Tag Archives: Kauai

Ziplining

Recently, I bought myself a GoPro camera. They seem to be ubiquitous these days showing up on TV shows on a regular basis to provide the footage from unusual angles or mounted on fast moving items. They make good cockpit cameras as well and are really very affordable.

As part of the Kauai trip, we spent a few hours riding zip lines at Princeville Ranch Adventures. I took the GoPro along with us in case a good opportunity came up to use it. I was not alone as another person in our group had one. Originally, I had intended to get a head strap for the camera for use on the lines. Unfortunately, I didn’t order one in time before we left and couldn’t get one locally. GoPro stuff seems to sell out very quickly so I guess I am not alone in liking the gear.

As it was, I think this proved to be a lucky break. Since I didn’t have a mount, my only option was to handhold the camera. Since it has a very wide field of view, this can be done without needing too much accuracy in pointing. I could also then point the camera in any direction I wanted. Having a fixed wide view is not always ideal but it seemed to work pretty well.

From the footage I shot that day, I have put together a short video of the ziplining adventure. I don’t think it is going to win any awards and those people I know who are real editors will, no doubt, cringe at the quality of my cutting but it is a vacation memento at the end of the day so I am not going to get too bothered about it. Besides, as Vincent Laforet said in a recent interview, when you need editing done properly, get a proper editor to do it. You can’t do everything!

Here is the video. Hope it gives you a bit of a feel for a great day out.

Waimea from the Air

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For those of you following the posts closely – aren’t you all? – I previously reported on Waimea Canyon as seen from the ground, sometimes while wearing disintegrating hiking boots! I also mentioned that we were going back in a slightly faster form of transportation.

I have posted already about the article I was writing about Mauna Loa Helicopters, the company that we were using for our trip. I won’t duplicate much from the article – if you are interested, you can still see that piece here. Instead, I will just give you a selection of shots taken from the helicopter. We flew across the canyon later in the afternoon so the light was lower and a lot more attractive.

That time of day is also a time when clouds can start to build up so we did get some cloud cover as we flew in. However, that did not detract in any way from how amazing the place looked. Sometimes high overlooks provide a vantage point that doesn’t look too dissimilar from the view from a helicopter when you are flying in the canyon. However, I can assure you that the variety of views and the sights that are inaccessible from the road are one of the things that makes the flight so worthwhile. Having no doors only enhances the experience (and the photography!).

We spotted a number of locations we had seen previously. The rocky outcrop we came out onto was one we could see and the full falls that we had been near the top of were so much more impressive from this angle.

If money and time were no object, I would try this trip a number of times and at different times of day. There must be an ever changing variety of effects to see given the chance!

Waimea Canyon

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The Grand Canyon of the Pacific – that is one of the names that is given to Waimea Canyon on Kauai. It is a dramatic geological formation that runs through the middle of the island. The drive there is not a short one but it certainly is worthwhile. The scenery is dramatic and there are plenty of good locations close to the road from which to take it all in.

Over and above the easily accessible areas, there are plenty of hiking options available to take advantage of and, despite the fact the peak of the tourist season had passed, there were still a lot of people taking a walk through the wilds.

Our hiking activities did not necessarily go according to plan. We had picked a couple of trails that we wanted to explore, one before lunch and one after. We got to the first trail quite early as a result of starting out from the hotel promptly. There was an option to drive the first section if you had a 4×4 but we skipped that and trekked off. After the track ended and we were on the trail itself, we descended the hillside. All of this descending is one of those things you can’t help but be aware of when you know you are going to be coming back up the same way!

A little while later one of my boots suddenly felt like something was stuck on it. Unfortunately, that was not the case. Instead, the sole of the boot was coming away from the rest of the boot. No option but to turn around and head back to the car. The climb back up was just as I had imagined it would be. Meanwhile, the second boot was starting to disintegrate as well. These were boots I had owned for many years but hadn’t used for a while. I guess the material had aged and couldn’t hold together any longer. The separation of the sole got worse and we headed back up and one sole was gone by the time we reached the car and the other was almost done.

A change of shoes and we now went for a second effort. The time we had taken meant the sun was a bit higher in the sky and the temperature was a bit higher. We passed bits of the sole of my boots as we went and then got into new territory. Eventually we came out on an exposed area of rock with some excellent views of the surrounding canyon. A bit more of a descent and we came to the top of some waterfalls.

