Don't know if you made it over to Hilo/Puna on the BI but that is way more liberal.
I did go to the Hilo side of the Big Island and I see what you mean - definitely a different feel over there. Didn’t stay long because it never stopped raining! Overall the Big Island is my favorite. Pretty much every terrain on earth is located on that one island. Depending on where you are, you might think you were in Nevada (desert), Brazil (rain forest), Wyoming (ranches), New England (forests) and even some lunar landscape thrown in there for good measure!