this is me showing my nibling how to harvest salt from the shoreline rocks. it hasn't rained for 3 weeks (very unusual for east hawai'i! it's because of El Niño.), so the salt nooks were in peak shape!
every patch tasted just a bit differently!
the story i had heard was: to gather salt at the shoreline, wait for a big storm with big waves. then, wait for everything to completely dry out. then go look for white salt deposits in the depressions in the rocks.
i figured that even though i hadn't remembered a big storm, 3 weeks of zero rain would certainly result in some good salt buildup. i was right!
cliff salt isn't just salty, it tastes like the sea. a friend told me: "it's concentrated mana from the ocean." it's not like eating table salt.
plus, we were just using the tips of our fingers to get a little out of the caves, so we weren't eating it by the tablespoon. we didn't harvest any to take home, we just did taste tests. by the time we'd tried a bunch, we didn't want any more salt.
it's good to know that should the boats ever stop coming to the island, i know where my nearest salt is: a mere 5 miles away, completely downhill. 🌊 🌋