The return trip was a bit more effort than we were really ready for. The climb up was a steady effort but the higher sun was now making us a lot warmer. That, combined with having already made a round trip for part of the hike, meant we were feeling absolutely wiped out by the time the car came into welcome view. A short drive to a cafe and we ate and drank like we hadn’t seen food and drink for days! Needless to say, our enthusiasm for the second – harder – hike had waned and so we spent the rest of the time checking out overlooks closer to the road and enjoying the views from there.

Some of the overlooks had been bypassed on the way up but checking them out as we went back down the roads was very worthwhile. Some stunning scenery and some better views than from the very top of the canyon. We also watched a few of the touring helicopters which was part of our plan for the following day. I shall tell more about that in a coming post!

Evil Frigates

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Early in our visit to Kauai, we paid a visit to the lighthouse and wildlife refuge at Kilauea Point. We were there to see the lighthouse and the surrounding coast but the wildlife element was an interesting addition. There were tons of birds in the area. Along the cliffs we saw a lot of Red Footed Boobies. These are a pretty decent sized bird that is akin to a small albatross. The boards also mentioned the presence of frigate-birds. These weren’t close in but appeared to be out towards the lighthouse.

Once we got out on the peninsula on which the lighthouse sits, we became a lot more familiar with the frigate-birds. It turns out that they are something I have seen on one of the TV nature programs that the BBC produces in great detail every five years or so. Frigate-birds are a prehistoric looking creature. Their wings make them look like a pterodactyl and their beaks have a most evil looking hook on the end.

The thing that the TV show explained and that we got to see in action is their preferred method of getting food. The boobies head off out to see to catch fish. They bring the fish back in a pouch in their throat and then use it to feed the chicks. The frigate-birds are not so interested in making much of an effort so they hang around and wait for the boobies to return. They then attack them trying to make them spit out their catch. Nice, huh?

Anyway, we got to see this at close range. The frigate-birds would pick a target and go for them, sometimes in pairs. The attack would continue for some time as the boobies tried desperately to get out of the way. If they got close enough to the shore, that seemed to be good enough and they could get back to their roost. Otherwise, the frigate-birds would be pretty tenacious. Quite something to witness at close quarters!

Surfing in Paradise

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If I were to ask you what sport you would associate with Hawaii, it might depend on your age as to what you choose. If you are a bit older, it might be ocean going canoeing (is that how you spell it?) that you think of, perhaps accompanied by the theme to a 70s TV police show. However, if you aren’t in that group, your choice is more likely to be surfing.

Did I go surfing while in Hawaii? Ah, no. Did lots of other people go surfing while we were there? Oh yes. Half the vehicles we passed seemed to have a board on the roof or so it seemed. There were plenty of places to try your skills since most beaches seemed to have breaking surf in some areas. The large numbers of reefs might, of course, make some of those areas a touch risky.

Anyway, I didn’t spend a lot of time tracking down the surfers. Instead, we saw a bunch of people closer inshore not always on full surf boards. Here are some shots of the action we saw. One day I will have to make more of an effort to go out and shoot some surfing since it makes some great shots!

Na’Pali Coast

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One of the most stunning areas of the island of Kauai is the northwest coast, known as the Na’Pali coast. Unfortunately, (or fortunately depending on your point of view!) this part of the island is really hard to access. There are no roads that go out to the coast. There are hiking trails to get you there but these do require a fair amount of commitment on your part if you want to get there.

You can get boat trips to take you along the coast. These trips are not particularly cheap but they do appear to provide an interesting experience. We chose not to take one on this trip. Originally it was part of the plan but the week was starting to get a little overloaded and this was supposed to be a vacation.

We did, however, have a plan for seeing the coast and this, I would suggest, is probably the best way to see it. Go by air! There are many helicopter operators on the island that provide sightseeing flights. You can research which ones are of interest to you and why. We went with Mauna Loa Helicopters. They have smaller aircraft which we could charter for just ourselves. No need to share the ride with anyone else. Also, they are one of only tour operators that provide flights with the doors off. This certainly makes for a better photographic experience.

