First Day in Kauai

Ok...I didn't really keep up with the blog very well during the second half of the San Diego trip (it got too cold up on the roof top of the hotel at night - the only place with free wifi), nor the entire first half of the Hawaii trip (spotty wifi in the room, and getting home late, late at night makes for tired travelers, not refreshed bloggers....)

So...with renewed vigor, I aim to do a post each day this week, for the remainder of the trip.  (Lets see how well I keep my promise!!)

We had an easy flight from the Big Island through Maui and then onto the island of Kauai.  Flying over all of the Hawiian islands really gave perspective on how large (or small) each island was, as well as the mountains, beaches and population...Honolulu is more crowded than I can imagine, especially after trolling through the big island, where you're more likely to see a cow than a house....

Nice enough digs at the timeshare, with natural A/C in the form of louvered windows and cross-ventilation!  Last night with a storm brewing and some pretty heavy winds, I got pretty cold, and had to actually close a few of the windows.

Our timeshare, the Alii Kai (picture from their website)

Our timeshare is in the town of Princeville, which is at the north end of the island where the winter winds are the strongest.  We are also closest to the Na Pali Coastline....a pretty famed 15 mile stretch of coastline that has been featured in numerous Hollywood feature films (Jurassic Park anyone....?)  This very rugged coastline is only accessible by foot, boat or air.  No roads!  We decided to take the 4 mile (roundtrip) hike that takes you into the coastline, up and down some of the steep cliffs to a small beach that is a pretty popular destination for day hikers.

Here is a good view of some of the coastline.  We didn't take this picture (as we weren't on the water, plus the sky was quite overcast)

This hike is moderate to strenuous (at least for us!) and took the better part of our morning.  Very rocky, pretty steep in areas, and with streams crossing the trail, you need to take your time and be in good health to make it up and down.

A stop at the first 1/2 mile mark...about 45 minutes into the hike.

A view of the coast peaking through the trees at a water break we took.

 At the bottom of the 2 mile hike, you reach this beach, which was pretty rough with waves today (due to the winter tradewinds).  Most people stop here, drink some water, eat some lunch and head back to their cars.  More hearty people can climb another 2 miles into the mountains to a famous waterfall, then make the 2 miles back to the beach, and 2 more miles back to their car.  (We just made the beach and back!).

The most interesting thing at the beach, was the great number of stacked rocks all over.  Must be a tradition to make as tall of a rock stack as you can.

With a brief rest, we started back up the hill to make the hearty 2 mile hike back to our car.  With a good lunch, we went back to the condo to rest for a bit.  Even with that exciting (and exhausting day), we still had fun playing mini-golf in the evening, and seeing a spectatular light show at sundown!

View of the rugged coastline from the hike.

View of the beach at the bottom of the hike, taken from inside a sea-side cave.