I came aboard my Hawaii Uncruise with my bags packed to the brim with vacation clothes, but didn’t realize my spirit was overflowing with residual malavalence. Over our seven day, five island tour, my fresh linens took in the salt and sand of the islands that cleansed my soul. I return home with an appreciation for the Aloha spirit that I could have never felt from the corporate menagerie of Waikiki Beach with its synthesized facade of the islands that looks great on post cards or Elvis movies, but most certainly lacks depth.
King Kamehameha Hotel, Kona Hawaii
Our voyage began at the King Kamehameha Hotel in Kona. We flew in the night before and had ample time to take a cultural canoe cruise past the Ahu’ena Heiau,a National Historic Landmark and one of Hawaii’s most important cultural sites. Extensive art and artifact exhibits told the story of Kamehameha’s rise to power, how he unified the islands, revised the legal code, and promoted trade with Europeans.
Our expedition leader, Wilson, met our cadre of 24 travelers in the hotel and led us over to the 36 passenger Safari Explorer, which was docked in front of the hotel and proceeded into Kamakahonu Bay.
Disembarking from Kona
Once aboard the Safari Explorer, we were greeted warmly by the crew and shown to our stateroom, where our bags—collected from the hotel earlier—were already waiting. A quick room orientation covered the basics, including how to operate the marine toilet, where to find life vests, and other essentials. With everything explained, we had some time to settle in before the announcement came over the speaker, letting us know it was time to gather in the lounge for the safety briefing.
In true Uncruise fashion, the safety drill wasn’t just about rules and procedures—it was an opportunity to meet the crew and learn some “need-to-know” information in a light and engaging way (including glasses of champagne and delicious snacks). After the necessary donning of life vests and a quick evacuation drill, we wrapped up and headed straight back to the dining room for our first of many delicious meals. It was an early night for everyone as we got ready to dive into the next day’s adventures.
Day 1 – Testing the Waters
UnCruise voyages are made for adventurers who want to get off the ship and explore the natural world. A key element to Hawaiian adventures is watersports, so our first full day onboard was dedicated to learning about all the aqua adventures that were in store for us.
We started by taking the Safari Explorer’s fleet of kayaks out for a paddle off the back deck. It was relatively easy to board the tandem sit-atop kayaks, and soon, all the guests set out for a leisurely paddle. Our expedition leaders showed us the basic strokes and showed us how to communicate on the water.
We headed towards the shore after our instructions to a site called Red Cliffs. While they were aesthetically and geologically interesting on their own, the story behind them was fascinating. The locals have used these cliffs for centuries to find a productive fishing spot about a mile off shore.
Snorkeling 101 in Kealakekua Bay
After lunch, we headed to the back deck for a snorkeling 101 lesson. We didn’t deep dive into snorkel theory, but we were introduced to snorkeling with UnCruise.
They provided full snorkeling gear and wanted us to ensure it was sized correctly from our pre-cruise questionnaires. They showed us where the rinse stations were and the location of our wet lockers on the back deck. Our last lesson was boarding skiffs and then we were off to play in Kealakekua Bay.
Our expedition leaders explained the bay’s fascinating history as we motored closer. A white obelisk on the shore marked the spot where the infamous Captain Cook met his fate.
The generally accepted story is that he first visited Hawaii during the Makahiki Festival and was considered to be a manifestation of Lono-i-ka-makahiki, the Hawaiian god of fertility. He returned a few months later during a less hospitable time and picked a fight with the local chief over a missing boat. That’s the accepted story of Cook’s demise, but European contact with the native Hawaiians spread diseases that had a 90% mortality rate, which could have contributed to his cold reception.
The Drop Off
Anybody who has seen Finding Nemo is familiar with snorkeling in Kealakekua Bay. Disney sent an underwater film crew there to gather footage and inspiration for Drop Off. We slid off the skiffs in deep blue water and swam across the drop off to a shallow reef teeming with life. There were oddities like puffer and trumpet fishes and huge schools of grunts, but our favorite sighting was a free swimming eel that played in the rocks for at least five minutes before retreating to its cave.
