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Hanapepe At The End Of The Day

Sun, 29 Apr 2012, 05:27 AM (-06:00)

After our hike, we drove down from the mountains to Hanapepe. On Friday nights there, the shops and studios and galleries stay open late.

The first order of business was finding something to eat, and we chose the first place we found: Bobbie’s BBQ. As it happened, we chose quite well.

There were people sitting at tables set up in the street. There was a line at the counter. The Friday dinner special was BBQ chicken or ribs. Trudy got the chicken. I got the ribs. And we sat at the last free table and devoured our food, at which point we felt moderately human again.

This part of Hanapepe almost felt like a set from a classic western movie. Well … except for the rain forest climbing up the slopes of the mountains just outside town … and except for the drizzle that was falling … and except for the Hawaiian BBQ we’d just eaten … and except for the strings of lights illuminating the sidewalks … and except for the fact that almost every business along the street was an art gallery or studio … and except for the musicians playing in the streets and in the stores. Except for all that, it kinda felt like a little town out of a classic western movie.

There were boardwalks that ran along the street. There were benches and places to sit along the sidewalk. There were photographers selling their pictures under tarps to protect them from the rain. There was someone selling spices. There was a cheerful woman selling pies who gladly sold Trudy a slice of lemon creme. And there was the western-most bookstore in the United States.

We walked up and down the street, going into almost every place. We were exhausted from our hike, and Trudy was falling asleep. Our muscles got stiff as soon whenever we stopped moving. So there was no question that Hanapepe was our last stop of the day. When we satisfied ourselves that we were done, we slowly walked back to the car.

Back in Kapa‘a, we limped from the car to our room, climbing the stairs one agonizing step at a time, amazed at how much our legs hurt from our hike earlier in the day.

We both took hot showers and collapsed into bed.

It’ll Be Fine

Sat, 28 Apr 2012, 09:10 PM (-06:00)

It had taken us two and a half hours to hike down from the trail head. During that time, we had descended 1600 feet. It was now time for the ascent.

Obviously this was going to be more work, and it was going to take us longer than on the way down. The problem was that it was late afternoon, and a return trip of three hours (or worse, three and a half) would put us on the trail after dark. I was muttering out loud.

“We’ll be fine,” Trudy said.

You must understand, that fairness and industriousness are only two of Trudy’s many attributes that make me count my blessings every day. Boundless optimism is another. So here she was, being herself.

“We’ll be fine.”

I kept my thoughts mostly to myself.

And in the event, it did not rain on the way out. Drops were still dripping from the canopy of the rain forest over us. And from the state of the trail, it had clearly rained very hard while we were enjoying out snacks along the cliffs. But it was raining no more, and we were able to unzip our jackets as we trudged uphill.

Not only was there no more rain, but we had no slips or falls, and to our surprise (and to my relief), climbing back up the rocky and wet dirt trail proved much easier than the hike down. We made very good time, and in only an hour and a half, we emerged from the jungle at the dirt lot where we had parked our car.

We were tired. When we got in the car after changing out of our hiking boots, we both sighed and just sat there silently for several minutes catching our breath. But was still daylight. And it was indeed, as Trudy fearlessly predicted, fine.

Awa‘awapuhi Trail

Thu, 26 Apr 2012, 09:34 PM (-06:00)

The trail is not particularly long (3.5 miles), but it descends 1600 feet from the trail head to trail’s end. We knew the hike back was going to be brutal. So we stocked our packs with plenty of water and snacks.

It was raining when we started, and it rained almost all the way down. Rain fell from the sky and the trees, and the trail got slicker and slicker as we slipped on the red lava dirt and clambered on the rocks and got wet from head to toe.

It turns out that the fair and industrious Trudy has a keep-on-truckin’ style of hiking that involves planting her heal on the smoothes, slickest, steepest, most wet patch of ground and moving all her weight to that leg. As a consequence, she wiped out several times, had many close calls and finally found a walking stick to help keep her vertical. (I can say this, of course, as I dutifully brought up the rear and had ample warning of the dangerous spots of the trail, being marked as they were by my fair and industrious wife.)

Anyway, once we were thoroughly soaked, the rain stopped at about mile three, just as all the books say it will. After a few more minutes, we came to a tree, a token barrier and a warning sign unambiguously identifying the end of the line just before what appeared to be the edge of the world.

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And the sign was more than enough to convince me to stay back from the edge.

And so we sat down, ate our snacks and took pictures of more wild Kaua‘i chickens.

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The spectacular Na Pali coast spread out before us just inches beyond where the trail stopped. The cliffs dropped 2000 feet to breaking surf so far away that we couldn’t hear a thing. Clouds and mist rolled from the mountains down the canyons and to the sea.

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From time to time the solitude was broken by helicopters giving tourists a scenic tour around the island.

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After about 20 minutes, a German couple came striding out of the forest. She had a backpack. He had a camera, and he was determined to step to the utter brink of the cliff and take photographs with his toes hanging over the edge and his eyes glued to his viewfinder.

This was my signal to leave. I didn’t want to be there when he fell. So we put away our snacks and drinks and zipped up our packs and began the 3.5 mile long, 1600 foot climb back.

Waimea Canyon

Wed, 25 Apr 2012, 09:22 PM (-06:00)

The town of Waimea is on the coast. When we were there, the skies were blue, and white clouds were floating overhead even though the inland mountains were bathed in dark clouds and mist.

