Falls, falls and Spouting Horn - July 2 2009

We started the day fairly late and visited the Ho'opii Falls. We only visited the Upper Ho'opi'i falls as it was our recovery day :-) R sweetly reminded me that I am yet to make any arrangements for our last night stay and so we took a rather time consuming detour the Kaui county office to secure our camping reservation at the only available campground - Haena Beach Park. It was easy but there was a wait before our turn and the process is fairly slow. D&R were of course engaged by newest (i)possession.

After lunch at a Chinese restaurant, we made our way to Shipwreck beach in the south shore hoping for some boogie boarding action. The wave were high but sloppy and so I was just going to a relaxing sleepy mode on the beach when R suggested we keep moving. So we drove over to Kipu falls whre people were jumping into the falls. I so wanted to do it but was not confident enough. But we did enjoy a nice private soak in the river rapids away from the tourists and touristy action.

Spouting Horn was very cool with all the rainbows but I felt so sad that the sugarcane plantation guy was callous enough to destroy a 200ft blowhole that would have dwarfed the Spouting Horn. The water fountains up to different heights and sprays and makes for good watching and picture taking. Sunset at Poipu at the resort was not something to write home about but motivated us to search for better sunset spots for the next few days. We had dinner at a new Mexican place in Kapaa. Taro leaf enchiladas were quite memorable.

Hike to Hanakapai'ai Falls - July 1 2009

Until we started the hike, we were debating about it. So we got a fairly late start and hit the trail at 9.20 AM. It got steep fast and soon we were looking down on Ke'e beach on one side the Na Pali cliffs on the other. Views were intermittent and trail was mostly rocky and foresty. We must have hit the trail (and in fact, Kauai) in one of its drier spells. Soon we started crossing streams and the trail was as steep as ever. Two hours later I was at Hanakapai'ai stream where I had to remove shoes to get across (while forgetting my pole behind!) Then we had to hop on what seemed like zillion boulders on bare feet to get to the beach. But the beach was very serene and though we spent half an hour it felt like nothing. All it did was rest our feet a little bit before we continued on. We soon entered the "woods"-bamboo groves, huge mango trees among others and the stream running right alongside and below us. I am not sure we gained or lost a lot of elevation but footing was tricky. After a few stream crossings, the path narrowed considerably while become slippery with mini-waterfalls. We came to yet another stream crossing and realized we had to go further to reach the falls. This stream crossing was tricky and so was the trail beyond. Soon we were boulder hopping full time to behold the 300 ft of water gushing down to a VERY cold pond below. I hadn't come this far to give in to coldness so I jumped right into the pool. One regret I will have is that I chickened out of swimming over to the waterfall like some folks did. No biggie though... We had our very dry cold sandwich from the Princeville Mart before we had to turn back. The hike back was okay but long. We rested a little bit by the Hanakapai'ai stream by the beach. After picking up Dhruva we headed over to Pasta Buffet where they were extremely surprised at the number of pasta plates we ordered at our table. What do they know! We deserrved every morsel we ate.

Albatross, Waimea and the rest of the west ... (Kokee is the best) June 30 2009

Based on inside information from our new hiker friend, we went to the street in the neighborhood where an Albatross chick was roosting(?) There it was right in someone's front yard (lucky them!) one of the biggest birds I have ever seen. After some quick pictures without getting too close, we headed to the west.

By the time we reached Waimea, we decided to pack some lunch for our time in the state parks. We chose a pasta salad and a wrap from the limited vegetarian options in the store there. We started seeing parts of the Waimea canyon from the highway. One of the surprise sights on entering the park was the waterfalls on bright red rocks - something I wouldn't have even dreamt of before I saw it. We stopped in many of the viewpoints to view the canyon, the Waimea river and the Waipio falls. After lunch, we headed up to Kokee to be treated to a grand view of Na Pali from the start of the Pihea trail. It is quite unforgettable and worth the entire drive up there from the North even. The trail was dry and we could have taken it if we wanted to. The campsites and the lawn near the museum is very inviting.