Pele and the Water Goddess
It was a magnificent snorkeling experience and completely unrushed. Only after we had our fill did we return to the skiffs. As we came aboard, we heard the expedition leaders regaling the early returners with stories of Kealakekua Bay. They said how the bay was formed by a volcanic mass wasting event when the cliffs collapsed into the sea. They pointed to the cliff face potted with holes and said how it was a giant mausoleum with the bones of kings and nobility stashed in secret graves to protect their mana.
Our guides said one of the reasons this particular cliff was sacred was because it’s considered an incarnation of Pele, the volcano goddess. They had us look for her face and long flowing hair in the rocks. Some guests said they could see her, but we could not. They said how, in Hawaiian mythology, Pele is in conflict with her older sister, Nāmaka-o-Kahaʻi, the sea goddess. Pele keeps creating volcanic islands, which her sister brings back into the ocean. It’s easy to imagine that supernatural battle seeing the cliffs of Kealakekua Bay that have collapsed into the water.
Hawaii Born Volcanoes and Water
Every night after dinner, UnCruise presented educational programs. This first night’s presentation gave a more scientific explanation about Hawaii forming from a volcanic hot spot.
The theory is that a single, fixed mantle plume builds volcanoes that are cut off from their source by the movement of the Pacific Plate. As they move, they become increasingly inactive and eventually sink below sea level over millions of years. They disappear because of erosion and mass wasting, like we saw at Kealakekua Bay. There is also a pronounced bulge in the crust above the plume, so the peaks do actually sink into the sea as they move away from the hot spot.
Even through a scientific lens, we could see Pele’s battle with her sister continuing over millions of years.The Hawaiian plume has created the Emperor and Hawaiian chain of islands, atolls, and seamounts that stretch from where we were anchored almost 4,000 miles to the coast of Russia. It also confirms the ancient belief that Pele lives on the big island, where three active volcanos are still attached to the mantle plume.
Front Row at the Dolphin Show
It was only fitting that our volcano presentation ended with the captain announcing over the radio that we had unexpected visitors from the sea. Several pods of dolphins were swimming off the back deck. The ship’s lights bring in plankton, which attract fish and, in turn, the dolphins.
We walked outside to see about 20-30 dolphins circling the boat. They weren’t in a feeding frenzy as much as they were just playing with the needle fish. The fish would dart and jump out of the water with the dolphins in hot pursuit.
The dolphin show continued for almost an hour. Our crew even sank a hydrophone into the water so we could hear the dolphins’ chatter. We could hear the dolphins hunting their prey with echolocation. The excited, high pitched chirps perfectly matched the aquatic game of cat and mouse we were watching. It was the perfect ending to a wonderful first day of expedition cruising.
Day 2 – Lava Flowing to the Sea
We’ve been on cruises that have taken a full “sea day” to travel from Long Beach to Catalina Island. We have personally completed that voyage in five-hours in a six-man outrigger canoe, so our only explanation of the extra travel time was to incentivise the guests to gamble and purchase drink packages. There’s no gambling on UnCruise and drinks are included, so the business model fully supports staying close to shore and sending us off on day adventures, which are also included.
Today, we stayed by Kona and explored her volcano, Hualalai, from top to bottom. Technically, there were two choices, a hike high up on the mountain to explore volcanic craters or a beach day to see historic villages where the lava flow reached the sea. We wanted to divide and conquer our efforts, so we flipped for it. I decided to take the hike and Jenn went to the beach.
Hidden Craters Hike
UnCruise partnered with Hawaii Forest and Trail for a hidden craters hike on Hualalai. Our HFT guide met us at the dock and drove us up to our trailhead at 5350’ above sea level. We passed through three gates along the way and we learned that this is the only tour company that has access to these trails.
The hike itself was a two-hour trip through forest and fire. We started by climbing up 1,100 vertical feet over recent lava flows that were just being tamed by ʻōhiʻa trees. Along the way we enjoyed sweeping views of the ocean, peered down deep craters, and tasted ‘Ōhelo berries (but not before offering the biggest one to Pele).
On the way down, we crawled through a lava tube before following the flow down the mountain. After a little while, we came to a dense fern forest fed by the mountain mists and fertile soil. The sounds of songbirds filled the air as we continued down to the waiting van.
Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park
Back on the Safari Explorer, Jenn told me about her day at Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park. She saw the same contrast between the destructive force of lava and how it provides a foundation for all life on Hawaii. The park features include loko iʻa (Ancient Hawaiian aquaculture fishponds), kahua (house site platforms), kiʻi pōhaku (petroglyphs), hōlua (stone slides) and heiau (religious sites).
Jenn said her favorite part was the beautiful beaches filled with turtles living their best turtle life feeding in the shallows and sunning on rocks. She loved the local beach vibe and feelings of Ohano. Everybody was picnicking and playing in the water without the hustle and bustle of tourist beaches.
Swimming with Manta Rays
This night was dedicated to swimming with manta rays. After a presentation on manta ray facts and how to safely swim with the gentle giants, we boarded the skiffs and headed out to a local tour company that had paddle boards with bright lights shining into the water. When the mantas came, we would hold onto the board and watch them feeding on the plankton that were attracted to the lights.
Christian, one of the UnCruise guides, gave us an astronomy lesson while we waited. He has sailed to Hawaii several times, so like any mariner, he started with the North Star. We worked our way through numerous constellations that were shining brightly in the dark Hawaiian night. Unfortunately, mantas are wild animals and didn’t get the memo that they should be performing for us that night. We returned to the Safari Explorer disappointingly dry but with memories of an adventurous day and hopes for a quiet night on the Alenuihaha Crossing,
Alenuihaha Crossing
In the Hawaiian language, Alenuihaha means “great billows smashing”, a foreboding image for the Alenuihaha Channel that lies between the Big Island of Hawaii and Maui. It is considered one of the most treacherous channels in the world due to the strong winds and high seas that funnel between the two islands’ narrow 30-mile pass.
We saw the crew securing anything that could move onboard the ship and listened to their warnings to stay in our cabins once the crossing began. We proactively took the sea sickness pills our crew offered and headed off to sleep. The crossing was uneventful, and we woke up after a wonderful night sleep off the coast of Maui.
Day 3 – Cruising with the Humpbacks
Maui is one of Maui County’s five islands, along with Molokaʻi, Lānaʻi, Kahoʻolawe, and Molokini. In between these land masses is the 13,700 mi² Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary. Every winter more than half the humpback whales in the Pacific come here to mate, give birth, and raise their young. We spent the next three days cruising the protected waters outside of Maui before crossing the Pailolo Channel to Molokaʻi.
Kayak and Skiff Tour of Maui Little Beach
The Hawaii excursions have a reputation for being family friendly, and this morning’s kayak and skiff tours hit that mark exceptionally well. We left the ship and paddled to shore near Mākena State Park.
Everything was very tame as we stayed far from the surf and there weren’t back bays or estuaries to explore. It was even too early for the park’s nudists to arrive at the park’s secluded Little Beach so the scenery remained PG and maybe a bit less “wild” than usual.
Still, the water was beautiful and it was a good bit of exercise, especially paddling against the wind to return to the boat. Even that was optional, as the crew had the skiffs out to bring in anybody who wanted a free ride back up wind, and there were definitely a few takers.
Hanging with Humpbacks
After lunch, we stayed on the Safari Explorer for a humpback cruise. Almost immediately, the captain came onto the speaker to let us know we had found a competitive group of young males.
The social structure of male humpbacks is perhaps one of the most unique in all of the animal kingdom. Like many other animals, the young males form groups to showcase their skills and attract mates. For young humpbacks, that means acrobatic feats of jumps, breaches, and fluke smacking. The males also sing the idiomatic songs of the humpback whales.
Every season, the males sing a complicated song that can last 10-30 minutes. There is one song of the season that changes and adapts every so slightly with each rendition. It was these songs, more than anything else, that captivated interest in the social and cerebral development of whales and campaigned protection for whales across the globe.
Disentanglement Talk
Unfortunately, many whales arrive in the sanctuary entangled in fishing gear from the Arctic. UnCruise is part of the solution by identifying and tracking entangled whales. However, we got to talk to a real hero, Ed Lyman, who’s pioneering tools and techniques for whale de-entanglement.
Since 2002, he and his team have freed more than 40 whales and removed more than 15,000 ft of line. Most importantly, he is finding ways to do it safer and faster than ever before. These are the kind of projects and relationships that you’ll only find on small ship expeditions like UnCruise.
