Puako Petroglyphs
The Puako petroglyphs are located about 45 minutes north of Kona. To get to them you take a walking trail through a forest of scary looking trees. They are gnarled and twisted in every direction. A fire must have gone through the area at some point and has left everything charred. The petroglyphs were fascinating to look at. Most of them were of human figures or animals. They are estimated to be about 600 years old.
Hapuna Beach
Next stop was Hapuna Beach. It’s your typical tropical beach with long stretches of white sand and palm trees. A resort called the Hapuna Beach Prince Hotel is located here. We wandered up from the beach and through the resort. It looked like it would be a very nice place to stay. The adjacent golf course was pretty impressive too.
Pu’ukohola Heiau
About a ten minute drive from the hotel we stopped at a historical site. It doesn’t look like much now other than a big pile of rocks. It is called Pu’ukohola Heiau.
It is one of the many Heiau’s on the island. They were sacred temples used by the royalty for different ceremonies. Even though there is not much left to see than the volcanic rocks that make up the platform we could appreciate the history behind the temple. It took men lined up for over 20 miles to transport the heavy rocks to the area hand to hand. It was built around 1790 by order of King Kamehameha.
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