Endless Summer

Posted on October 16, 2016 by soldstone

Life is pretty rewarding in the pursuit of an endless summer. Quite frequently, Michael declares gleefully that “endless summer” is the goal of our trip. Whenever the weather seems a little cooler, he says we’ll have to move further south soon! Indeed we have been blessed with warm days, sunny skies, and nary a need for a jacket. For the last month we have been basking in the autumn warmth of southern California, specifically La Jolla, near San Diego. Michael’s parents still live here in the house he grew up in, and we have taken over the basement guest room. Pretty nice digs if you can come by them! Most mornings I go for a walk along the cove and cliff tops to see what the ocean has to offer that day. Sea lions, pelicans, sea gulls, cormorants, and harbor seals are frequent companions, as well as a plethora of multilingual tourists. Michael goes off to surf at one of the nearby spots whenever the conditions are to his liking. Many afternoons we make time to go to the beach to top up our tans and breathe in the ocean air and sound of the waves. It’s a rough life, I know! In between these leisure pursuits, we’ve been spending quality time with family, reconnecting with old friends, and preparing to go overseas.

Here are some scenes from my morning walks.

Cormorants and Sea Lions

Harbor Seals

Children’s Pool on a super clear day

Children’s Pool on a very different day!

High tides and heavy surf make for a dramatic coastline!

While we’ve been lolligagging in San Diego, we’ve had a few small adventures of note. One weekend we camped at San Elijo State Beach in Cardiff-by-the-Sea. The campground is run by the state and the sites start booking out 6 months in advance, which is when they become available in the system. We had a stroke of luck back in March and secured a prime campsite right above the beach, close to the beach access, and just the right distance from the toilets.

The view from our campsite, #52

The campground also has showers, a camp store, and a taco shop. It is situated just across the road from eateries, a coffee shop, and a fantastic gourmet market called Seaside Market. So if you want to go minimalist on the cooking, as we did, it’s easy to eat well. The beach has a good surf break, so Michael was happy to have such easy access. It really was lovely to have the sound of the waves lull us to sleep and to witness incredible sunsets each evening from the comfort of our picnic table or the beach below!

The only downside was the noise from the trains that blow through at regular intervals, including at night. During the day it was pretty easy to tune them out, but their whistles seemed incredibly loud at night when they woke us from a sound sleep! Our second night there, my friend Sandy joined us with her sweet dog Jax. We had a fun time roasting marshmallows and making s’mores by the campfire!

Sandy and Jax

Shaking the tent out…Atlas holds up the world!

Another fun adventure consisted of riding our bicycles down to Pacific Beach from La Jolla. When we got to the boardwalk, we found a beach festival in progress with all manner of booths, crafts, beach volleyball tournaments, a surf contest, food, and bands playing. There was a “Best of the Beach” fish taco contest with entrants from local restaurants which caught our eye– $10 to sample 7 different tacos and vote on your favorite. What a deal! Of course we had to do it. Wow was it good!

Last year’s champion – mmmm, very tasty!

Another favorite

The beach scene

After sampling some tacos, we rode slowly down the boardwalk through Mission Beach all the way to the jetty at the end by the entrance to Mission Bay. The boardwalk was teeming with people and colorful characters, so it made for some superb people watching. That evening we went to a friend’s house for a barbecue.

Michael has been calling and catching up with old friends from high school, college, and even as far back as kindergarten! It’s been a particular pleasure to reconnect and get to know these people. There have been barbeques and snorkeling expeditions and we have plans for more visits next week. One Sunday we drove up to Newport Beach for the day to see one of Michael’s college friends. We really enjoyed spending the day with him and his family, going to the beach, and hearing about their lives.

A couple of times we have been in snorkeling by the La Jolla cove. The first was not so great due to poor visibility, but we did get inspected by a sea lion or two while in the water. The second time, the visibility was pretty good and the water quite calm. The cove is part of a marine preserve. There is a deep canyon in the ocean floor that comes quite close to shore at that spot, causing an upwelling, and making the marine life abundant. I spotted a leopard shark swimming by. They are small and harmless and come to breed right off the cliffs there. As you may have guessed, they have spots! We also saw plenty of garibaldi, which are bright orange and look like very large goldfish. The young ones are greyish, with bright, electric blue spots! I spied a large abalone as well as a calico bass too. In addition to snorkeling, we have been enjoying regular trips to our favorite beaches, sometimes at sunset.

Horseshoe Beach

In three weeks we leave the country. Our first destination is the Cook Islands in the South Pacific, where we will visit both Rarotonga and Aitutaki, two of the many islands. We’ll be there about two weeks before flying on to New Zealand. In New Zealand we have about three months. We have made plans for roughly three-quarters of that time, primarily because it will be the summer high season when accommodation and transportation can book out. We’ll visit both the North and South Islands using a combination of holiday houses, airbnbs, backpackers, motels, bed and breakfasts, car, camper, ferry, and airplane. Just this week, we booked our onward flight from New Zealand to Melbourne, Australia using miles. That is as far out as we have planned, although we don’t foresee coming back to the U.S. for at least a further 3 months after that. Tentatively, we’ll visit Australia, Bali and Lombok in Indonesia, and wherever else may strike our fancy.

