Maybe in Oz

For my birthday I told Phil that I wanted to go on a sunset cruise along the Napali Coast.  They all started in the afternoon, so I pulled the birthday card again and we went to a few different fabric shops.  I was expecting that were wouldn't be many stores and the fabric would be expensive, but I was surprised to find three good shops close by, all with fabric much, much cheaper than Australia prices.  Good thing I had purchased extra baggage allowance for our return trip! We stopped along the way to see Waimea Falls, and then continued on to Puka Dog for lunch.  I had read they had amazing hot dogs, and it seemed like the perfect thing to eat before a boat ride! 😁  The hot dog with pineapple salsa was really darn good and it was definitely worth the stop. Waimea Falls We were a bit confused by this sign...  Then it was time to board the boat and head off along the coast.  We started on the South side of the island, and as we went arou...

After our killer hike to Hanakapiai Falls the day before, we turned our plans of hiking around Waimea Canyon into a drive instead.  I've heard Waimea Canyon described as the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, but with the other parts of the island we'd seen I wasn't really sure how to picture it.  It did remind me of the Grand Canyon, a very very green version.  Not quite so grand, but the deep gorge and layers of rock were very majestic.  What I enjoyed almost more than the canyon was this stunning view over Kok'e State Park.  All of the colours and textures were absolutely stunning. Another unexpected favourite from the day was this red dirt waterfall on the road out of Waimea Canyon.  Just before the trip I saw pictures of it and really wanted to see it.  In real life it was a lot smaller than the pictures led me to believe, but what the pictures didn't convey was the contrast to the surrounding landscape.  The hills around were cov...

One of my favourite ways to "relax" is a hike.  So our second day in Kauai we "relaxed" all day with a hike to Hanapapiai Falls.  It was a two mile hike from the start to Hanapaiai Beach, most of which was uphill along some gorgeous cliffs at the top end of the Na Pali Coast.  The water along the cliffs was a brilliant blue, but as soon as we crested over and got our first views of the beach I was in turquoise water heaven.  This was my happy place; green cliffs and bright clear turquoise water all contrasting with deep red dirt.  This is why we came to Kauai. It had rained a little the night before, and parts of the trail were quite squishy.  Luckily we had our hiking poles with us and some shoes that didn't require a return trip home.  Even just the first two miles to the beach would have been tricky without both.  We had to cross a stream to get to the beach, and then spent awhile soaking in the scenery.  There were a fe...