2023 Vancouver-Hawai’i Cruise
Oct 18, 2023 – Day 2 in Honolulu – Rainforest Hike in the Manoa Valley
I have breakfast in the Main Dining Room this morning: cappuccino, Passion fruit parfait, and a smoked salmon omelet. Afterward, I grab my notebook computer and go to the Crow’s Nest to hang out there. At 9:30AM the Pacific Collector, a US Navy Auxiliary ship is pushed into an adjacent dock by two tugs. It doesn’t appear to be under power, and has two large white domes on the main cargo deck.
I go on an excursion today: Tropical Rain Forest Nature Walk. It is leaves at 11:45AM, including a 45 minute hike through the Lyon Arboretum rain forest in the Valley of the Rainbows at the head of the beautiful Manoa Valley. I take lots of photos of the many plants, flowers and birds found in the rain forest. Our guide then drives us to the Pu’u Uala’kaa — the hill of the rolling sweet potatoes above the city at an elevation of 1,048 feet. We have great views of Diamond Head, Waikiki, Honolulu, and the harbour and airport, and our ship is visible from here. We also drive through Punchbowl Crater, which is a memorial graveyard for the US Armed Services.
We return to the ship just after 3PM, well before the 4:30 All Aboard time. After getting cleaned up, I decide to wear my new Aloha shirt from our port call in Kaua’i.
4:30PM Captain’s Report – We will sail between two low pressure systems on the return voyage to Vancouver. Waves are expected to be 10′ most of the way, as both systems are generating significant wave action. Koningsdam was scheduled to depart Honolulu at 5PM, but it looks like we will be delayed by an hour due to a medical disembarkation and some late-arriving passengers from an excursion.
Our delayed departure actually works out really well, since the ship sails out of the harbour entrance at sunset, giving us beautiful views along the coastline with some dramatic clouds, ships in the distance on the horizon, all making for some good photos. After looking closer at my sunset photos, I realize there are five mirages of ships and the city floating above the ocean!
