We were quite tired after the boat trip yesterday so we took it easy at Poipu beach the whole day. We did not even take any pictures.
In the evening we had regained a bit of our energy. At least enough to take a picture of the sunset.
Poipu
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Tag Archives: Vacation
Na Pali
At 10 am we were sitting in a small rubber boat of the type that Navy Seals use. We were joined by 8 other and two crew members – Captain Danny and Austin (family original from Sweden – now in Minnesota).
Captain Danny run the boat hard jumping on the waves. Though it was a bit difficult to hold on in the beginning it was great fun, and after a while you got used to it and it was just great fun.
The weather was great and we could cover the whole Na Pali (west) coast all the way up to Ke’e beach. Going into some caves on the way up – and later on again on the way down. We also stopped at some spots to take photos of the beautiful coast line.
Around noon we stopped at an 800 year old fishing village, or rather the remains of it. We did some snorkeling, had lunch and a guided tour of the remains of the fishing village. There were a few important things to remember from the guided tour.
First, the village was covered by the largest Noni tree colony in Hawaii. And Noni is super fruit that can be used for many things including curing some cancer.
Second, the goddess of fire that created the islands of Hawaii marks them with an X when she is finished with an island. All islands except Big Island, which still have active volcanos and is still growing, have a big X on a west phasing mountain side.
Third, sea turtles stink 🙂 We had 11 turtles on the beach that we could watch (and smell) from a close distance.
On our way back to the harbor in Waimea it started to rain. It cooled things down but it never got really cold. And though we were wet and tired once we reached the harbor we were all very happy – it had been a great trip along a beautiful coast.
It was still raining when we got into the car so we decided to spend the last 2 hours before returning home with some shopping in Lihue. Robert and I visited a Vitamin store where there was a Swedish woman working. So Robert discussed all his purchases in Swedish – kind of strange 🙂
Queen’s Bath and Hanalei Bay
Robert has been guarding the royal family in Sweden when he did his military service but today was he took his first swim in the Queen’s bath on the North shore. Queen’s bath is a lava pool that during low tide is separated from the ocean. Nice to swim in. Besides it is a small tub too, that Robert took as his own.
We spent an hour or so at the Queen’s bath playing around in the natural pool, or jumping around on the lava stones. Or fooling around with stupid body building poses… at least some of us 😉
Just of the lava cliffs there were several sea turtles. Some quite small, not more than maybe 30-40 cm long but some were really big too, up to a 70-100 cm long. We spent quite some time just watching them.
Once we’ve had enough of the Queen’s bath we continued further north to Hanalei were we spent the rest of the day. At 4:30 pm we decided to stay for the sunset in Hanalei. First we took a short tour in Hanalei town. Then we returned to the ocean for the sunset.
After the sunset we had an American dinner at Hanalei Gourmet. Hamburger and fries, and Caesar salad.
Waimea Canyon and Salt Pond
We were early birds today, taking off before 10 am for the Waimea Canyon. The first stop was to overlook the private owned island Nihau.
At around 1000 feet above sea level we made our second stop to watch some red dirt and a waterfall. At 1500 feet above sea level we stopped to have a look at the Waimea Canyon. It looked the same as when Chie and I were here a few years back. Guess mountains don’t change that quick – luckily since the view is beautiful 🙂
We continued upwards to arrive on top of Na Pali coast, where many Hollywood movies have been recorded. It is also one of the rainiest spots on earth. Though today the sun was shining 🙂
Once we had enjoyed the view we drove down the mountain and stopped at the Salt Pond for a late lunch and for cooling off in the ocean. Wonderful it was 😉
Later we were tired from all the impressions and playing in the water so we returned home to a wonderful sunset. And a great dinner, as usual.
Spouting Horn, Maha’ulepu and Kiahuna
Before heading out to any beach we went to the Spouting Horn. It’s not much more than a hole in the lava rock through to the water below. When the waves are high it pushes water up through the hole in a giant geyser like water canon. Well, Chie and Robert seemed transfixed anyway 🙂
Once we had satisfied out curiosity on the Spouting Horn we headed out to Maha’ulepu. It’s a 15 minutes ride on a dirt road but the area is beautiful.
We spent most of the day here bathing, relaxing and reading. Robert and I took a long walk along the shore too. It was hot but quite beautiful.
In the later afternoon the wind got quite strong so we packed our things and drove to Kiahuna where we spent almost as much time playing in the waves as we did on the beach. It was pure fun!
At 5:30 we packed aÂ¥our things again and headed home. Today we were in time for the sunset but the sun was covered by clouds. Well, there is always another day… The view is from our room’s window so any day 🙂