As we drove up Waimea Canyon on highway 550, we left the sunny weather behind and began climbing into red rock. On the right, we would glimpse fabulous vistas with the river snaking its way between red cliffs coming down from mist-crowned mountains.

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And on the left, we could see the Pacific Ocean with Kaua‘i’s sister island, Ni‘ihau, barely visible in the distance.

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As we drove further, the red crept over the edge of the canyon, and we had to stop to check it out.

We stopped at Waimea Canyon Lookout. And we stopped at Pu‘u Hinahina Lookout, although the clouds were rolling off the mountains and mist was blowing up from the canyon depths so our photographs don’t do the place justice.

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At the museum in Kōke‘e State Park, it was raining and windy. We leaned against the trunk of our rental car as it drizzled and wondered about our plans. And after we finished wondering, we changed into our boots. This was the beginning of the first of two big Kaua‘i hikes we had planned.

The woman behind the counter said that people returning from Alaka‘i Swamp Trail were reporting hard rain and very, very wet and muddy trail conditions. We really wanted to hike into the swamp, but we looked at each other only briefly, and our heads overruled our hearts. We chose Awa‘awapuhi Trail instead.

And that story will have to wait.

The Roads of Kauai

Tue, 24 Apr 2012, 08:21 PM (-06:00)

You can almost drive around Kauai—almost but not quite. The steep cliffs on the mountains along the Na Pali coast resist any road building there. Otherwise, it is easy to get around.

The speed limits are low, and people drive them. Most of the pseudo-ring-road is easy to drive. Lush forests grow right up to the edge of the pavement. Spectacular vistas are around every turn. Mountains disappear into the clouds and mist. Blossoms are everywhere.

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I could learn to live with a commute like that.

A Peacock

Tue, 24 Apr 2012, 08:00 PM (-06:00)

At the Smith Family Garden Luau, they drove us around the grounds before the festivities started. There were ponds and flowers and blooming trees. There was a goat cleaning her kid that had just been born. And there were peacocks like this one.

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All the tourists were snapping pictures of all these things, and I was right there among ’em.

Po‘ipu Beach 2

Tue, 24 Apr 2012, 06:30 AM (-06:00)

“Did you see me?” Trudy asked as I sat down next to her.

She had returned to the beach before I did, because the swells were making her dizzy, and her goggles were slipping. So I was just now rejoining my fair and industrious wife.

“Did you see what happened when I got out?”

I wasn’t sure what she meant.

“It was terrible,” she said.

It turned out that when she swam to shore, she was disoriented and got out on the rocks instead of the sandy beach. The ocean swells and breaking surf tossed her back and forth against the sharp lava rock.

She couldn’t stand up. She couldn’t sit down. She couldn’t swim to shallower water away from the waves. And evidently she couldn’t swim away from the rocks, either.

“I couldn’t get out,” she said, pointing to a bloody scrape on her leg.

As she was struggling with this predicament, being battered on the rocks by the waves, I was oblivious, swimming with the fishes and looking at urchins nestled in the lava. And no one on the nearby beach noticed her trouble, either.

When she did finally pull herself ashore, where was I? I was out in the water swimming with the fishes and urchins having a grand time periodically poking my head up and waving to her obliviously as she nursed her wounds.

She had a sad look on her face and even a hint of tears in her eyes.

“Your husband abandoned you,” I said.

“He did,” she said.

Po‘ipu Beach 1

Mon, 23 Apr 2012, 09:23 PM (-06:00)

As soon as we put our faces in the water at Po‘ipu Beach, we were surrounded by fish. One moment we were mere tourists in the water and the next we were among swarms.

There were Yellow Tang. There were Orangestripe and Whitespotted Surgeonfish. There were various kinds of Butterflyfish. There were orange Elegant Coris and ones with black and white stripes. There was a Flowery Flounder fluttering on the bottom. There were Triggerfish. There were long skinny Cornets. There were Parrotfish crunching their beaks on the rocks. And there were Moorish Idols with long dorsal fins streaming behind them.

Some swam in schools, sometimes posing for swimmers with cameras. Some swam alone, coming right up to your face to stare you down.

It made us feel as if we were in some sort of Jaques Cousteau documentary. And it made us glad we rented snorkel gear for a week.

Spouting Horn

Mon, 23 Apr 2012, 09:16 PM (-06:00)

At Spouting Horn there is a big hole in the lava at the water’s edge. As the blue waves of the Pacific crash onto the rocks, the ocean spouts out of a hole in the ground straight into the air.

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Tourists arrive in rental cars and buses to stand at the edge of this marvel of mother nature. They wait patiently for the water to spout.

And there are the wild chickens. Because this is Kauai.

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Eggbert’s

Sun, 22 Apr 2012, 08:55 PM (-06:00)

Trudy had heard of this breakfast place in Kapaa called Eggbert’s. So after the sun was up, we went looking for the place with a trusty Google map in hand.

As it turned out, Google was wrong. So we drove around a bit until we finally asked a construction worker if he knew where Eggbert’s was. He pointed down the street.

“On the other side of that building in a strip mall,” he said.

We thanked him and drove off. And as it turns out, that strip mall was Coconut Market Place, which is next door to where we were staying, literally walking distance.

I had the #3: two eggs, bacon, toast, hashbrowns and coffee. Trudy has the #2: two eggs, bacon, toast and coffee to which she added a papaya pancake with coconut syrup.

Oh my gosh.

We did go to a different place for breakfast on one of our mornings there, but let me tell you we didn’t make that mistake twice.