Day 4 - My Fiftieth: Hawaii at DennyGibson.com

Day 4: March 26, 2017
Oahu Road Trip #1
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I'd arranged to pick up a rental car early one day and return it late the next so I could get two days use and pay for just one night of hotel parking. In Honolulu renting space for a car costs nearly as much as renting a car. I arrived at the bus stop in time for one of the earlier options which was fortunate since I missed my stop. The stop's name on the bus was slightly different than what I got from the internet and by the time I realized it my destination was a mile behind us. I used that extra time walking. Things went smoothly at the rental site and it wasn't long before I was driving on an interstate highway with little fear of crossing a state line before my exit came up.

I soon left the interstate for HI-80, HI-99, and eventually HI-83. Much of the route I followed is known as the Kamahamaha Highway. I had entered the locations of several recommended points into my GPS and, with no particular route in mind, simply selected the nearest one and followed directions. Almost immediately I joined a gaggle of cars crossing a bridge over the Wahiawa Reservoir. Then it was some lovely open country before crossing a double arch bridge, without gaggle, over Anahulu River.

My entered destination was the Haleiwa Beach House. It wasn't yet open for the day but pleasant ocean views were just across the street.

Tom called Three Tables Beach one of his favorites and certainly enjoyed the stop. The first couple of pictures were taken near the parking lot just north of the beach. Early explorers were surprised to find the three sturdy picnic tables that give the beach its name. Or maybe its the three flattop rock formations just off shore.

Pu'u o Mahuka Heiau isn't far from Three Tables. The drive to the park is rather nice and the park itself quite interesting. Offerings are still left at this ancient place of worship for the gods and chickens.

I have problems pronouncing many Hawaiian words and so does the lady that lives inside my Garmin. But she does her best and even tries to recognize abbreviations such as st (street) and rd (road). In this case, it seems the word "park" got truncated to "pa". Here is a WAV file of her announcing my arrival: Pu'u o Mahuka Heiau pa.

Pu'u o Mahuka Heiau provides a great view of Wiamea Bay Beach.

It was starting to become apparent that Sunday afternoons aren't the best time for a leisurely drive around the island. Roads near beaches, especially if surfing was involved, looked like the first picture. Of course there were some beautiful views in between the congested spots.

Apparently no one surfs at Chinaman’s Hat as the parking lot was not quite full.

Several people have told me I need to try a loco moco and Tom even suggested a place to do it. I tried that today but learned that it closes at two. So I looked for a substitute and found Liliha Bakery on at least two of the "best of" lists that came up. One reason is that it includes a butter roll and raspberry jelly. This is a real bakery combined with a diner-like counter and grill. For the entire time I was there multiple lines of customers stood waiting to buy baked goods.

The basic loco moco is a hamburger patty on rice with gravy and a fried egg. At Liliha you get two eggs and your choice of a four or seven once patty. I chose the four.

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