Hawaii Tropical Botanical Gardens

It's hard to say whether waterfalls or botanical gardens are more abundant in Hawaii, but it would be a shame to come all this way and not take advantage of both. Our first botanical garden visit this trip was to the Hawaii Tropical Botanical Gardens and was time well spent. The 40-acre valley is a natural greenhouse, protected from buffeting trade winds and blessed with fertile volcanic soil. Nature trails meander through a true tropical rainforest, crossing bubbling streams, passing several waterfalls, and encompassing ocean vistas along the rugged Pacific coast. With over 2,000 species of plants, representing more than 125 families and 750 genera, it was not a surprise that we came home with over 200 pictures on our camera. It was almost impossible to choose which ones to include in this post, but I managed to keep the count under 30!