It’s hard to believe it’s mid October already! We have certainly been having fun and have tried to soak up every minute of our sabbatical from work. Now, as our departure on the big overseas trip approaches, we have been taking care of the final details of what we will take with us, how we’ll carry it, how we’ll manage our technology, and getting excited for the adventures to come!

See you down the road…

From the Mountains through the Desert to the Sea

Posted on September 24, 2016 by soldstone

Friends are such an important ingredient in the recipe for a good life and we are blessed with some great ones! On our return to Denver, Colorado, we were met by a dear friend who graciously picked us up at the airport and delivered us to our car, which had been stored at their house. After a brief “Hello, how are you, how was your trip?” we were on our way to the foothills above Golden, Codorado, to overnight with other friends. It was a beautiful evening and we enjoyed the view from their house, as well as a fire outside with them after dinner.

The gorgeous view!

Michael and Dusk

The morning proved just as beautiful with abundant sunshine, so we made plans to take a little detour on our way to our hometown of Durango, Colorado. Neither Michael, nor I had ever been over Guanella Pass, west of Denver, and now that the whole road is paved, it really is quite easy. The road crosses a high mountain pass linking Georgetown on I-70 with Rt. 285 north of Jefferson, so it was only a small detour from our usual route. We were treated to a hint of fall color starting to show in the trees and spectacular mountain views.

At the top of Guanella pass

The drive to Durango was as beautiful as ever. We saw two moose in a pond at the top of Kenosha pass, very close to the continental divide! The white mass of Great Sand Dunes National Park shimmered in the distance as we drove down the San Luis Valley, and the San Juan River sparkled when we pulled into Pagosa Springs to stop for a soak at the hot springs.

The pond on Kenosha with moose

The view from Kenosha pass

Pagosa Hot Springs has 23 outdoor soaking pools to choose from in a riverfront location, and it’s one of our favorite indulgences. There is nothing quite like slipping into the hot water of the Overlook pool and taking in the view of the river and other pools below. You can stay overnight if you wish, or partake of some of their spa treatments and massages if you want to go all out. Here’s their website if you’re curious or want to see photos. I didn’t take my phone or camera in with me. Pagosa Hot Springs

We languished there, sampling various pools, for more than an hour before cleaning up and finishing the drive to Durango into the setting sun. Although perhaps it felt a little strange not to be driving up to our own house down the street, we received a characteristically warm welcome from our dear friends Bill and Machelle. It was good to be home, albeit for a short visit.

We spent three days in Durango getting organized and geared up for the next leg of our trip – driving to San Diego, California, with camping and scenery stops along the way. Our tenants were gracious about our comings and goings to the garage to retrieve camping gear, other belongings, and returning what we decided not to take. Michael did a little maintenance on the house and garden and we enjoyed visiting with friends and fine weather.

The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad on my morning walk along the Animas river.

In the end, after some trial and error, we loaded up the Subaru with about as much stuff as you could possibly fit! We had a box on top, one bicycle, and no rear view from the inside. Our tentative plan was to head to Monument Valley and then on to Page, Arizona to camp for a couple of nights. By the time we had breakfast with Bill, said our goodbyes, shopped for some camping groceries, fueled up and hit the road, it was late morning.

The drive to Monument Valley was mostly familiar as it follows a similar route through the four corners region as we took when we rafted a section of the San Juan river some years ago. However, neither of us had ever actually been to Monument Valley, so it was fun to recognize some of those iconic buttes and vistas as we approached, and hard not to stop every quarter mile to take more pictures!

When we arrived and paid the entrance fee to the Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park, we found it to be VERY windy. Since it was later than we had originally planned to be there, we thought we might just camp at Monument Valley and head to Page in the morning. However, after checking out the campground, we decided against that. Although the campsites had a fantastic view of the valley, we didn’t like the prospect of trying to set up in high winds or huddling in our car or the tent to get out of a sandstorm. Oh well. We did look at the visitor center and take the scenic drive around the loop in the valley. The scenery was awesome but with the wind, we limited our vehicle exits. Nevertheless, it was fun to finally see it in person and to take some photos. One couldn’t help but recall the many western movies that have made that scenery iconic on the big screen.

Here I am trying to take a selfie in the wind!

At one spot on the loop drive there was a native american man on a horse posing for photos on a ledge. By the viewpoint he had a sign asking for a dollar for photos and a jar beside it. Kind of cheesy, but I couldn’t resist the photos, so I guess it worked! Up by the visitor center I saw a native american man in traditional dress and paint looking at his cell phone. An illustration of our times I suppose.

Horseman in the distance

After the scenic drive, we debated where to go for the night. Our original plan was to camp in Page for a couple of nights to visit Antelope Canyon and then head up to Bryce Canyon. However, there was a high wind advisory for Page for the next day and we would be setting up camp after dark. So in the end, we bagged that idea and drove down to Flagstaff, Arizona, and got a motel room. The motel rooms in Flagstaff were about half the price of what was available in Page!

