We visited Hulihee Palace and Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park in the morning. They were interesting. The real highlight of the day was a trip up Mauna Kea to observe the sunset and have a star party. We booked through a tour company because there is no way you could do it on your own. A four wheel drive vehicle is required to get up to the observatory.

On the trip up we stopped for a nice dinner and relaxation before heading to the top. The company handed out parkas and mittens which are really needed. We proceeded to the top, sometimes on a dirt road, and arrived about 30 minutes before sunset. Ginny was intent to get some photos of us. Eventually she got some that met with her approval. The actual sunset was very cool because it set behind the Subaru Telescope, Keck Telescopes 1 and 2 and the NASA Infrared Telescope. That is today's photo. It was very cold up there. Fortunately, there was no wind.

We went back down a little bit to a parking area for a star party. The guide had a nice telescope he set up and we looked at all sorts of astronomical objects. They served brownies and hot chocolate which really hit the spot. We tried some astrophotography but got pretty well skunked because of a half moon high in the sky. You really need a moonless sky to do any good. After about two hours we started back to Kona which was about a 1 1/2 hour drive. This was probably one of the coolest adventures we have had on our travels.