trails Archives - Floradise

02/23/2018

Pu’uhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park, Hawaii

I really wanted to visit Pu’uhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park in Hawaii during our honeymoon to the Big Island in 2014, but sadly we weren’t able to make it happen. The national park was on my list for our second visit to the island for its historical importance. I like to mix historical and entertainment activities when visiting a place to really learn about a place and its culture.

The park isn’t far from Kailua-Kona, but we squeezed a visit in after driving back from Hilo on the other side of the island. Admission is only $5 per car or $3 per person if you walk in.

We embarked on a short, self-guided tour of the park and skipped snorkeling, though you could definitely take advantage of the adjacent beach if that’s more your style.

By taking this self-guided walk you get a sense of what life was like for early Hawaiians. According to the park’s website, “The Royal Grounds adjacent to the pu’uhonua were a favored residence of Hawaiian chiefs. Hale-o-Keawe acted as the royal mausoleum and held the remains of 23 chiefs. The mana (spiritual power) of the remains bestowed sanctity upon this sacred area. This temple was constructed in honor of Keawe’ikekahiali’i o kamoku, the great-grandfather of Kamehameha I.”

Note from the website: “A snorkeling area locally known as ‘two step’ lies adjacent to the park, and is managed by the Hawaii Department of Natural Resources. ” Also, “snorkellers are asked NOT to enter the water at Keone’ele Cove in the park. This is an important cultural site and the park strives to maintain the cultural landscape. Please respect this site that is important and significant to the Hawaiian people.”

There’s also a 2-mile backcountry trail that requires more time, but we didn’t have it in us that warm day. You can learn about Hawaiian history at this park even if you only have a few hours to spare during your trip. I highly recommend it.

Have you been to Pu’uhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park?

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11/30/2017

Great Falls Park | Virginia Trip

Great Falls Park, Virginia

We spent much of our time catching up and eating when I visited my friend Charlsy in Virginia earlier this month, but we also did some exploring in the area, including visiting Great Falls Park on the last day of my weekend trip. Great Falls Park was an easy and less than 30 minute drive from Alexandria on the beautiful George Washington Memorial Parkway.

Drive to Great Falls Park

It was a peaceful and scenic drive to the park, with one exception. We saw a near collision between a semi and what we thought was a hawk, which certainly got our hearts racing as we pulled into the Great Falls parking area. It was intense! By the way, the fee for parking/admission was $10.

It was a gorgeous, sunny day to walk along the trails and see the powerful Potomac River rushing below us. Great Falls Park separates Virginia and Maryland, and you can see beautiful fall foliage on either side. You can hear the power of the water, and you’ll see many signs warning you not to try to swim in it.

Great Falls Park, Virginia

Our walk was an easy stroll, but you can make the hike what you want. We stopped at the different viewpoints for photos and to take in the scenery. We even saw a brave soul rappelling. It’s also a good idea to bring along snacks or a picnic lunch!

Great Falls Park, Virginia

Great Falls Park makes a fun and quick day trip if you’re in the D.C. area and want to do more than visit national monuments. On our way back we stopped for ramen at Jinya in Fairfax, a perfect sendoff from my trip.

Have you visited Great Falls Park in Virginia?

D.C./Virginia Eats | Vegetarian and Pescatarian Options

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01/19/2015

Marathon and Ragnar Training, Week 4

I’ve had a lot of excuses for not running lately. That ends now. The week’s theme is Building a Base.

Monday: 4-mile run. I ran the first 3 miles slowly and the last one at a faster pace. My average pace was 9:17/mile. My heart monitor says my average heart rate was 172 bpm and my maximum was 191. I’m surprised I could even go this hard after carrying a 60-pound backpack this weekend during the hike into Aravaipa Canyon. My hips and back still felt sore.

Tuesday: Yoga and 1.5-mile run at Dreamy Draw Recreation Area. Graham sent me a text while I was at work asking me to meet him at the mountain for sunset. We knew it’d be a gorgeous evening because of the nice puffy clouds in the sky after the rained stopped. I raced through post-workday traffic, changed in about 30 seconds in the car, and ran to our usual sunset viewing place. I didn’t even have time to put my hair in a ponytail! Graham followed me on his bike as I ran, shooting video on his GoPro and taking my Ragnar Training challenge photos.

Wednesday: 5.04-mile run. My pace was 9:18/mile, with an average heart rate of 173 bpm. (Max was 191.) It was an evening run, and I had the running trail to myself. I tested out the new headlamp Graham got us; at it’s max brightness it could blind you, probably. (I dimmed it a little and pointed it downward so that wouldn’t happen.) According to my Garmin I burned 540 calories, so I felt less guilty about having a glass of wine with dinner.