I had been looking forward to going to Bryce Canyon National Park because I hadn’t been there since I worked there as a Park Ranger 27 years ago. With our new trajectory, however, it just didn’t make sense to head back up to Utah. Maybe we’ll go there on the way back to Durango. In the meantime, we had figured out that Oak Creek Canyon and Sedona might be nice places to explore. After our motel stay, we drove down the scenic Rt. 89A into Oak Creek Canyon. The road follows the creek and becomes progressively more scenic as you get closer to Sedona. Along the way we checked out a couple of the campgrounds that lie by the creek. They are listed as some of the most popular in Arizona and I can see why. We chose a spot in Cave Springs Campground which has nice sites with good shade, well spaced, with some along the creek and some amongst the pines. There are vault toilets, showers, water spigots, and a camp store that sells firewood and sundries. The campground was not full our first two nights since it was mid-week. This made it quiet and spacious. On our third night, we noticed it began to fill up more with families come to camp for the weekend. This campground typically fills every night in season, so we felt pretty lucky to catch it at the right time. Cave Springs is about a 20 minute drive north of Sedona. We went back and forth a few times during our explorations and found it pretty convenient. As there was no cell service in the canyon, we had to drive down the road if we wanted to check our digital tethers or do any research, but for, us this was not really a problem. Here is our campsite.

Sedona is a town nestled in the embrace of red rock canyons, cliffs, and valleys in the pine forested high desert of Arizona. Every direction you look there are stunning views. The main tourist area is replete with shops, restaurants, art galleries, and peddlers of new age paraphernalia. We walked around town, went for a beautiful hike up Brins Mesa, admired the incredible red rock scenery, and had a meal or two. Here are a few photos of the Sedona scenery, including some art installations in town showing painted javelinas. When you click on the photos you can see a larger version, if you wish.

Our hike up Brins Mesa was pretty spectacular. The view from the top in all directions was worth the climb.

One day we spent the afternoon at Slide Rock State Park, which has a series of rock slides and pools you can swim in. It’s a good thing it was hot out because the water was COLD!! There were quite a few people enjoying the water and relaxing on the rocks and it was a pleasant way to while away the afternoon.

Our last evening in Sedona, we were driving back through town after dinner when we saw the harvest moon rise above the canyon rim at twilight. We managed to find a high spot to snap some photos before stopping in town for an ice cream and a different viewpoint. Gorgeous!

After three nights in Oak Creek Canyon, we decided it was time to head for San Diego. So after packing up our campsite and shoehorning everything back into the car, we hit the road for the 7 to 8 hour drive to La Jolla, California. Most of the drive is through desert and very hot, but we managed it with minimal stops and not too much wind. Upon arriving at the Pacific Ocean, we couldn’t resist a quick stop at the beach to watch the sun set before ending the day at our next “home away from home” – Michael’s parents’ house.

A New England Late Summer Idyl

Posted on September 21, 2016 by soldstone

Patience is a virtue, or so they say. If this is the case, then you, dear readers, are all quite virtuous! We are now in San Diego, having crossed the country by plane and car with adventures and stops along the way. Unfortunately, I also encountered some technical difficulties which have delayed my posting to this blog. When your laptop no longer functions as a laptop but requires an outlet to plug into, and your campground has no cell signal, you just have to surrender to being truly unplugged! Nevertheless, I promise to catch you up on the comings and goings and share some of the beauty we’ve encountered on our journey from the Northeast to the Southwest of our country.

We spent at least another ten days in Massachusetts. The time was filled with more family visits and some weather dodging. One weekend we drove up to Cambridge to visit my brother-in-law and enjoyed a couple of days filled with excellent food, fine and abundant conversation, and a visit to the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusets. Two small museums – The Peabody Museum and The Essex Institue were combined to create the Peabody Essex Museum. My maternal grandfather, a Boston historian, was an assistant director at The Peabody Museum beginning in 1936, so it has family significance. I had not been to the museum in many, many years and in the intervening time, it has been overhauled to wondrous effect. There is an incredible, light filled atrium designed by Moshe Safdie, which gives the feeling of being on a ship with sails overhead. Even now, they are preparing to add another new wing! The museum contains a huge collection of maritime art and history; American art; Asian, Oceanic, and African art; Asian export art; books and manuscripts; and historic buildings. It’s origins draw from The East India Marine Society, founded in 1799 and described thus by the museum:

“…an organization of Salem captains and supercargoes who had sailed beyond either the Cape of Good Hope or Cape Horn. The society’s charter included a provision for the establishment of a “cabinet of natural and artificial curiosities,” which is what we today would call a museum. Society members brought to Salem a diverse collection of objects from the northwest coast of America, Asia, Africa, Oceania, India and elsewhere.“

What was most memorable from my childhood visits to the museum were the extraordinary number of shrunken heads! Now it has a broader scope and you can find galleries devoted to Chinese Export Art, Japanese Art, an Art and Nature Center, and special exhibitions. They have gotten rid of a lot of the shrunken heads. I suppose they were not terribly p-c! We wandered through a gallery of maritime art which had some fantastic model ships of varying shapes and sizes. We also visited a special exhibit of Childe Hassam, an American Impressionist. We didn’t make it to the Rodin exhibit. However, the main attraction of our visit was the Yin Yu Tang house. This is an antique Chinese house built around 1800 that stood for 200 years in a rural village in the region of Huizhou in southeastern China. It was dismantled piece by piece and reassembled at the museum. It is the only such house outside of China! This feat was accomplished through a cultural exchange agreement and a collaboration of Chinese and American experts. Now you can tour the house, learn about its history, and see it as it was last inhabited in the 1980’s by the Huang family, whose ancestral home it was. If you are interested in the Peabody Essex Museum, you can find more information at http://www.pem.org. It’s a pretty neat place!

