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| Peacefulness of Kaua'i |
We are fortunate to have seen three Hawaiian Islands before ‘almost hurricanes’ Iselle and Julio passed by. Thankfully they tendered little damage but it would have severely tampered with what we could have seen and where we went. Kaua’i is the last place we visited before heading back to the US and we mean to savor each and every one of these last days.
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| Rainbow eucalyptus bark - Inspiring colors |
As its name indicates, it is a stunning but very expensive
garden. While the big island’s museums
and gardens can be visited for $8-$15/person, these prices go up to $40 in
Kaua’i… After visiting expensive French
Polynesia however the sticker shock wasn’t what it would’ve been should we have visited right after cheap Mexico.
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Allerton Gardens. Meat or steak plant.
Flower the color and shape of a steak, attractive to flies who help pollinate |
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| Annatto - producer of orange food coloring |
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| Diana's garden |
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| Three pools reflecting one tree |
Kaua’i is extremely touristic compared to the Big Island so
we wouldn’t consider it as a place to live but for a short visit it has many
things to offer. Once again, we cannot
meet true islanders with stories of their lives, legends, customs, etc. It makes us appreciate ever more what we
experienced in Mexico and what we had in French Polynesia. We will appreciate it yet more when we get
back to traveling and know that not everywhere offers such connections with the
people and their ways of living.
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| Buddha in bamboo forest |
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| Corrugated theme with pulsing water |
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| Symmetry of Thanksgiving Garden |
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| Three large trees used in the filming of Jurassic Park |
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| Our guide Juan sitting among the buttress roots |
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| At only 75 years old - they are massive - the trees, not Mike! |
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| Very massive |
As in the previous post, we will let the pictures do the
talking. We have been nearly everywhere
on the island except for hiking the complete Napali Coast – for that would have
required camping gear we didn’t have.
This is one of the few places I think flying over would have been a
great addition to viewing the many canyons, waterfalls, fluted ridges, hidden
beaches the island has to offer with in mind that it is one of the wettest
place on earth and a clear, cloudless view, is hard to find… or a dry path
impossible to come across.
Enjoy!
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| Beautiful Waimea Canyon |
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| Considered the 'Grand Canyon' of Kaua'i |
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| Waimea Canyon with waterfall |
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| Miles of fantastic views |
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| Water cascading over red rocks |
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| Similar to Arizona |
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| Red-crested cardinal on the beach |
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| Home to thousands of nesting birds |
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| Lighthouse is now a preserve area for nesting birds |
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| Hanalei River Valley - home to taro fields |
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| Surrounded by amazing fluted ridges |
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| 'Swiss Cheese" plant, corn-like pod can be eaten |
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| The largest mahogany plantation in the world |
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| Red wet clay trail - Both are covered to the knees with it |
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| Napali Coast |
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| View legends are made of |
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| Very seldom getting clear view - One of the wettest areas in the world |
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| But if you persist, the clouds will eventually open-up |
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| Another muddy path - did I mention how wet this place is? |
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| Hanakapi'ai waterfall - closer up |
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| Nice refreshing water - The wind is so strong it moves the whole waterfall to the side at times |
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| End of the Napali hike |
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| US and Hawaiian flags |
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