The Big Island, also known as Hawaii, is the southernmost and the largest of all the Hawaiian Islands. Its area is bigger than the area of ​​the other islands put together. However, this is not the most populated island, far more people live on Oahu. The main city is 

Hilo

. We rented a Dodge at the rental office at 9 am and then went to have breakfast at Starbucks. This is the first photo I took on the Big Island, dawn had just broke.

The first thing that catches your eye is the lush vegetation. Of course, it's also green in Oahu, but there are only thickets there. The fact is that 

Hilo

 is the wettest U.S. city. It rains almost every day here. In general, it seemed to be more humid and cooler on the Big Island, for me anyway.

The first stop in our program was at a picturesque bay - Onomea Bay. Here, we came upon a small church while we were walking. The road passes through the jungle. This was something unreal! 4 miles of incredible trees, entangled by creepers and hanging lianas. It was very colorful, like in a movie.

And here's the bay itself. The place was really beautiful. There were rocks and the sea, like in Iceland but there was also a lot more greenery and the weather was better :)

While people were enjoying the views and filling their camera's memory cards with photos of the impressionistic landscape, I ran to photograph a piece of the 4-mile Scenic Route. I didn't want to take pictures through the window while driving, since it wouldn't show all the beauty. These picture didn't turn out so bad!  

We continued further. Here we found this amazing green arch! It was particularly impressive once you were underneath: 

We stopped near a small waterfall. It was interesting because it flowed through a furrow formed by lava.

This is a Tulip tree from the Magnoliaceae family. That was the first time I saw one.

Here's the flower itself.

You can make films without props or decorations. It has actually happened in Hollywood films, like Jurassic Park which was filmed in Hawaii. Later, I'll show you more (The Big Island. Rainbow Falls and Punaluu Beach).

We passed by so many different places. I was so busy trying to take in everything around me with my own eyes that I forgot to take pictures. Flowers, trees, such crazy diversity. Just like that - BAM! Below is a tree dotted with tangerines. To the right of it, there's a breadfruit tree, banana leaves can be seen on the left. There's also a coffee tree and other plants that were unfamiliar to me.

Here's an unknown emerald flower.

And the guide told us their names, I just forgot them :(

We came to look at the highest waterfall in Hawaii. We went got out of the car and saw these "hairy" trees.

We went through the jungle, heading toward the waterfall in the distance.  

Hawaian vegetation is its own attraction.

Here's something that looks like a snake's tongue.

I know this, these are bananas.

And here is the waterfall - 

Akaka Falls

. Information about its height varies - some sources say it is 442 feet (135 m) high, others say it is 423 feet (129 m) high. It is considered the most beautiful waterfall in Hawaii and also, the most well-known waterfall.  

We went back along the other way. The guide told us about the plants. Of course, I do not remember names, but these leaves are traditionally used by the Hawaiians for wrapping food before it is cooked.  

Here's a giant banyan. I looked inside - you could film a horror movie in there without any props or decorations.

We saw another waterfall - Kahuna - hiding somewhere between trees.

And here are some more pictures of the flora in Hawaii. If you know any of the names, please tell me! 

Here's the same banyan tree, from the other side.

I saw a big breadfruit, but it was too far away to take pictures. Here's bamboo.

And these picturesque thickets absolutely amazed me!

Here's our car, with Hawaiian plates. The plate also reads: Hawaii - Aloha State.

In general, I was impressed with what we saw in the morning, despite the cloudy weather. We hoped that it would get warmer and the sun would make an appearance, but at least it didn't rain, so that was good. We had a whole day and a lot of attractions ahead of us (The Big Island. Mauna Kea Volcano)!