Kauai. Why Oh Why?

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Hilo to Honolulu followed by Honolulu to Lihue. The latter being about a 30 minute flight gate to gate with a cruising altitude of around 10,000 feet. The low cruising altitude creates a scenic flight if you have a window seat. I had the window seat this round, I admired the mountains and coastline of Oahu and the clear water below. I spotted two whales in the ocean on this flight. Good start or so I thought.



Kauai is a much older volcanic island than the Big Island which means the black lava rock has turned into red soil. This is noticeable from the plane window. Kauai, the garden island as it is known, is very much unlike the Big Island. Exceptionally green even the mountains are shades of bright greens. Home to the wettest place on earth and a crazy large canyon.





While planning our trip we had decided to get some camping permits for Kauai. The reason being that many accommodations have minimum stays of 3 days or have large cleaning fees. I strongly disagree with minimum stays and large cleaning fees so camping it was. Or better yet, car camping. After the jungle house experience of the Big Island I was skeptical about our car-camping plans but I wanted to keep the budget in check. Our first night was at Salt Pond Beach Park in the southwest of the island. We toured around the south, lunch at Kauai Island Brewing Company followed by a drive down to Poipu. Unplanned but just happened to be there in time for sunset. People gather for the sunsets there, as we met a nice couple from Texas who gave us a few points of interest. We watched the sun fall and drop behind the ocean, casting the boats and surfers in an orange glow. That night we slept in the car, everything was fine.



When you sleep in a car, you get up early. After breakfast we headed to Waimea Canyon. Waimea Canyon is also known as the Grand Canyon of the Pacific. It is 10 miles long and up to 3000 feet deep, which is remarkable considering Kauai is just a little island. We drove up the into the State Park stopping at many viewpoints to admire the canyon in the morning light. We even did a short hike.



Polihale State Park is also in the southwest and that was our next destination. One problem, car rental companies prohibit the use of their cars on the dirt road that leads to Polihale. I was driving another Hyundai Tuscon so the plan was to take a look at the road to see what I think. The road was dry with an endless arsenal of bumpy bumps. With 5 miles and 40 minutes behind us we stepped onto the surreal site of Polihale. The green cliffs of the Napali coastline, sand dunes, a crazy long beach with Niihue island in the distance. It was worth the slow bumpy drive. Walked up and down the deep sandy beach, there where a few groups of people having a Saturday get together under their large canopy tents. Young families and friends enjoying the warm day. We enjoyed our views and headed back. We met a bunch of vehicles inbound on our way out. As I was trying to dodge the larger bumps and moving for oncoming traffic I rubbed some shrubs which I didn’t think was serious. Later that day we noticed three long scratches down the passenger side of the car. Whoops. I sacrificed a t’shirt to clean the side of the car and give it a quick buff. To my surprise the scratches nearly disappeared. The end result a few surface scratches some a few inches in length. I was somewhat panicked at the thought of paying damages and felt very fortunate at that point.



On the north side of the island we car-camped at Anini Beach Park which his a large and busy place. The roads north of Hanalei hold plenty of one lane bridges and narrow roads. Usually this would be fun for a drive but it is very busy and it seems to take a long time to get not very far. After the canyon and Pollihale my list for Kauai included a hike along the Kalalau Trail. The Kalalau trail is a trail along the NaPali Coast. It is 11 miles in length but does offer some shorter hikes. We were up early and on the trail early. Mind you there was little parking left near the trailhead at 8 am. The trail was busy as we met plenty of people on the way in. The trail starts with a hard incline, I was hopeful the trail would flatten at some point but it just kept the cycle of ascend, descend, ascend and descend. Court wasn’t feeling it and I will be honest my body didn’t want to do it. After 30 minutes or so I felt much better and soon Court was on form also. It is 2 miles to Hanakapiai Beach. We were almost there when we seen a group of hikers stopped then we noticed the water crossing. Now I may have not read into this properly but I was sure there was no water crossing before the beach. I was wrong. Hikers were wading the quick stream, some were jumping from rock to rock. I was the only sucker on the trail that day with long pants. I couldn’t roll them up far enough. Not many options, so I took them off tied them around my neck and with boots in one hand I waded across the water. Everyone was just hanging out at the beach. Water was high, waves were crashing not a good place to swim (as the sign suggested). To get to the water falls was another nearly 4 mile round trip. We looked at our water and food levels. Thought of our energy levels and decided we return the 2 miles back to the car park. After the water crossing I had damp feet, it seemed like we had enough reasons to limit ourselves at this. The weather was getting humid on the way back, another reason to call it a day in hiking. We took our time enjoyed the viewpoints on our way back.



The hand symbol known as the shaka ( I always knew it as the hang loose symbol) is commonly used between motorists. Now a little back story, my good friend Richie started using this hand gesture in our laid back times in Brisbane. It was fun, it was our little thing. Later on Courtnay began using that hand gesture, so the shaka has been in my life for years without ever really using it properly. With the large amount of one lane bridges and narrow roads I had ample opportunities to effectively use this gesture. I yielded at a one lane bridge and when the man got near us I put up the shaka, I got a shaka back. I was delighted to be using the shaka proper. I did witness in traffic a man presented the shaka, the other car seen it then proceeded to yield and let him in in. I was loving the authentic use of the shaka.



Our checklist for Kauai was as good as checked off, we were unsure of what next. But sometimes decisions get made for you. We were car camping, it was early. I had feel asleep around 7:15 pm. I awoke just after 8pm to see a van parked beside us. I remember thinking they looked a little sketchy then I told myself to relax not everyone is up to no good. I was trying to fall back asleep. Some lights had shone in front of the car. Their van door opened and I heard a snap of back passenger door. It was locked, but one of these guys had just tried to open it. Court said something as I started the car and reversed past them and down the road. I was quite groggy from my nap and struggling to understand what just happened. I guess these guys wanted to rob us. We were pretty sure they had seen us in the car. Once again we felt unsafe and lucky that these guys didn’t have any weapons. It was now time to retire from car-camping. We drove back to Hanalei to get wifi and found a resort for the night. The plan get safe, get organized and figure what we should do with the last of our travel days.



We woke to find several chickens at our window. I forgot to mention the endless amounts of wild chickens running rampant in Kauai. Besides chicken drama we changed our flights to Honolulu, packed and then straight to the airport. We had nothing left to do on this island. Yeah sure there are countless tour operators offering boat tours. Also the seas were rough this time of year. After our little scare we had enough. Not to mention the island was more built up than we had expected. The north was tourist trap-like. I was no longer a car-camper and unwilling to be paying cleaning fees atop of a regular room charge. Waikiki here we come. Return rental car then go wait in the airport. While waiting I had what may be the best airport food I have had in my life. A big plate of chicken katsu with hawaiiian bbq sauce, rice and creamy pasta salad for a fair price.





I was excited to be heading to Honolulu as we had lost our time there at the start of our trip due to flight troubles. I was happy to be leaving Kauai. Sometimes places and people just aren’t good fits and I wasn’t feeling it in Kauai. I seen what I wanted, mission accomplished. Kauai is an unique and beautiful place. It is someone’s paradise but not my paradise.

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