NORTH SHORE, OAHU

On on first full day on the island we decided to drive to the north shore and check Oahu a bit more. While driving out of the city on H1 we encountered heavy traffic, probably because it was Sunday afternoon, and we ended up spending 45 minutes waiting. I have never liked my Google GPS App as much as I did that afternoon. It rerouted me twice and we finally got us out of the traffic which would have forced us to spend another 30-40 minutes. Later I learned from a tour guide that there are 3 major highways, H1, H2, and H3. Each going in one specific direction on the island because of the mountain ranges. It took us about 1.5 hrs to go 44 miles, which the full length of the island from north to south. 

There were two attractions that we really wanted to see in the north was: the waves with surfers and turtles. The drive was very scenic as soon as we got into the suburbs of Honolulu, there were many hills, and then the Nanakuli mountains followed by the Waianae Mountain Range. The Waianae mountains run parallel to H2 and Route 99 therefore for most of the drive their beauty was always in the background. At one point I had to pull over and shoot some photos seen below. This mountain range has the tallest mountain on the island called Kaala standing at 4,003 ft above sea level. 

The first thing we did was drive to Turtle Bay to see if we were lucky to spot a turtle. It turned out that Lesya and I were more excited about the turtles than our kids. We were lucky to see 1 warming itself on the beach. It was surrounded by about 20 plus people and we were told that 3 more turtles have been trying to get to the beach but were pushed back by people snorkeling near the shore as well as the crowd at the shoreline. The wildlife specialists on shore couldn't force people to stop snorkeling or move away for the shoreline. But they did have the right to stop people from coming within 6-10 ft of the turtle. They also had a red rope going 10 ft around the turtle. It was fun watching the turtle move a little every so often. We also watch another one attempt to get out but because of the crowd it went back.

We also enjoyed just hanging out by the rocks. It was amazing how warm the rocks got in the sun. I felt like the soles of my feet were burning off when I walked barefoot for a short distance.

We ended up seeing a few surfers on the waves but other very impressive. The wildlife specialists advised us to drive further east or west if we really wanted to see some serious action. But with the kids not in the greatest mood for driving more, we decided to head back and stop by the Dole Plantation instead.