12-14-2009, 11:37 AM
Interesting. When I came here as a visitor the southern route was my least favorite. The volcano blighted vegetation, not enough ocean. Hamakua coast was my favorite, and still is. Sometimes I do take the Saddle and it is faster. I don't usually drive to Kona unless I have an appointment, so time matters to me. What I don't like about the Saddle is the fog/clouds getting so thick on the Hilo side. Nothing they do will change that.