Another side trip Larry & I took was to the wet, green, almost unpopulated northeast corner of the Big Island.

The plan was to hike from the well-known Waipio Valley, the southern edge of which is a common tourist lookout, to the wild Waimanu Valley, a jungle destination miles distant.
 

The valley also forms a natural funnel for "Tsunamis", which wedge up to extreme heights here and roll well inland.
 

This montage looks south, back across the Waipio.  This is a view few mainlanders have seen, as it requires driving or hiking to the bottom of the valley, then hiking up the steep trail (with many switchbacks) on the far side.  Note the "4-wheel drive only" road and the waterfall. Larry & I camped at a "Heiau" near the river mouth in the middle of the picture.  The place had weird, scary vibes -- it wouldn't surprise me if human sacrifices were performed there in the old days.

The Waimanu Valley was too far away to reach in a day hike, so we turned back and were content to explore an area of Hawaii that wasn't yet overly disrupted. There are plenty of exotic plants and animals even here.  Larry enjoys a wild guava, jungly enough but not native to Hawaii.  Feral pigs are also common.