After becoming familiar with the north shore of Kauai, we spent a few days in Poipu on the southern tip. We found a couple resort beaches which were well groomed but crowded. Poipu felt very touristy and a tad snooty, but it was certainly beautiful.
Since I rarely slept past 6:30am the entire trip, I lured Keane out of bed one morning with a cup of coffee and convinced him to watch the sunrise with me. There is a certain stillness that can only be felt at that hour– a time when no one else is awake and the beach is our own.
On our way to hike in Waimea Canyon and Kokee State Park, we stopped off at Wailua Falls for some pictures of the 173 ft waterfall.
Waimea Canyon is called the Grand Canyon of the Pacific and it didn't take long for us to see why.
After taking in the sights of the canyon, we continued our trip into Kokee State Park to hike the rim of the Na Pali Coast. It was one of the best hikes we've EVER done. The views were, of course, breathtaking but the trail was so technical with huge rocks, tree roots and mud puddles that it made the hike so much fun. Each step required precision and sometimes even swinging from a tree branch to get to the next foothold. On the way back, we found a spot to sit in silence and take everything in as the clouds passed right around us like fog. It was one of my favorite moments of the trip.
Each day, Keane used a guide book from our condo to find all the hikes and beaches in the area. Since we were already on the west side of the island, he suggested we make a stop at a secluded 17-mile long beach that bordered the Na Pali Coast after our hike. What the book failed to mention was that the reason this massive beach is so uninhabited is because the only way to get to it is by a 5 mile dirt road. One which rental cars are forbidden to traverse. If you're new to this blog, you might not know that I am a rule follower. Done. End of discussion. Keane, on the other hand, is not. So learning this information made no difference to him and we continued on.
"Dirt road" turned out to be a bit of an understatement. It was 5 miles of off-roading with Jeeps and giant trucks. and us. in a Chrysler convertible.
We managed to get there and back without any major damage to the car and all was well.
We spent the last couple days of our trip back in Hanalei Bay which is where we'd stay if we ever go back to Kauai. It had a laid back vibe, great restaurants and a cute little town with awesome shopping. We rented paddle boards and spent a few hours paddling up and down the Hanalei River and out on the ocean. It was super fun and I only biffed it once!
So, in case you didn't catch it, let me reiterate. Kauai is the bee's knees and our top vacation spot to date. Save your pennies and go. You won't regret it!
To ensure we don't forget how wonderful this trip was, Keane told me last night that we should look at all our pictures once a week for 6 months, then once every other week for 3 months, then fly back for another vacation.
I like how my guy thinks.
Part 1 here
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