Hyrum attended the medical conference in Kauai this year. We brought along the twins as a way to celebrate their completion of the MCAT and all the hard work that went into doing that. We also brought Julian (forced really...he was so mad that we made him miss school for Hawaii!) We didn't really take a family vacation this summer because the twins were busy studying so we thought of this trip as our family vacation for the year. We made Julian come (but we couldn't make him get in the ocean!)
We must be in Kauai...there are chickens everywhere on this island!
Super yummy sushi food truck. It was close to the airport and got good reviews and we were all hungry!
We had some time to kill before we could check into our condo so we headed out to Wailua Falls. It had been super rainy the last few weeks (including a hurricane the week before we got there) so there was so much water coming over the falls, it was incredible!
We stopped at this local fruit stand and had some fresh juiced mango and pineapple smoothies
Pineapple plants are so cool!
The just grow right out of the center of this crazy, spiky bush!
The cool banyan tree in Koloa
We had some yummy pizza then walked around Koloa for a bit. They really did a great job preserving and rebuilding this town to make it look like an old sugar plantation town
Everyone was super full but Emerson really wanted the first shave ice of the trip...and I'm always up for some chocolate ice cream:)
The boys were signed up for surf lessons the next morning. We found the beach in Kiahuna but couldn't believe the storm damage from the hurricane. All the beach front properties were completely destroyed!
This gorgeous seal hung out at the beach with us all day!
Emerson surfing. They had taken surf lessons in Maui once before but they said this instructor was way better and the wave conditions at this beach were nicer than Maui. I think they had a blast!
All tired out after surfing, resting with their seal friend:)
We got Puka Dogs for lunch. Delicious hot dogs in a toasted bun but the best part is the relish. You can pick from mango or guava or pineapple relish. It was super yummy
Lots of sea turtles on Po'ipu beach
Nothing better to finish off a full day at the beach then some yummy shave ice!
We drove over to Spouting Horn blowhole. It was pretty spectacular. The water was shooting 50 feet in the air. I think it was perfect wave conditions!
The next day we took a boat ride out to see the Na Pali Coast. So many hikes were closed due to the hurricane and the Na Pali coast hike (which is our favorite hike in Kauai) was closed so we decided to see the coast in a different way
Townsend, Julian and I all took dramamine before the boat ride...it worked great!
When the waves aren't so choppy the boats can actually go into a lot of the caves along the coast. We were able to get close and even a short way into the caves but I'm sure it's cool when the water is calm and you can go right into the caves
Some fun dolphins came up to the boat to say hello
I love the fog rolling out of the cave...super creepy
So many beautiful things to see on the boat ride
We got to hop in the water during lunch to go for a swim. It was so refreshing to be in the nice cool water after the sunny, hot boat ride
Heading back, so fun to be out on the water
Wishing Well shave ice in Hanalei was our all time favorite in Kauai
Even Mr. Gecko wanted a taste:)
We attempted to go on a hike that our guide book recommended but only got about 100 feet into the forest before the trail became impassible with fallen trees.
We made a quick stop to see the Kilauea Point light house.
We also explored around this cute church in Kilauea
We walked through the sacred rudraksha forest in Kapa'a. This forest was planted in the 1980's by the Hindu monks that founded a temple on Kauai
Pretty cool looking roots on the trees in the forest
A bamboo path leads to the stone image of Lord Ganesha
We made our way to the Lihu'e-Koloa forest reserve. They had my favorite...rainbow eucalyptus trees!
The boys on a cool bridge
A fun dip in fresh water river. You can see all the tree damage from the hurricane
The next day it was super crazy hot so we found refuge in the Kauai museum in Lihu'e
There was a lot to see in this museum but it wasn't super well organized. I still learned a lot about the history of Kauai and saw some neat artifacts
Julian says he remembers learning about these in Art History class
It was so hot we decided we needed to find another beach to play in the water and cool down. We went to Kiahuna beach. The waves were crazy big and we had so much fun!
The twins playing in the big waves
The best days in Hawaii are at the beach
Emerson on the boogie board we found at our condo. I love how the wave is crashing around him!
Another beautiful day comes to an end in Kauai
Townsend doing a hand stand at sunset:)
Had dinner at Porky's in Koloa...super yummy hot dog with shredded pork on top!
A lost baby chick. It was chirping and chirping looking for its mama...so sad
On our last day we got tickets to visit the Hidu temple in Wailua. This was a great experience as we were allowed to enter the temple for morning devotionals. It was really peaceful to listen to the chants and watch the rituals performed for morning devotion
We were told the mountain in the background is only visible less than 10 days every year. Most of the time it is covered in clouds. We were very fortunate to be there on this day. The grounds of the Hindu temple are just beautiful!
Enjoying the peaceful gardens
Beautiful banyan tree at the Hindu temple
I would love to come back another day when the new Temple is completed.
After our peaceful morning we rented some kayaks and paddled up the Wailua River
There is a great hike at the North Fork of the Wailua River but it was closed due to trail damage. So we just had some lunch and swam around in the river for a bit
It was a wonderful kayak ride even though we couldn't do the hike at the end
Got some delicious musubi at the Musubi Truck in Kapa'a
Julian helping to unload our car at the end of the day
One last Kauai sunset. We spent the evening playing in the pool and hot tub at our condo
What a great family vacation. Julian wasn't too happy we made him miss school but in the end I think I saw him smile once or twice:) The twins definitely had a blast playing in the ocean and I just enjoyed seeing all my family having a wonderful time together. Until next time Hawaii!
