Hawaiian Holiday

Intrepid at Hawaii Yacht Club
Will and I on the North Shore






The last few days here in Hawaii have been great!


Waikiki is crazy busy after my time alone at sea. The beaches are beautiful but there are hundreds of tall hotels stretching for miles up and down the coast. First thing on Saturday, after eating, was to go down to the boat and check her out. She handled her trip to Hawaii very well. Dad and I ran through things quickly and made a few lists of work. I packed up my laundry and spent some quality time at the laundrymat. My friend from school, Will Craddick, who is spending the summer here working with his uncle, took the bus over to Hawaii Yacht Club. It was great to see another familiar face. After having lunch with mom and dad we walked into the town of Waikiki. We rented surfboards and hit the Kiwi Reef Break. We spent a few hours dodging coral reefs and surfing. The weather is so warm and so is the water.


After that, the film crew who are helping document my trip, mom, dad, Will and I drove up to the North Shore to watch the sunset and do some filmng. It was great to see more of the island of Oahu because Waikiki is so built up but the North Shore area is much more remote. It really wasn't what I had expected. I was thinking of 20' waves and crazy barrels but we jumped out of the Jeep and ran over to where the famous Pipeline is supposed to be only to see 2 maybe 3 foot waves! Oh well, will have to come back in the winter.


We ate fresh fish at Haleiwa Joe's on the beach and headed back to the hotel for the night.



On Sunday morning, Greg and Todd from Itik Productions and I hopped on a plane to the island of Kauai to meet Bethany Hamilton and her family. You may have heard of Bethany. About 5 years ago when she was 13, she was out surfing and was attacked by a shark. She lost her left arm in the attack but what is more amazing is that after healing up from the attack, she got up and went surfing again. She is currently one of the top surfers in competition. Check out her web site: http://www.bethanyhamilton.com/ Greg rented a convertable and we bombed down the highway with the top down to meet the Hamilton's at their church. We were late for the service but just in time for lunch! We met Bethany and her parents and after hanging out for awhile we went back to their house, grabbed some boards and hit the local break. Seeing how I didn't have a board with me, Bethany was kind enough to loan me one of her pink ones. Thanks Bethany!! We paddled out and chilled awhile in the warm water. Bethany is amazing how she tears it up on the waves. After they got a few good shots, Greg and Todd came out and surfed for awhile before we headed back to Bethany's house for some sushi. Bethany's dad took us out in his dinghy to show us the around the bay where they live. When we got back we said our goodbyes and I promised to take Bethany out sailing some day. The day ended too soon and we had to head back to the airport and get back to Waikiki. Greg stayed at the airport and caught his red eye back to LA. Dad came and picked Todd and I up and I had another deep sleep at the hotel.


Monday was the assigned work day so we got up early and got right to it stowing all the fresh provisions, fixing some tangled rigging and spraying Salt Away in all the hardware to keep the rigging running free. The canvas guy came down and measured for my new lee cloth (to hold me in my bunk when there is a big swell running) and arranged to fix up my lee clothes that go around the cockpit. My parents and Todd and I had a last meal together at the all-you-eat buffet at the hotel :) before they all flew out.


On Tuesday morning, I finished up some predeparture preparations. About 11:00am Will's bus rolled in and we hit the surf until 5:00pm. We got some great waves off the reef. It was breaking 5s and 6s on the outer breaks. It was really a rush dropping into a 6 footer with coral in only 2 feet of water under the board. Serious motivtion to stay on the board! We went back to Hawaii Yacht Club for lunch/dinner and went back to the beach to get a shave ice and hang out on the beach. Since we were walking everywhere, we walked over to the Ala Moana Shopping Center to the skateboard shop to find some faster transportation. T & C made us up a skateboard which Will bought for me as a going away present! We skated around the mall (and through a few stores) before heading back to the marina. We left the board at the boat and went for a walk down the beach to see the nightlife. We walked all the way down Waikiki Beach, hit the Burger King and then walked back to the boat to crash for the night.


Today, Wednesday, is supposed to be departure day but I am waiting for the electrician to arrive to go through my charging system. Though I managed on the power I had, it seems that the solar panels should be doing more. Hopefully he will be able to get to the bottom of things. I have been working on my blog/homework and troubleshooting my on board email with Ron du Bois. Ron is a good friend of a friend of my dad's and has been great organizing my stay here and helping with the computers etc. I had an interview with Sonrise, a morning news show here in Oahu.


Here is the link: http://kgmb9.com/main/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=8266&Itemid=108


I am excited to get back on the water but it looks like I will be delayed at least until tomorrow so we can replace the solar panel regulator. It isn't functioning as it should probably due to moisture. The panels still charge some but it could be a lot better. Dad and I decided to wait for the part rather here than head to more remote places to do the repair. Hopefully, I will be able to head out in the late morning.
Cheers,
Zac