Thank you for sharing your trip. Ours was similar. So I am back from that whirlwind morning to evening trip to Molokai.

Could not get on that Kalapaupa flight so I took the only available seat on the next earlier flight to MKK that I had booked with my mother. I used that time to go to Alamo and have the car ready for my mother when she arrived - worked out perfectly. I Costco booked the cheapest sedan for $139 (total) and was upgraded to a 2019 Chevy Malibu with 33K miles. There appeared to be a lot of cars in the lot available to rent.

We drove to Kaunakakai to Kanemitsu to grab some pastries, walk the main street and then we drove back to Kalapaupa overlook. Then we stopped at the Molokai Museum to look at the exhibits and visit the reconstructed sugar mill on the property. We then went to the very quirky Purdy's mac nut farm. It was our first time exploring mac nut production. Kumu Farms was closed so we went back to Kaunakakai to have lunch at the burger joint. It appeared that a lot of places were closed that day even though listings said they would be open and we didn't want next door pizza joint. That night there was the holiday light parade and maybe that had something to do with it.

After lunch we drove all the way to Halawa Valley, saw the historic churches on the drive, and walked onto the beach and then we drove all they way to Papohauku Beach in West Molokai to watch the sunset. I thought that was the nicest beach I saw from a sand perspective. Very very few people sharing a very large beach. It was like your own private beach. Molokai is known for dangerous swimming waters and none of the beaches I saw dissuaded me from that.

After that we drove back to Kaunakakai and had food at the burger place again, eating non burger dishes. Filled up the car and went back to the airport. Since we and one other person checked into our flight early, it took off early and we had a dazzling view of night lit Waikiki on the left side of the plane coming into the airport. Left side was also better for our trip to MKK as well.

This was the last of the islands that the public can visit easily and we were glad to visit to see what the least touristed Hawaiian island looked like. Retail and services on the island cater towards locals. Kaunakakai reminded me of some of the historic towns that you can visit in Kauai, but not taken over by the boutiques, art galleries, and coffee shops catering to tourists. We saw a couple signs advising against tourists and especially people moving there to raise housing prices, but we never felt unwelcome. It is unlikely I will visit again unless Kalapaupa ever opens again so glad I was able to see it with my mother. A very unique experience that puts you in small company, tourists and locals alike.