Surfing, round two

After yesterday, there was no way I was  not go surfing again today, even if I am worse than rubbish; I had to keep face if nothing else. But guess what? It was actually a bit easier today. OK so the current wasn't as strong and the breeze of yesterday was non existent, but I'd got better balance on the board and didn't get dumped or smashed as much as I did yesterday. However, the surf was poor and the waves few and far between, so we did much sitting on the boards and waiting, and doing a sort of sideways board roll which involves not actually falling right off but clambering over each edge as it comes to the surface. Of course the momentum gets the better of you very quickly and you end up in the rink anyway Yet I did manage to ride a good wave right into shore but of course that then meant that I had to paddle all the way back out again once it was done. And as I had no hope of avoiding anybody who got in my way, I screamed all the way in, just to let people know I was there and bearing down on them, out of control.  Surfing though is akin to skiing down a  mountain and then having to walk all the way back up to the top. Somebody should invent a way to tow you back out to the waves.

The water is that lovely aqua marine colour and very clear , so clear that you can see the reef below. But its  not good to be over that because of the spiky things and sharp rocks that will get you if you fall in - which I do frequently.

We had been sitting on the water for about five minutes when a large shape appeared from under the boards and surfaced very close to us - a giant sea turtle. It was only about two metres away and stuck its head right out of the water and just looked a us. I've never seen one in the wild before and for some reason, I thought it was a human arm or a leg; it never occurred to me that had it been a lost limb, there might well be a few more body parts nearby or a big nasty bitey fish thing looking for breakfast. The turtle wasn't in a hurry hung around, swimming near us for about 15 minutes.

Later on, we bought a Waikiki Trolley bus two day hop on hop off ticket and went for a ride around the island. Its quite good because the drivers yell out snippets as you go, telling you who lives here, or what was filmed there, and what goes on in that building. And the buses are completely open on both sides, which makes a good breeze and relief from the heat.

One of the first stops was the Amelia Earhart stone, commemorating her solo flight from Hawaii to Oakland, California in January 1935, the first person to complete the 2408 mile trip, often just feet off the top of the waves because the storms were a bit rough. But it was worth it as she got $10000 for the trip.

The Diamond Head lighthouse is a bit further up the coast. Built in 1899, it stands 147 feet above sea level.

But the focus of the ride was the Diamond Head Crater, a volcanic tuff cone. It was named by British sailors who mistook calcite crystals embedded in the rocks for diamonds. Its now a State Park, having been a military camp for years.  

The eruption that caused it happened about 300, 000 years ago, sending stuff into the air. It fell to earth as articles which hardened and formed a rock called tuff. Its actually a still complete circle and once you realise that it is volcanic, its easy to imagine what it once looked like. There is a hiking trail to the rim top, which we did, despite it being full on sun and midday.

And despite the clouds rolling in for the daily deluge, it didn't happen.

There are various  bunkers up on the rim, left overs from WW2 and built as precautions in case of Japanese invasion. Unfortunately they weren't that useful after all as Pearl Harbour is literally just round the corner. 

However, the lookout sites were well picked and today there is a clear view of the whole Waikiki coastline  and the reefs which lay just offshore from up there.