Before leaving Boston to head back to my family’s summer home, we stopped on the waterfront to visit some old haunts from my years of living in “Beantown.” Here is the view of the harbor and the Long Wharf from the parking garage. We had sticker shock at the price of parking, but at least we got a view!

Faneuil Hall and Quincy Market were as busy as ever so we didn’t stay too long. We found the plaque dedicated to my grandfather, the same one from the Peabody Museum, at the foot of the statue of Sam Adams by Faneuil Hall.

We also walked through the North End, Boston’s old world Italian neighborhood, and passed by one of the places I used to live. It was the feast of St. Anthony, so there were parades with drum and bugle corps!

The building where I lived for a time

Michael spotted a boat with a name that epitomizes his dream for our sabbatical. We had to get a photo!

A lot has changed in that city but it still feels like home to a certain extent. I spent the better part of 10 years living there and then returned for a couple more later on, so it was fun to take a walk down memory lane!

After returning to Nonquitt, we had a quiet week with my mother punctuated by dinner with old family friends at the house, and an evening out at The Back Eddy in Westport, a lovely waterfront seafood restaurant. The sunset was incredible that evening.

The weather continued fine, so we had many walks on the beach. We also rode bicycles down to Padanaram Harbor to view the boats and see how the causeway and bridge repairs were coming along. Closure of the bridge across the harbor, for what will be a multi-year project, was the subject of much discussion as it forces everyone in the vacinity of Nonquitt to take the long way around.

Super clear water one day!

Padanaram Harbor

Over the busy Labor Day weekend we became rather more social, with cousins in residence next door and a communal beach barbeque. My nephew joined us along with my brother and his family, so the house was full. The weather forecast was less than encouraging with the remnants of what had been hurricane Hermine bearing down on us. The wind picked up, but the rain held off until Monday, which allowed the barbeque to go forward. We chose the prudent course and pulled my brother’s small sailboat off the beach. Here you can see the men performing their heroic duty with black skies in the background!

The storm brought choppy waters and high tides. Here are some shots of the newly enlarged inlet for the saltwater marsh which stretches behind our house and in back of the South Beach. Good thing they made it bigger as it seems to be at capacity already!

All in all, our time in Massachusetts was a pretty typical New England late summer idyl. We flew back to Denver after a rainy Labor Day and began the next stage of our adventure, which I will detail for you in my next post.

Until then, take care and I will see you down the road!

Old Friends and Family

Posted on August 26, 2016 by soldstone

It was quite a heave to leave our house and hand over the keys to the tenants, but we did it. The last few days were a whirlwind of mad packing, moving boxes to the garage, and decision making. I don’t make very good decisions late at night, but sometimes you have to suck it up and work with what you have. Our tenants are nice people, so our house is in good hands. At least we have that going for us, and that’s a lot!

Our farewell party with friends was terrific. We enjoyed seeing all “the usual suspects” from our gang and had a wonderful summer evening in our friends’ garden. Here I am with the hostess, my dear friend Machelle. You can also get a glimpse of some goofiness with my husband, Michael! A good time was had by all. Thank you Machelle for such a lovely send-off!

P1060201

The first leg of our trip started with a drive to Denver from Durango. This is a drive both of us have done many times, but it’s been a while since we went over that road. The views did not disappoint however, and we even saw a fresh dusting of snow on the very tops of some of the highest peaks. We arrived at another good friend’s house in time to enjoy some cocktails on the porch and breathe a sigh of relief. The decompression had begun! This process was helped along by some mighty fine Painkillers – a concoction of rum, pineapple and orange juice, with coconut milk and a dusting of fresh nutmeg. Delicious! And a reminder of other great times shared at the Soggy Dollar Bar in the British Virgin Islands, whence the drink cometh. Many thanks to our friend Art for hosting our first night!

The next day we had a full day in Denver to relax as we didn’t fly out until the following day. It was strange to shift gears so abruptly from having so much to do in a short time, to having no agenda! We spent some time at the REI flagship store where I used to work, and I really enjoyed seeing so many old friends and former colleagues. It was a blast to catch up after so many years. It’s hard to believe it’s been almost 7 years since I left Denver and moved to Durango!

Late in the afternoon we made our way to yet another great friend’s house to spend the night. We were treated to a fabulous meal and a happy reunion. How lucky we are to have so many wonderful friends and what a great way to start this journey!

In the morning we flew from Denver, Colorado to Boston, Massachusetts on an uneventful flight and arrived to lovely weather. We spent the night at my brother’s house and enjoyed a leisurely evening catching up with my sister-in-law on their back deck. The next day we picked up a rental car and drove down to our family summer house on Buzzards Bay to join my mother, brother, niece and nephew. This is a house I spent many summers in growing up, but now that I live in Colorado, I haven’t been back very often. It is a lovely place in which to relax and unwind completely. There are beaches to walk on, swimming to enjoy, views to admire and all manner of relaxed or energetic pursuits to suit your pleasure.

