Hyrum once again had a CME conference in Hawaii and I was lucky enough to tag along. I loved visiting Kauai. All the islands of Hawaii are so different and Kauai was fun because of the canyon and all the hiking on the island. In fact, we got there on Saturday and I didn't even put on my swim suit until Wednesday because we spent those first three days hiking. 24 miles in 3 days...not too bad for a vacation:)
Sunday morning we got up and headed out for our first hike. We did the Nu'alolo Trail/Nu'alolo Cliffs/Awa-'awapuhi Grand loop. It was about 12 miles for the whole loop. We really enjoyed the first third of the hike which brought us out to a fantastic overlook of the Na Pali coast. The middle section of the trail was a bit sketchy as it was closed due to a landslide so not many hikers had traveled the trail and it was hard to find at times. The third section of the trail was beautiful but a steep climb uphill and by that time I was sort of done with the scenery and just wanted to sleep:)
Being silly on the trail:)
We made it to the end of the first section.
The beautiful ocean and Na Pali coast behind us. It was a bit cloudy but we could still see the cliffs and ocean so it was fine.
This sign greeted us as we started the 2nd section of the loop. We just decided the trail was closed for hikers that didn't know what they were doing but we would be fine...dumb or adventurous?
I think there is a trail in this tall grass somewhere? Also, if you stepped a little too far off the trail there was a really big cliff. Fun, right?
Ready to start the 3rd leg of the hike. One more glance at the view before heading back into the forest and up to our car.
This photo doesn't really do it justice but we were pretty high up!
Monday morning Hyrum had to go to his conference classes so I just had a relaxing morning waking up when I wanted and watching tv and reading...it was fantastic! After Hyrum got back from the conference we went for a hike to the Waipo'o Falls. This hike was about 4 miles round trip and once again we saw some amazingly beautiful scenery.
See that waterfall way off in the distance? After we took this picture we drove to that side of the canyon and hiked out to that very waterfall. I like this photo because you can see our shadows:)
I love the crazy trees in Hawaii!
We passed this cute little waterfall on our hike.
Beautiful trail through the trees
And here we are at the top of the waterfall. The drop behind us is about 800 feet.
A beautiful lookout over the Waimea Canyon
Hiking back up to our car.
Hyrum had classes once again on Tuesday morning and we braved another hike on Tuesday afternoon. This one was 8 miles on the Kalalau Trail and we hiked the last 2 miles in complete darkness. Thank goodness for our cell phone flash lights! Most of the trail back to the car is on a pretty steep cliff and I don't think I would have made it back in one piece without my light.
It was such a beautiful day and this hike gives you fantastic views of the Na Pali coast. Look at the clear blue ocean!
After 2 miles of hiking you come to Hanakapi'ai beach. It's not a good swimming beach but a nice place to take a little break from the hike.
I liked all the little stone towers people had set up all over the beach.
Hanakapi'ai Falls in the background was our goal which was another 2 miles hike from the beach.
Before making it to the falls we found this fantastically clear swimming hole. It was cold but so refreshing after an afternoon of hiking. Once we got out of the pool we decided to turn around and head back to our car because the sun was going down and we didn't want to get caught out on the trail in the dark.
On the trail back to the car. Just beautiful...what else is there to say?
One good thing about hiking late in the day is the stunning sunset. It was wonderful to watch the sky change colors over the course of a few minutes before the sun finally sank below the horizon and left us in the dark.
Wednesday Hyrum had the morning off from classes so we left early in the day for a sail boat ride around the Na Pali coast. We had seen the coast from many of the hikes we had done but it was a totally different experience to see it from the water. The sailboat we were on only had 4 couples plus the 2 person sail boat crew. It was so nice and quiet out on the ocean. A perfect day for sailing!
A shot of the little sail boat we rode on. We went with the Captain Sundown tour and had lots of fun chatting with the captain and the first mate. They were very knowledgable about the area we were seeing and they were super funny as well.
On the boat with the Na Pali coast behind us.
Wave Hyrum! I went snorkeling as well but only for about 10 minutes. I don't know why but I always feel nauseous after snorkeling so I don't last very long.
We followed this sea turtle around for a bit. Snorkeling is so neat, you get to explore an entire new world just below the surface of the water.
Beautiful Na Pali coast from the ocean. You can see why so many films use this coast as a backdrop, it's simply amazing!