The tour covered the whole island but here I shall focus on the Na’Pali coast. You can choose the time of day for making the trip and this coast was the primary reason for me choosing a later afternoon flight. We had a 4:30 departure from Lihue and the flight lasted a little over an hour. Sunset was about 6:30 so, by the time we reached the Na’Pali coast, we were well into the gorgeous light.

The time of day can be a bit of a lottery since clouds can build up later in the day. Indeed, while we were further inland, there was a lot of cloud around that flattened out the light in some areas. Once, we reached the coast, however, the sky was clear and the light was gorgeous. To drop across the coast and see the beautiful scenery was a stunning experience. While I was shooting a lot on this trip, I did make the effort every once in a while to put the camera down and just soak in the outstanding views.

We ran along the coast and explored some of the deeper canyons and valleys that were on the coast. We saw the rock formation known as the Cathedrals. There were isolated beaches accessible only from the water and lots of cave along the rocky coastline. We even saw one of the tour boats. That was great because it reminded you of the scale of everything you were seeing.

Kauai is a beautiful island and the Na’Pali coast is one of the most beautiful parts. If you are there, I strongly recommend and aerial tour. It may be expensive but, if you have made the effort to go that far, don’t miss out on this experience.

Spouting Horn

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During our time on Kauai, we spent a fair amount of time with things planned to do and lots of activities lined up. However, it was a vacation so having a bit of time to gently amble about the place and look at the pretty stuff was still part of the schedule. One day we took a trip to the south side of the island to see what was down there. This side of the island is more heavily developed for tourism but it did have some cool stuff to see.

One such feature is Spouting Horn. This is a hole through the rock that funnels incoming waves and forces them out of a blowhole. Depending on the tide and the strength of the waves, this can produce a waterspout of over 50 feet. Apparently, there used to be more than one spout with the other one producing a far larger plume. However, this sprayed salt water onto a small part of the local plantation and reduced the crop yield so the plantation owner had explosives dropped in the hole and now it doesn’t do much at all.

There is another hole nearby that produces a sighing sound as the waves come in. You can read the local legends while you are there about the creature trapped under the rock and why it is unhappy. While I suspect this isn’t entirely true, it certainly does make quite a groaning sound as the water comes in which adds to the overall effect.

There is a plateau of rock in this area around the blowholes and they are certainly not keen on you going out there. The books are full of stories of people getting swept off by a higher than average wave or even getting swept into the blowholes themselves. Knowing had unpredictable the see can be, I don’t doubt this can and has happened. I am not so desperate to be close that I am going to try out getting closer. It all looked pretty good from the viewing platform. However, one chap was out there while we were there taking a look around. I hope he found it enjoyable. I think he lived.

Fantastic Flora

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While the scenery on Kauai is dramatic and interesting, the plant life there is quite something too. Since I am not well traveled enough to see what other Pacific locations have to offer, I have no idea whether all of these things are unique to the Hawaiian chain or even Kauai with one exception. Our visit to the one of several botanical gardens on the island did explain how one plant was native to the islands and rather rare.

I can’t remember the name of the plants off hand but it looks like a baseball bat with a cabbage on the top. Not a graceful description I know but if you look at it below, I think you will agree it is a fair one.

Some of the plants are just colorful, others seem to have interesting structures. Probably some effort to get to good sources of water make for the interesting shapes. To be honest, I don’t care too much. I am just interested in seeing them.

Not all of them were so unusual. I include below a picture of a tree down on a beach. The ground underneath it has gradually eroded away but this doesn’t seem to have bothered to tree one bit. It now just stands a little above everything around it.

Here are a couple of other shots to finish off what we saw.

The Chicken Secret

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We have just spent a week on Kauai having a great time exploring a fantastic island. I will cover aspects of the trip in coming posts but today I want to cover the big story that no-one tells you about.

We read many books and websites when researching the trip to Kauai. They were full of lots of good information about the island but not one told you the number one theme. Chickens! The island has thousands of chickens roaming wild. The normal predators are not present on Kauai so they flourish.

We arrived at the airport and a family including some very small chicks were walking across the parking lot. Someone mentioned it to the shuttle bus driver and he said they were everywhere. He wasn’t wrong!