After sufficient gawk time and pictures, we headed further west to Polihale beach park where we really did not spend much time. The sand was still hot and we could see the beginning of the Na pali coast. The sand dunes were not as high or impressive as I had imagined. On our way back, we stopped for shave ice which true to Blue Book's word, was very yummy. We discussed a lot before stopping at the Glass beach and all the wave action past the cemetery. THis was truly beautiful. While we couldn't make out all the caves and formations eaxctly as the book says, just the random blow-holes, air-holes, rock and wave scenery was awe-inspiring. And what the ocean has done to the the glass at the Glass beach is also surprising. No wonder there are no warnings about glass cutting your feet. The ocean seems to have taken care of that bit by rounding and polishing every piece that's washed ashore, The sad thing was that we saw many people (who didn't look like tourists) harvesting these jewels at a rate that would leave the beach glass-less that very night. We had great Thai food at Mema's in Kapaa.

A relatively relaxed day with unforgettable scenes for the mind's memory eye.

Na Pali by sea and snorkeling, Sleeping Giant on foot, and the Kealia waves on the board June 29 2009

A real early start ... Checked in at 6.45 at Napali Catamaran in Hanalei where we were treated to pastries. Talked to them about the blue book which they really liked but were a little disappointed that the book gave them second place after 5 years of being first and in fact handling all the bookings for the now number 1 company. I felt sad too especially after the trip. I knew these people really give their best and do a good job. Why rank just for ranking? Keep two companies equal if they deserve it ...

The tour narration basically points sights of interest along the coast. In 15 minutes we see sea caves and waterfalls gushing right into the ocean and even waterfalls in caves. Soon we were in a sea cave - dark and deep (with dirty secrets? :-)) I thought this was it - but further along the coast, we entered another cave (?) that leads to a hong (as they call it in Thailand) with no ceiling and cliffs on all sides. I really enjoy this (both in Thailand and here) Check this out, there is a waterfall at the entrance of the cave that sprays on you as you ride by. The scenery changes from lush to leeward revealing the drama of the sheer drops and jagged ridges in lovely hues of red. Soon we passed by Kalalau beach and Nualalo to snorkel and we see a turtle bobbing up and down the gentle surf. Otherwise snorkeling was mediocre. Some fish near the boat that they fed (I wish they don't) 2 reef patches one towards the shore and one diagonally away with the usual underwater suspects. Of course G saw a white tipped reef shark and led me there but I guess it didn't like me much. Never saw it. R was enamored with a parrot fish like we all are on of first visit underwater. They served good sandwiches, sides, drinks and the sweetest pineapple. The return ride was fast and bumpy so take all your pictures on the way in.

On our return back to port, we bought a low acid pineapple from the Hanalei Shopping center for 5 bucks. Some say its expensive .. I just found it sweeeeeeeeeeet :-) We headed back to the condo, dropped D, went to Banana Joes and picked up mangoes and tried two of their frosties. (papaya pineapple was better than pineapple - but both are not recommendable). Soon we found ourselves on the Nounou trailhead to Sleeping Giants. the trail climbs nice and easy with views of the kapaa area. The views are urban for Kauai in that u see settlements, houses but then the backdrop is the ocean and Wailua river. So who's complaining! On reaching the picnic table, we were curious about that deadly dangerous path which led up when we saw people returning from there. Since we had trailblazers before us, we marched on while engaging in good conversation with a lady who joined us. The trail though steep and rocky is definitely doable and short(it is like the Royal Arch or Mt Sanitas trail of Boulder). Up there you get even more panaromic views before he hike down. We hardly felt the hike back since we were chatting with the professor from Nebraska all the way down. Took us 2.5 hrs, I think. We were ready to call it a day but R motivated us to try some boogie baording at Kealia. Though not the best ,even I caught some neat waves and there are some for all levels. G says the waves were slower than he would have liked.

We had a dressed up dinner at the Mediterranean gourmet. Their pita and hummus that kept coming was so welcome after the long day...