Kauai - First 3 Days: Jan 18 - 20

Kauai - First 3 Days:  Jan 18 - Jan 20

Saturday 1/18 - Bob & Linda picked us up at 8:15am for our 10:10am flight.  We checked our bags and because we had a TSA Pre check printed on our boarding pass, we were able to walk to the front of quite a long line then place our luggage on the conveyer and walk through the mag.  No shoes off, no liquid/gel or laptop removed!  When I asked, I was told that we were randomly selected and that it's part of the promotion to get people to try it. When we boarded the plane, we had to check our carry-on luggage under the plane because the overhead bins were too small.  We hurried to take out what we thought we'd need on the plane.

When we arrived in LA, we got to the gate and everyone was already lining up.  Although we paid for economy plus seats, we were given group #5  and most of the plane boarded before us.  They announced that the overhead bins might be filled up but we made it ok.  I can't imagine that all the people ahead of us - getting the overhead bins - paid economy plus so I'm not sure why we were last to board.  Luckily, it worked out or I'd have had my uke and carry-on under my feet!  Beer used to be the bargain alcohol on the plane at $5.  It's gone up to $6.99 - glad we brought our peanuts and pretzels.

We arrived in Honolulu and of course, the plane we connected to was on the other side of the airport.  Why is it always this way?  The airport is really pretty with lots of open air walkways and high-end stores like Prada but they were all closed when we arrived at 4:45pm.  We grabbed a burger at Burger King and took some photos of posters decorated in the area:     

Our next plane was not schedule to depart until 7:10 and we heard from another passenger that he got on an earlier flight and that the planes have been delayed.  I was told by the flight attendant that they had a problem with a plane in the morning which caused delays all day.  They called our name and said that they were able to get us on the earlier flight  - along with our luggage - but with the delays, we might only save a little time.  I was happy though.  We boarded the flight - two seats on each side, propeller plan - and when we arrived in Kauai we found that our luggage had NOT made the flight so we waited about 20 minutes for the next flight to arrive.  Meanwhile, Norm got our rental car paperwork completed and picked up our condo keys that were left there for us.  It must have rained earlier in the day but luckily it has cleared.  There was a band playing with hula dancers in the baggage area.  What a nice way to start a visit to Kauai.

We left the airport and headed to the closest Walmart for some groceries.  The Walmarts are open until midnight every night so that works out great for travelers.

We drove the windy road and used our high-beams whenever we could as the roads aren't lit up at night.  It was dark so we didn't see the scenery.  We arrived at the condo, picked up our internet info and key card to the pool, etc from the reception desk.  After unpacking, we hit the bead at midnight - which is 2am our time.

Sunday 1/9 - Slept well and ate breakfast out on the lanai watching the geese and chickens running around below us on the lawn.  The chicken had 8 little chicks with her that scampered around and hid under her when the geese got too close.  Really sweet.  Lots of birds.  Norm fed a bird peanuts from his hand.  I tried to feed him a bran flake from my raisin bran but he only wanted the peanuts.

Blue skies and puffy clouds.  We can see the blue ocean and hear the roar of the waves.  Here are some photos of our condo #4-207.

Bedroom with king bed and lanai overlooking the clubhouse area.

View from the bedroom lanai

Living room, dining and kitchen with lots of glass overlooking the expansive green grass 

and blue pacific

Looking back at our complex from the bluff that leads down to the water.

Overlooking the ocean from the front of The Cliffs property:

This offers two pools separated by a rock lagoon - 1 area For families and the other for adults:

  

Started our sightseeing with a photo op at Hanalei Valley Lookout:

then we headed to Hanalei Beach:

This is our rental car - Chevy Sonic:

Bought Subway sandwiches for lunch and ate them at a picnic table on Anini Beach.  Beautiful waves and sandy beach.  Lots of people swimming.  

We really liked the artsy look of the lichens on the rocks and the pile of driftwood:

After lunch we took photos at Lumaha'i Beach. Due to riptides and high surf, the beach was closed.

Then we drove to Manini-holo Dry Cave across the street from Ha'ena Beach Park.  Lots of mud in the parking areas.

Then we continued on to the end of the hi way - to Napili Coast State Park. 