We have spent this week basking in the fine weather and, as my husband would say, getting our slack on. Some highlights have included evening walks to the beach to enjoy the beautiful late light, watching the Wednesday evening sailboat races from afar, sailing my brother’s small sailboat off the beach, and a visit to the New Bedford Whaling Museum for a special event, which included a tour of the museum and wine and cheese on the deck with a magnificent view of the harbor. Here are a few photos that I hope capture the beauty of this place.

The South Beach

The North Beach

View of the marsh from our bedroom window through the screen

New Bedford Harbor

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The fishing fleet at the docks in New Bedford – so many boats it’s hard to tell one from another!

Sailboats

Jockeying at the start

Here is Mom wearing her Cat Diesel Power hat, which she found on the beach long ago.

Flowers down the beach road

And last, but not least, our house. It was built in 1885 by my great grandfather.

Front

Back

Today we are off to Cambridge for the weekend to visit another part of the family.

See you down the road!

An Aerial View of Paradise

Posted on December 7, 2015 by soldstone

Toward the end of our trip to Kauai we actually paid attention to the weather forecast and were pleased to see that it was clearing a little bit. Mostly we just wanted a decent day on Saturday. This was due to the fact that four of us were scheduled to take a helicopter tour of the island, and for obvious reasons, we wanted good weather. Saturday started with the usual showers but not as many. It was Dusk and Rinda’s departure day, so we had a nice walk on the beach and then got ready for our flight. They were to head to the airport for their flight home shortly after the helicopter ride. Bill and Machelle had a lazy afternoon hanging out in Hanalei.

Rinda had booked the tour for us and chosen Sunshine Helicopters. They are based in Lihue, not far from the main airport, as are most of the helicopter companies. The staff were friendly and checked us in efficiently. You must provide your weight when making the reservation and, just to make sure you weren’t being overly optimistic, they take your weight when you check in. It’s done discreetly using a floor mat in front of the check in desk! There was a basic safety briefing and introduction and then we were driven by van to the heliport. As we sat under a shelter by the helipads, we saw our bird come in from its previous flight.

After disgorging its passengers and taking on some fuel, we were ushered over to the still running chopper and loaded in according to our seat assignments. Supposedly they assign seats according to weight, but Dusk and Rinda were given the opportunity to pay a little extra to ensure they got the two front seats. The helicopter we were in seats six, so there were four of us in the back seat. Two others, whom we didn’t know, were joining us for the flight. Unfortunately, I got almost the worst seat in the bird for taking photos or getting the best views. The right side is highly favored, as is the front. As you circle the island clockwise, most of the views are out the right side. I was seated next to the window, but on the left, so I couldn’t see much of anything out the right side. The back seat of this helicopter was not very big, so the four of us were crammed in like sardines, and Michael was totally smushed between me and the not petite gentleman next to him. All that being said, I enjoyed the tour. But another time, and I would go again, I would pay a little more and go with a different company that uses more comfortable helicopters, and I would do everything possible to ensure a better seat. It’s worth it and it’s totally possible. To his credit, our pilot, Brian, did do a few circles in certain places so that the left side could get a better view, but there was still definitely an unavoidable bias toward the right. As we toured the island, I tried to take some photos of the incredible scenery, but it was exceedingly difficult to get any good shots. Between the glare off the glass, the rain spots on the window, the framing in the pilots window in front of me, and the cramped quarters, I had a hard time getting much of anything. You’ll see what I mean in the photos that follow. I have chosen the best of what I got and even those include some crooked ones and a bit of glare. As we flew around the island, Brian gave us a bit of a tour which included pointing out numerous locations where films have been made such as Jurassic Park, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Avatar, etc. We all wore headphones and could communicate with him which was nice. There was a soundtrack that played when he wasn’t talking which consisted of instrumentals, many from films. So it was that we took off with the theme from Raiders of the Lost Ark playing in our ears.

Brian, Rinda, and Dusk, in the front seat before take off.

Leaving the airport

After heading south along the coast from the airport, and flying over Poipu, where we had spent our first three days, we turned inland and flew up the magnificent Waimea Canyon. From the air we got to see so much more of it than we had on our drive. It was an incredible sight with reddish earth mixed with vivid greens. We had passed through some rain, so a lot of my photos were too marred by rain spots on the glass. However, I did manage to get a shot or two of the same waterfall we had seen from the road.

Waimea Canyon – you can just see the rainbow above the falls.

After Waimea Canyon, we headed up the Na Pali coast. This is one of the main attractions of Kauai but is really only visible from the air or by sea. You can hike along some of the coast. but it is truly rugged and the stuff of wild tropical dreams. I was glad I got to see it from such a vantage point.

As we came around the north end of the island we passed over Ke’e beach and the Limahuli Gardens, which we had visited previously. Before we knew it, there was our own little slice of paradise laid out before us – Hanalei Bay.

Princeville

Hanalei Bay

Hanalei

These are the waterfalls we see from the house.