Day 4
Lānaʻi was known as Pineapple Island, because at one time it was home to the world’s largest pineapple plantation. Today, it’s 98% owned by Larry Ellison, one of the world’s richest men. The island has an exclusive feel, with only Molukia receiving fewer visitors. Luckily for us, UnCruise regularly stops there.
Lānaʻi Adventure Park
My day started taking the shuttle bus up to Lānaʻi Adventure Park for a one-of-a-kind bike ride through the Lānaʻi highlands. As you might expect, the tech was impeccable with electric Kona e-bikes that were just waiting to go. I’ll be honest, I had my turbo switched on all the time, and it sure helped me get to those views faster. They even had sweet full suspensions, but the course wasn’t challenging enough to really justify that.
We had a fun day out tooling through the wilds of Hawaii that few get to visit. Along the way, we heard stories about billionaires and pineapples of course, but also about the young Mauian prince, Kauluāʻau who was banished to this island for pranks, like uprooting breadfruit. His father expected him to perish from the evil spirits who inhabited the island, but every night his signal fires kept burning. One by one, he vanquished these spirits. His father saw his efforts and rewarded him with control of the island, but not before he had dug up all the breadfruit on Lānaʻi.
Lanai Cat Sanctuary
Jenn spent her day at the Lanai Cat Sanctuary, considered the number one thing to do on Lānaʻi. It’s home to more than 600 cats, but with the clever layout and prevailing winds, said it didn’t feel too catty at all. Of course, that’s a hard mark to hit for a crazy cat lady like Jenn.
The grounds were lush and the cats were fluff(y). Jenn and her cohorts were given an allotment of treats, and all the cats knew it. They came up with love in their eyes and a hunger in their belly. Once they knew the treats were exhausted, they wandered off into their little cat world. There were so many cat success stories with kittens who have traveled the world to find their forever homes. It’s also a massive success story for local birds who have been able to prosper when they were freed from feline predation.
Snorkel Shark Fin Reef (Backside Cliffs)
We both returned to the ship after our morning adventures and after a delicious lunch, went out for a snorkeling trip on the Backside Cliffs of Lānaʻi. Our particular site was called Shark Fin Reef because of the shape of its namesake rock formation. It was also the first place we saw sharks in Hawaii, so we were good with the double entendre.
There were two small rock pinnacles in the water that had fallen free from the Backside Cliffs. We circled around each of them and loved the abundance of colorful sealife. I was encouraged to freedive down to 15’ to check out the beautiful structure while Jenn just enjoyed the view from the top of the water column.
Ukulele Serenade
We were starting to get into our evening flow of a delicious dinner followed by nightly entertainment featuring something about Hawaii. Tonight, Sam “the Man” was giving an Ukelele serenade on the sun deck. Like many things on Hawaii, Ukuleles were imported by passing mariners, but adapted to the island because of their simplicity and joy.
Like the traditional instrument, tonight’s concert was simple and joyous. Sam told us how he came to the islands and made them his home amidst a backdrop of classic songs and modern favorites. At one point, a shooting star blazed overhead which blended perfectly with the songs of hope and love.
Day 5
Today was Thanksgiving, and we had much to be thankful for. It was the point in our journey where our shipmates were becoming friends and our activities were breaking routines. We stayed near Maui most of the day, with arguably our best snorkeling and whale watching of the entire trip.
Snorkeling Mala Wharf
Mala Wharf was never a commercial success because of its exposure to heavy surf and strong currents. It was destroyed in 1992 by Hurricane Iniki creating a beautiful, lively artificial reef famous for sea turtles and white tip sharks. It was shallow enough that I could snorkel down the entire water column, but I didn’t need to. There were turtles everywhere, eager to come by and see what you’re up to or head to the surface for a breath.
When I did choose to dive down, I found sharks lurking under the collapsed pier and colorful coral of every description reclaimed the wreckage. I don’t know how long we spent on the pier, but I recognized several groups of scuba divers come and go, so it was definitely over an hour. Eventually, our cameras ran out of juice, which was our sign to return to the ship.
