the world, even find a piece of sand on which to be alone. Also the land of volcanoes, lava, geothermal vents, Hawaiian rainforest, black sand, white sand, and green sand beaches, whales and dolphins, incredible tropical fish, rainbows, snow, rushing rivers, majestic towering waterfalls, Hawaiian heiaus (temples), Hawaiian historical sites, huge ancient lava flows (and some more recent in the 18 & 1900's), geckos, beautiful sunrises and sunsets, hula dancing, deserts, mountains, jungles, tropical downpours, and a gentle aloha experience of Old Hawai'i can still found by those who take the road less traveled.

In most places in the world people run when volcanoes erupt, but in Hawaii they run to go see the spectacle. Local charters vie to be the first to offer flybys as Kilauea Caldera spews fountains of luminous lava against the night sky. Unlike Mount St. Helens, the Big Island's volcanoes are not considered to be the explosive type, at least no one thinks so. And so the red satin lava wells from the earth below and make Hawaii just a little bit bigger each year.

The island of Hawaii has been the starting point for much of the islands' human history. Hawaii Island was possibly the first to be reached by the Polynesian settlers who came as early as A.D. 500. The northern region of Kohala was the birthplace of Kamehameha the Great; and in 1792, he launched his war canoes from the Kona coast to begin the brutal conquest of all the other islands. Kamehameha ruled and died at Kailua-Kona on May 8, 1819.

Christian missionaries were invited to the kingdom and arrived April 20, 1820. And by the 1960's, astronauts were in training for lunar missions on the moonscape lava fields of Mauna Loa. Now astronomers stationed atop Mauna Kea scan the skies with powerful optical and infrared telescopes. Hawaii is known for very clean air and high ultraviolet, so watch out for sunburn, 30+ sun screen and 20 minutes to a side is a max for the first day for light skin. Tourism, agriculture and the military training base in the center of the island are the staples of the Hawaii economy. Pineapple, coffee, orchids, Hawaiian flowers oranges, papayas, avocados and macadamia nuts are grown on the Big Island. The nation's only commercial coffee farms are located in the Kona region. Kona coffee is noted for its mellow and rich gourmet flavor. Hawaii Island is the home for Parker Ranch covering nearly 250,000 acres, one of the largest corporately owned cattle ranches in the United States.

The mountains of Hualalai (8,271 ft.) And Mauna Loa (13,680 ft.) oversee the western leeward coast, often above the cloud banks. Offshore, whales frequent the waters all year, while tropical fish, turtles, moray eels, manta rays, and spinner dolphin find their dinner over beautiful coral beds. Rainfall on the Kona Coast ranges from 20" to 60" a year and temperatures average a very moderate 80 degrees. Hawaiians say, "Don't like the weather? drive 30 minutes.