After flying up the Hanalei river valley toward the interior of the island, we flew over the top and back south a bit, then turned up into the Waialeale crater. The top of Waialeale is one of the wettest spots on earth and the crater is a sacred place to the native Hawaiians. As we followed an ever narrowing canyon, the waterfalls kept multiplying. When we came to the end, the narrow canyon took a left turn and ended. Amazingly, we kept going right into the middle of this narrow space, with sheer walls rising all around us. Brian did a 360 degree turn. It was very dramatic and quite magical, but impossible to photograph. This was the best I could do.

Water streaming everywhere!

After Waialeale, we made our way back to the airport and landed safely after a little less than an hour’s flight.

Here we are still wearing out life vest fanny packs.

Back at the Sunshine offices, we said goodbye to Dusk and Rinda and then made our way back north to Hanalei.

Someday maybe I’ll get to do that again. I sure hope so. For anyone visiting Kauai, I have to recommend a helicopter tour, especially if you have good weather. There is nothing that can compare to the views and experience of seeing the Garden Isle from the air.

Surf’s Up!

Posted on November 21, 2015 by soldstone

Despite my previous comments about the rain being quite nice at times, we were relieved to see more sunshine poking through on Friday. Around mid morning we strolled to the beach to check out the waves and discovered that they were looking a little more promising, at least from a surfer’s perspective. Michael and Dusk decided they wanted to surf, so we went off to one of the surf shops to rent them some boards. Hanalei Bay can have epic surf in the winter. At times it can get really big. In the summer, it tends to be smaller. Since our trip was during an in-between time, we weren’t quite sure what to expect. The surf had been pretty mild so far. It wasn’t very big that day but there was enough that it looked worthwhile to play around in. So the boys went down to surf and I chose to stroll the town for a bit before joining them in the water. I wanted to get a few shots of the area with my bigger camera.

A typical view with clouds on the mountains and waterfall

Main road through Hanalei

One of the many local roosters

The Hanalei River

A Taro field

After my stroll I went down to the beach and went for a swim. The water was nice and the waves looked so fun I ran back to the house to get a boogie board and my fins. Back at the beach I swam out to the lineup and said hello to Dusk and Michael who were bobbing about with the other surfers and catching the occasional wave. It was definitely beginners surf, but that suited me just fine. I’m sure they would have liked bigger waves. I tried for a few waves on the boogie board and swam around for a bit. Then I borrowed Michael’s surfboard when he was done and tried a little surfing myself. The conditions were good for someone like me, but I needed a bigger board. All in all we had a fun afternoon at the beach and enjoyed playing in the water. Hanalei has a perfect beach. It has a sandy bottom and there are no sting rays or jelly fish to watch out for.

Since it was Dusk and Rinda’s last evening, we went out to dinner at The Dolphin Restaurant and Fish Market. Wow! It was fantastic. Some of us had sushi and we all tried some poke which is a Hawaiian dish of marinated raw fish, a little bit like ceviche. Here we are having a drink before dinner.

Dusk and Rinda wanted to take a helicopter tour of the Na Pali coast and Michael and I were game to join them. So on Saturday we had a new adventure with spectacular views. Stay tuned for an account of our flight in the next post.

Mahalo and aloha!

Day Trippin’

Posted on November 18, 2015 by soldstone

On Thursday, while Dusk and Rinda went off in the morning to hike a little of the Kalalau Trail along the Na Pali coast, Bill, Machelle, Michael, and I decided to pay a visit to the Kilauea Lighthouse. Kilauea is a small town on the North Shore only about 15 minutes away by car from Hanalei. The lighthouse sits on a point which is the northernmost point in Hawaii. The area surrounding the lighthouse and a small island off the point have been designated a National Wildlife Refuge, primarily for birds. We lucked out with the weather as it was windy, but mostly sunny, when we visited. There were spectacular views up and down the coast and we saw lots of birds and enjoyed a few small exhibits.

A frigate bird (I think)

Looking toward the aptly named Secret Beach

It was quite windy on the point but that is what you would expect when facing the open ocean. We enjoyed watching the waves crash into the cliffs creating dramatic explosions of seawater. Bill even spotted a sea turtle way down below in the water. It was quite a large one. Then Machelle spotted another that was a bit smaller. There were hawaiian geese wandering about as well as some red footed boobies across the way on a hillside. We saw some young wedge-tailed shearwaters hanging about their nests and looking all fuzzy.

This is where Bill spotted the turtle

I love my zoom lens!

After we left the lighthouse, we stopped in Kilauea town to browse in a couple of shops and have a snack. I have been enjoying the local arts and crafts. The beauty of the surroundings here cetainly inspires some lovely artwork!

On the way back toward Hanalei we detoured to Anini Beach and got in a little beach time. Anini is a lovely sand beach with an offshore reef that creates a protected lagoon in which to swim and snorkel. We saw a kite boarder setting up his equipment which was of particular interest to Michael as he has dabbled in kite boarding and would like to do more. It was very windy, so when the kite boarder took off, he went ripping across the water straight out the break in the reef, and played in the waves, all of which were quite advanced maneuvers. Michael and I went in snorkeling. It was not really the best snorkeling as the water was a little choppy, the visibility wasn’t all that great, and there wasn’t a ton to see. However, the highlight for me, which made it all worthwhile, was that we found a turtle and I was able to follow him for a bit. Snorkeling with turtles is one of my favorite things to do!