I "rode the net" all the way back to the dock. On the way back we were sailing into the wind and so giant waves would crash over me while I was laying on the net. I thought it was super fun but by the end of the trip I was the only one left out on the deck. Everyone else had taken refuge inside the cabin. I'm pretty hardcore:)
The sailboat trip was over by lunchtime so we had an afternoon to explore some more. We headed out to "Queen's Bath" for a bit of a swim. It was a wonderful fresh water pool carved by nature into a lava shelf right on the edge of the ocean. Every once in a while a big wave would come crashing over the rocks into the pool.
The freshwater was super clear and we did a bit of snorkeling. Here is a close up shot of an anemone as it crawled along a rock looking for food.
Sitting in the pool as the waves crashed over the rocks. When the tide is high it's pretty dangerous to swim in this pool because the waves crash over the wall and can sweep you right out to sea!
Another beautiful end to a fabulous day!
Hyrum had class once again on Thursday so it was another relaxing morning for me:) Our afternoon was pretty relaxing as well. We did some shopping and hit a few tourist spots. You really can't have a "bad" day when you're in Hawaii:)
The "Spouting Horn" blowhole. We ignored the signs and walked out to take a closer look. It was pretty neat because right next to the spouting water is a blowhole that only blows air but it's super creepy because it's these weird gasping and moaning sounds that come from that hole.
We walked out on the swinging bridge over the Hanapepe River.
There was a lovely little trail along the river that we walked on for a bit. The sun was going down and the colors were just gorgeous.
We ended our evening with a stop at Salt Pond Beach Park. We sat on the sand and these little crabs would pop up out of the sand pretty close to us. At first it creeped me out because I thought they might bite but then I realized they were terrified of us and would quickly hide any time we even moved a little bit.
A lava bench made a pretty little water feature right on the beach.
After Hyrum finished up the last of his classes on Friday we went and spent some time relaxing on Poipu beach. I mean, we are in Hawaii and haven't yet had a relaxing day at the beach? Hyrum and I did some snorkeling and I enjoyed sitting in the shade with my book. I didn't get any photos but it was a great beach and a relaxing afternoon.
Enjoying the sunset where the mouth of the Waimea River meets the ocean.
Playing in the waves on the dark sandy beach
Goodnight sun
Friday night is "Art Night" in Hanapepe. I wasn't expecting much when we read about this open market but we were both pleasantly surprised and actually ranked it as one of our favorite activities of the week. There were a bunch of local artists, cute little bookstores and shops, yummy street food vendors and lots of musicians playing in the streets. It was super fun to just wander the streets and enjoy the sounds and smells and hanging out with some local artists!
Saturday was our last full day in Hawaii so we decided to rent a kayak and go for a bit of a river trip. Saturday was the only day during the week that it rained pretty constantly but lucky for us it was a warm rain and we were already pretty wet kayaking so we didn't mind too much:)
We started our morning off with some delicious bread and cheese on our balcony. We were right on the ocean and could enjoy the view from our lanai.
Kayaking on the Wailua River.
We only brought our small waterproof camera so these photos aren't that great but it's good enough for my memories:)
After a few miles of kayaking up the river you pull off and go for a 2 mile hike through the jungle to "Secret Falls". Can you tell we were both soaking wet? Also, poor Hyrum lost one of his flip flops so he hiked the entire way with only one shoe!
Did I mention it was a dense, lush jungle?
We made it to the waterfall! We had some lunch and played in the water a bit. I was pretty worried about going right up to the waterfall because there were signs everyone warning about falling rocks. It was a great place to stop for a rest and I'm really glad we hiked out here.
Hyrum swimming under in the pool
A trip to Hawaii is made all the more fun by the wild chickens and roosters running around everywhere:)
On our last night in Kauai we went into Kapa'a for some last minute shopping and just happened to be there for their "First Saturday Art Walk" All the shops were open, there were market stalls set up with local artists and once again we got to walk around with live music playing and yummy food to enjoy. This is a photo of our very last shave ice in Hawaii:(
We woke up Sunday morning, packed up and enjoyed one last delicious piece of pie from "The Right Slice" bakery. I highly recommend this place and especially the blueberry pina colada pie!!
It's always really sad to leave such a beautiful place. I'm never ready to come home and be a mom again, back to the daily grind of homework, piano lessons and being a referee for my crazy kids. A big huge thank you goes to Oma who watched my boys so that I could enjoy a week with my husband in Paradise:) Love you Oma!!!
WOW!
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