Small Boat Big Whales
For our afternoon adventure, we had a choice between a combo kayak / snorkel trip and a skiff tour. The morning’s snorkeling was so perfect, that we couldn’t see entering the water again. The skiffing was beautiful off West Maui and we could see the rainbows and mists dancing in the deep valleys onshore.
Christian took a moment to submerge a hydrophone into the water to hear the mysterious songs of the humbacks. We knew they were close, but our skiff captain, Will had a few tricks up his sleeve from his career as a whale watching captain. We scanned the horizon and saw the blow spouts from a competitive group of young males. He anticipated their motion perfectly, and they surfaced again very close to the skiff. We oohed and ahhed with delight. We followed the group for about an hour, but never got that close again.
Thanksgiving Dinner
We’ve mentioned the amazing UnCruise kitchen several times already, but we decided to save our full section until Thanksgiving Dinner, which was also our de facto Captain’s Dinner. Even though traditional turkey was on the menu, I kept with my newly learned trick of ordering a split dinner of main, fish, and vegetarian. The ricotta gnocchi justified my choices. It was the perfect combination of rich and savory, and will grace our Thanksgiving meals for years to come.
It’s not just the mains either. Your meals come with a choice of wine or cocktails and a desert that’s always worth saving room for. After dinner, we had a moment to say goodbye to our crew and then learn a little about tomorrow’s adventure. The feature playing on the movies that night was the award winning film, Sons of Halawa, about the last native resident of a sacred Hawaiian valley searching for a successor to keep cultural traditions alive.
Day 6 – Molokai
We woke up docked on the pier at Molokai, the least visited of all the inhabited Hawaiian Islands and soon were on buses heading over Halawa Valley, the oldest inhabited valley on the islands. Charcoal fire pits date back to 650 CE, long before King Kamehameha’s ancestors came to Hawaii. However, our story starts back in 1938, when a tidal wave decimated this once thriving agricultural community. Pilipo Solatorio, the central figure from Sons of Halawa was there that day. Today, we were spending the afternoon with his son, Greg, and his grandson, Devic.
Devic met us at the ruins of the old church where the town gathered on that fateful day in 1938 and led us down the overgrown path to where his father lived. Along the way, he blew a conch to let Greg know we were coming, and soon, we heard Greg’s response echoing back through the valley. Greg met us at the property boundary and welcomed us into his home with an intimate and moving breath ceremony. We shared lunch, and then split for our afternoon. Jenn left for a waterfall hike with Devic and I stayed for a cultural presentation from Greg.
Listening to Greg, I realized how passionate he was about Hawaiian culture, not as something sacred to be kept away from the Haole (visitors without breath), but something to be shared and preserved. He shared his breath with us when we arrived, and continued to share cultures and traditions that predated anything else in Hawaii. We learned how to pound poi with artifacts that would probably be museum pieces anywhere else. Greg chose to live as a subsistence farmer to keep these traditions alive. It’s exactly the experience we would hope for from UnCruise on Hawaii’s least visited island.
Pā’ina Feast
That evening, we enjoyed a pā’ina, a traditional Hawaiian feast at the Molokai Museum & Cultural Center. The stories and songs from the Molokai High Farmers were impeccable, but I enjoyed Greg’s poi better than the runny three finger poi served that evening.
We also had a chance to learn about the history of Molokai, from the sugar mill to the leper colony. Most of all, we got to see a part of Hawaii that wasn’t overrun with mainland tourism.
Farewell Slideshow
We returned to the Safari Explorer after our feast for the long awaited farewell slideshow. In picture after picture, we saw how we came aboard as strangers and left as friends. A stream of adventures set against one of nature’s most beautiful backdrops paraded before our eyes. After a week of seeing the island in ways tourists rarely do, we left with an unforgettable appreciation of the land, history, and people of Hawaii.
There were a few “what if moments.” What if the mana rays came out to play? What if we captured a picture of that whale breaching in front of a rainbow filled valley. At the end of the show, none of that mattered. The experience was perfect unto itself, and a truly unique way to see this foreign, yet familiar land.
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Hi! We are Jenn and Ed Coleman aka Coleman Concierge. In a nutshell, we are a Huntsville-based Gen X couple sharing our stories of amazing adventures through activity-driven transformational and experiential travel.