Beautiful Anini Beach

The Kilauea Lighthouse in the distance.

The kiteboarder setting up.

That evening we had some semblance of a sunset which was a nice change of pace. Dusk and Rinda had enjoyed their hike, though Rinda was a little banged up from a fall during their river crossing. Fortunately it was nothing serious, just some scrapes and bruises. We walked into town for some happy hour Mai Tai’s and cooked ourselves some dinner back at the house. All in all it was an excellent day.

Let’s Hula!

Posted on November 14, 2015 by soldstone

Our days in Hanalei have been fluid and only loosely structured. A lot depends on the weather. It rains every night. Usually this includes a few torrential downpours with high wind that feel like you got dropped into the middle of a hurricane for about 10 minutes. They never last long. In the morning the showers dissipate and become less frequent. Walks on the beach or around the village punctuate time lazing about the house, reading, or playing dominos.

On Wednesday we all piled into one car and drove down to Wailua to go to the Smith's Tropical Paradise Luau. Yes, the name Smith's may seem a little strange when attached to a Hawaiian luau, but they have been doing the luaus for 30 years and are on their fifth generation of their family business. Ages ago some guy named Smith married a Hawaiian lady. Imagine that! The weather was a little iffy but it all worked out just fine. Arriving to the locale felt a little Disney-esque because first we were leied with shell leis, then we had our picture taken, and then we were put on a little tram for a tour of the gardens. Fortunately, that was the end of the “tour” and we were left to wander the gardens ourselves before the start of the Imu Ceremony. The gardens were beautiful and included peacocks wandering the grounds along with many other birds and prime examples of indigenous flora. I didn't take a lot of photos as the light was fading and I only had my iPhone.

The Imu Ceremony consisted of an explanation of the Hawaiian cooking technique used to make Kalua pig, followed by the unveiling of said swine. Basically they dig a pit, make a fire to create hot coals, add lava rocks covered by leaves, throw the pig on, cover with more leaves, and then a tarp and some dirt. The pig cooks in this oven for 12 hours. Sure enough, they dug up a pig and it was steaming hot! After that, we all processed into the dining area and found our seats. There was an open bar and a buffet of traditional Hawaiian fare, including that Kalua pig, which was delicious. During dinner there was some entertainement in the form of guitars and singing and even som hula dancing. They did a little demonstration and then got a few people up on stage to try the dance. The hosts and entertainers were very nice and sincere and had a sense of humor, so it wasn't too tacky. The food was delicious. There was a lovely cucumber salad that was a hit, as well as the pork and many other dishes. What was less of a hit was the poi. Poi is a local dish made from pounded and stewed Taro. Apparently it's what the early Hawaiians ate all the time and is still eaten a lot today. We've seen Taro plants growing all over the place. You have to cook the Taro root down for a long time to ensure it's edible. The end result is a rather unappetising, dirty grey, treacly mush. Oh, and it's tasteless too. We all agreed that it was surprising they didn't try to flavor it with something, like roasted garlic poi, or ginger sesame poi. At least the MC was up front about the likelihood of us liking the poi (or not). He was pretty funny. Here we are at dinenr.

After dinner we were directed down to the amphitheatre where the show would take place. The show was a collection of dances not only from the Hawaiian Islands, but also from other cultures that call the islands home and contribute to the overall Hawaiian culture, such as Japanese, Chinese, Tahitian, and Filipino. Then for good measure they threw in some other Polynesian based cultures to round it out – Maori from New Zealand and Samoan. The Samoan guy was very entertaining and nearly lit himself on fire a few times (probably on purpose!). All in all it wasn't bad. They included some history and explained some of the symbolism. It was a fun evening and I'm glad we went. However, now that I've been to a Hawaiian luau, I think I can check that off my list and won't need to pursue it again.

The next day we went to see the Kilauea Lighthouse, so stay tuned for more adventures in the next post.

Mahalo for reading!

The Garden Isle

Posted on November 12, 2015 by soldstone

Kauai is beautiful. And yes, that is an understatement. When you stand on the beach at Hanalei Bay and look around, you realize that you have truly arrived at the quintessential tropical paradise that all those movies and fantasies are based on. There are palm trees swaying, waves lapping the shore of a perfect sandy, crescent beach, and steep, jungle clad mountains shrouded in clouds. There are a million shades of green, brightly colored flowers everywhere, and birds calling to one another. Even the telephone poles sport plants growing out of the tops of them. Everything is alive. Of course, in order to have this extraordinary growth, you need rain, and there is plenty of that too. I think we are here in a rainier season, so probably, in the summer it would not rain as frequently as it has now. It has rained everyday, multiple times a day. This might not sound so great, but in reality it's delightful. I never thought I would say that about rain! The rain here can be light as a feather and last 1 minute, or it can be torrential and last 6 minutes. It never seems to last more than 10 minutes. It rains every night which keeps it cool for sleeping. You learn that rain is not something you need to run from. It will pass. You might get a little wet, but you will dry. The clouds add drama to the peaks, although just one day, I would like to see the entire ridgeline just to see what it looks like. The one drawback to the rain is that it makes photos less vibrant. Some things come out well and some don't. I have been using my iPhone for some pictures because it's easier to carry around, but my big camera is really so much better.