After photo ops, it started to drizzle for a few minutes as we headed out.  We drove to Hanalei village and wandered through a few shops.  

More bars than shops and all bars were packed with people cheering on the Denver Broncos and New England Patriots football game.   

We headed home for a glass of wine and watched the game on TV.  The weather is a cool balmy now (4:30pm) and we have all the windows open for a nice breeze.

After watching the 49ers lose to the Seattle Seahawks on TV, we headed out again.  We went to the local market then to Subway for dinner.  It's only about 4 miles from the condo and only $6 for a footlong sub.  Best deal in town - and healthy.  

Monday, 1/19 - Attended a welcome reception at the clubhouse this morning where the concierge gave an overview of the island and all the activities available. One activity at the condo is to learn coconut basket weaving - reminded us of being on a cruise ship. The instructor brought his ukulele and sang a funny song - quite talented.

We had a late breakfast then left to drive to the Waimea Canyon.

Just one of many turnouts that overlook the canyon.

We reached the highest point of the canyon drive. Puffy clouds - pretty thick in some areas.

This was the museum and lodge that we visited on the way back down the canyon road.  We weren't very impressed.

At Kekaha, we were so close to the end of the island road that we decided to finish our day by driving to the end of the paved road at Barking Sands Beach.  Gorgeous water and beaches with lots of surfers.  About 4:30pm, we stopped at the Kauai Coffee Company Visitor Center in Eleele.  We tasted some of their different coffee flavours and watched a video of their extensive coffee process.

We went to the Costco and Walmart in Lihu'e to buy a few groceries, ate a burger at McDonalds and arrived back at the condo about 7pm.  We headed right for the spa and visited with quite a few people before heading back to the condo for the night.  We expect 30-40 ft waves tomorrow - should be exciting.

Tuesday - January 20

Woke up to another beautiful day. Took a photo of the mother hen and her chicks  below our lanai looking for grubs with a bunch of birds. They are really sweet to watch.

We headed out after breakfast around 11:30am to Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge and the Historic Kilauea Lighthouse.  We could see quite a few whales way out in the ocean.  Because the Lighthouse is a National landmark, we were able to use our National Park card to get in free.  We saw a lot of the Red-footed Boobies (they look like seagulls) nesting on the side of the mountain.

Then we headed for the Kong Lung Historic Market Center that we passed on the way to the lighthouse.  Lots of expensive items.  I was able to took some photos of some of the colorful posters in the shops.

Then we headed for the Kauai Mini Golf & Botanical Gardens.  We wanted to check it out for later.  Its an 18-hole course and lots of information about the gardens surrounding each hole.  The entrance was beautiful with the word ALOHA made out of trimmed bushes.

For lunch, we headed to Bubba Burgers in Hanalei.  Tasty but expensive.  They had lots of photos of Hollywood stars eating there in the past.  Their slogan is "We Cheat Tourists and Drunks" - guess we fell into that one!

We walked across the street to the Ching Young Village where there were lots of fun shops, including a ukulele store called Hanalei Strings.

Unfortunately Norm's visor shadowed his face but we had a laugh!

Fun T-shirt artwork:

We visited a real estate office and browsed the timeshares at our complex that are for sale.  Then Norm took a photo of me as a mermaid in front of Hula Moon Gifts, we found a bead/gem store, and went in to look at the Tahiti Nui restaurant/bar where the band continues to play that were in The Descendants movie with George Clooney.

On the way back to the condo, we drove to the St. Regis Hotel which is nearby.  There were no parking spots anywhere so we might walk to it later in the week.  It'll be a long walk but pretty along the golf course on one side and ocean on the other.  When we arrived back at the condo, we headed for the spa and pool.  Norm went in the pool but it was really cold so we (me) opted for the hot spa.  We talked with others in the spa that just returned from a 5 hour walk that was a 8 mile roundtrip to a waterfall 2 miles off the Kalalau Trail. None said that they'd do it again - slippery, real muddy, and the waterfall was ok but nothing special.  So glad we didn't decide to do it.  The wind really started to turn blustery when we left the spa and we're supposed to have 40-50' waves (according to the TV news) beginning at midnight tonight.  Should be exciting.