Bad Weather

[650cs]

I was pretty well prepared for our trip to Hawaii, thanks to all the CC'ers out there. We just got back home yesterday after a 12 day cruise.

 

What I was totally unprepared for was the bad weather in Hawaii. We had gray overcast skies pretty much all day, every day except for the day we left to go to the airport. (!) We never saw a single sunset. The sky would just go from gray to an orangish gray color. Except for the day we got off the ship, we never woke up to a clear blue sunny day. Not once! It even rained off and on during our luau in Oahu, which was outdoors, of course. Not pouring down rain but still rain.

 

It rained off and on everyday, not pouring down rain but enough to ruin a day at the beach. I wasn't prepared for the strong winds, either. Except for Oahu, the winds were unbelievable. I expected tropical breezes, not 20 mph or higher. I never thought I would be cold on our trip. I live in Tennessee and it was drier and warmer there everyday except for the last day! I was so disappointed.

 

We weren't able to go to the beach much, it was just too cold. I tried just walking on Ka'anapail beach in Maui and the wind blew the sand on my legs so hard that it felt like being sandblasted. We stayed less that 5 minutes. It was so sad, we had gotten a great parking place, the beach looked great and it wasn't crowded. We were only able to log about 3-4 hours total beach time during the entire trip. I had expected to spend so much time at different beaches that I hadn't even planned on going to any beaches in Oahu! It was too cold to even lay out on the deck of the ship, mostly because of the strong winds. If it hadn't been so windy it might have been tolerable. I did see a few hardy souls laying out but I couldn't see how they could stand it. Getting a lounge chair was not an issue on this cruise. Hardly anyone ever got into the pools, just the hot tubs on the ship.

 

The water temperature was cold everywhere. If it had been hot and sunny, it might have been okay. I had brought a wetsuit and did snorkel at two steps near Pu'uhonua o Honaunau in Kona. It definitely had a large concentration of fish and lots of great coral. I just wish the sun had been out. We tried snorkeling on Maui but the wind was kicking up the waves so much that the sand made the water cloudy.

 

When the sky is overcast you don't get the beautiful blue and aqua colors in the water. The ocean was just a flat gray color. It was a bit depressing.

[vbmom87]

I am really sorry your trip didn't go as you had hoped and planned. I can identify somewhat as our June trip to Alaska in 2008 didn't live up to our expectations either in terms of weather. However, at least we were prepared. We knew to hope for the best, but expect the worst. We got something in between. I hope you had some good memories.

[kapoho2]

650cs...you are right. For the past week or 10 days the entire state has been under a very strange weather pattern. It has been cool, windy and gray...just like you mentioned. And, this is after we just had one of the most glorious winters ever. (Not that winter is ever really bad here...just subtle changes the locals can feel.) It was as if winter never happened. It was sunny and warm from Dec. through March. When the cool weather like we just had hits, we always think of the tourists and how disappointed they must be. However, on the local news, you always hear the weathermen and the news anchors saying how much they are enjoying the weather!! It is kind of a fun change for those of us who live here. We get to wear clothes that usually live in the very back of the closet. But, again, our thoughts are always with the visitors and their disappointment.

 

We went on the Star to the Mexican Riviera last month, and we had less than perfect weather. My husband and I just about froze. Just the luck of the draw unfortunately.

 

Hopefully, you will get back here to visit the islands again and you will enjoy the weather that makes Hawaii famous.