Our house is well laid out. There are three bedrooms and three and a half bathrooms. Two bedroom and bath combos are on the first floor where there is a porch, entryway, and off the porch, a laundry room. On the second floor there is a third bed/bath and a huge living/dining room and open kitchen and half bath. Windows surround the big living area and there is a wrap around lanai (porch) with additional dining space. This lanai has views of the mountains and always has a wonderful breeze. Whenever it rains, the waterfalls come streaming down the mountains. I think I counted 5 or 6 at one time. The kitchen is well equipped and there is plenty of seating for the 6 of us. Next door is a cottage that is similar, but smaller, and owned by the same people. So far no one has been there that we can tell. For anyone who is interested, this is Ileina's Hanalei House and Cottage. http://www.hanalei-cottage.com

One morning we looked out the window and saw this fellow perched at eye level. Michael saw him hop down a branch and scoop up a gecko. Breakfast!

Our other friends arrived Monday afternoon and quickly acclimated with a walk on the beach. That evening we walked into the village and had dinner at Tahiti Nui, a local bar/restaurant/wine bar/pizza joint. I guess they cater to everyone! They had some entertainment which was quite good – a couple who played guitar and sang traiditional hawaiian songs. It was a fun evening.

On Tuesday, despite the possibility of rain (you just have to ignore it), 4 of us went up to the end of the road to see what we could see. Hanalei is only a few miles from the north end of the main road that follows the coast of Kauai. Because of the Na Pali coast, there are no roads that circumnavigate the entire island. I like being on the North Shore. The towns are small and less developed. It's a bit wetter than the South Shore, but that makes it more green and lush. Up the road from Hanalei are several beaches and, at the end, the start of the Kalalau Trail which runs 11 miles along the Na Pali coast. We stopped at a couple of beaches along the way. The first one had powerful waves and the second one was more calm and had snorkeling.

At the end of the road, at Ke'e Beach, we couln't find parking due to its popularity and the limited parking spaces. As we headed back down the road looking for a parking space, the one we found happened to be right by the entrance to Limahuli Gardens. The Gardens are part of the National Botanical Tropical Garden system. We took a look and decided that it might be worth our time. What we found was spectacular! It was cloudy but never rained hard on us. We walked the 3/4 mile trail slowly up the hillside and down again. There were many plants and sights described in the self guided tour and we found it very informative. The walk taught us about the subsistence habits of the early Hawaiians. What we did on spec turned out to be a real winner. I loved the feel of the place. We strolled through restored native forest, traditional Hawaiian terraced plantings, and more modern forest, including introduced species. There was a lovely stream, lush landscape, and nice views. I took some photos of various plants and we thoroughly enjoyed our time there.

Ginger

A breadfruit tree near the visitor center

There were many hibiscus of different colors.

I called this the Braille plant because of all the dots you could feel.

We saw this beautiful purple flower but weren't quite sure whether it was an orchid, an iris, or something else.

The adventures continue, but I will leave you there for now.

Aloha!

Gettin’ In the Groove

Posted on November 9, 2015 by soldstone

What a great day it's been! To top it off I'm now sitting at the bar counter in the kitchen of our rental house in Hanalei Bay, Kauai. The tantalizing smells of garlic and onion sauteeing are the prelude to one of Machelle's authentic Italian spaghetti dinners. Watching great friends cook dinner and my husband making fruity rum drinks while good music plays on our speaker in the background is what it's all about.

Machelle gives a toast with the bottle of Balsamic!

We started the day in Poipu by packing up the groceries and our belongings and loading the car. It was pretty full when all was said and done!

It was a gorgeous sunny day – the perfect weather for a trip up Waimea Canyon. This was sweet validation for our decision to wait the day before. Heading south on the highway, our first stop was for sustenance. We had a nice breakfast at a lovely place called the Kalaheo Café.

Suitably fortified, we drove to Waimea and turned up the hill toward the canyon. The road was well maintained and pretty soon we were treated to some spectacular views. We drove all the way to the end of the road and looked over to the other side of the island. All along the way we kept remarking on what a beautiful day it was. Here are some photos of the incredible views.

After the canyon we made our way north to Hanalei. It didn't take us too long really, so we arrived around 3:30pm and found our house – Ileina's House. After all the research I did looking for a house to rent, it was gratifying to be pleased with the results and my choice. It's beautiful! Our first order of business after unloading was to make ourselves a fruity rum drink and breathe a huge sigh on the second floor lanai while enjoying the view of the mountains. Next, Michael and I took a walk to the beach – always our first order of business! Bill and Machelle took a walk to the village, an equally short distance. Here are some shots of our first views of Hanalei Bay. The sun was shooting through the clouds making a spectacular sight.

Now we are ensconced in our own little piece of heaven and it looks like dinner is just about ready. Tomorrow our other friends arrive and more adventure awaits.

	Georgia H. on Chistchurch and Akaroa
	sandy on Dunedin
	Jane W. Rotch on Dunedin
	Jan Hall on Dunedin
	soldstone on Northland Part II

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