Thursday: Yin Yoga at Sutra Midtown. Steven, who was one of my instructors during yoga teacher training, warns you before class that you should be careful driving home afterward. You will feel that zen! Class begins with a flow, by which Steven means you breathe back and forth from a runner’s lunge into straightening that leg. We did one downward-facing dog for an extended amount of time. I remember thinking that it was the hardest down dog I’ve ever done. (We later did two other downward-facing dogs between sides of pigeon.) I didn’t meet my goal steps for the day for the third time since I’ve had the Garmin, but I’m OK with it.

Friday: 3.25 miles. I don’t remember much from this run other than it was around sunset, and I went without a headlamp. I meant to run 4 miles but I didn’t want it to get too dark on me.

Saturday: 2.48 miles. I had planned to run longer, but I’m glad I didn’t, because I ended up having to deal with family drama immediately afterward. This daytime run reaffirmed my love of nighttime runs; it was quite warm!

Sunday: 9.87 mile run. My longest run yet of training. I noticed that the timer on my Garmin wasn’t changing at about Mile 8, so I’m not going to trust my time on this one. It’s as if it only moves if you’re constantly moving your arm back and forth. I’m going to test it next time by also using the Map My Run app. I had more than 20,000 steps on this day!

Weekly goal: 27 miles
Actual mileage: 26.14 miles.

08/12/2013

Camping at Schnebly Hill

With the Perseid meteor shower set to illuminate the sky, Graham and I headed north to get away from city lights and hopefully see the show.

We chose the campgrounds along Schnebly Hill Road, accessible via the I-17.

Our first destination was Schnebly Hill Vista, which overlooks the Sedona area. You get there by driving down Schnebly Hill Road past the campgrounds. Along the bumpy drive you pass Foxboro Lake Dam to the right; on the left is a sea of yellow wildflowers. All this beauty is complemented nicely by 72-degree weather.

The Vista doesn’t disappoint. How did I not know about this place?!

If you keep following the dirt road you can get to Sedona. In fact, most of the vehicles we saw on the road were Jeep tours from there.

Graham is picky about campsites — we have to be as far away from other people as possible — so we were excited about this spot. (And we had it to ourselves until about 8 or 9 p.m., when two trucks drove up and people set up camp near us. There should be a rule that if the campers next to you can hear your conversation, you are too close. Move away.)

We took our pups on a hike along the rough road adjoining our campsite. We came across another field of wildflowers that the dogs thoroughly enjoyed. There was also an animal watering hole, which made us nervous about hunters. Taylor and Capone couldn’t resist jumping in. We could hear sporadic gunfire nearby, so we kept the dogs as close to us as possible. Taylor especially loves to wander off and explore, so it’s difficult to rein the pups in. I’d feel more comfortable next time if we can get them orange vests.

Later that day

Somewhere along a bumpy trail near the Vista we found a nice viewing area to admire the afternoon’s changing colors. We went back to the Vista for a quick snack and then returned to our viewing spot for sunset. Sadly the clouds had mostly moved on by sunset; they would have created a more colorful sunset, but the one we watched was quite lovely.

Under the stars

That night we caught a glimpse of maybe 5-6 shooting stars as we sat around the campfire. A thunderstorm to the east also lit up that part of the sky. I was thrilled to have to put on a sweatshirt to keep warm!

Good morning!

The perfect night was followed by a perfect morning of yoga and homemade doughnuts with fruit.

I forgot my yoga mat, so I had to make do with what we had. There’s nothing like outdoor yoga.

Homemade doughnuts, strawberries, blueberries and powdered sugar, courtesy of Graham. I added honey, too.

Hope your weekend was just as adventurous, scenic, romantic and delicious.

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04/12/2013

Another Piestewa Peak hike

Unless you’ve been quarantined for the last few weeks, you know that the weather has been perfect. It would be a shame to waste the last weeks of bearable temperatures indoors, so I put on my hiking shoes and headed to Piestewa Peak.

The view of Phoenix framed by Phoenix mountains never gets old.

I made the trek, which I believe is 1.2 miles long to the summit, in an hour and 10 minutes. This, of course, includes time to snap photos, chug water while soaking in the views and rest at the summit. The hike also allows me enough time to sort out my thoughts and feelings and gear up for the day. See you on the mountain!

Mountaintop selfie.