A long fringe of reef protects Anini Beach. The water is pretty shallow and is some of the safest on the north shore. Camping is allowed with permits and there are some great sites tucked into the pines. I enjoyed the music of a live band at a nearby pavilion performing at a wedding. A camera malfunction prevented the capture of some great Kodak moments. (Neither the camera nor my body were at 100%)
I loved this story. Years ago the name used to be Wanini Beach, but the “W” on the sign was blasted away with an irate resident who felt it was a misspelling. Other residents assumed the gun-toting spell-checker was correcting a mistake and the new name stuck.
The following day included a stop at Costco for a new camera. This problem could easily be remedied!
Louise and I ventured south to Maha’ulepu Beach. Access to this beach is a rutted, dusty, gravel road. We settled in at the middle of the 3 sections: Kawailoa Bay. The adjacent camping sites were full and the music was booming! In addition, the water was beautiful. This was Memorial Day weekend.
To me the Lithified Cliffs are a geologist’s dream! The pounding surf has carved the rocks into some interesting shapes and into deep crevices.
There are many blow holes in the lava rocks; some emitting mist, others not. All of them, however, are vocal to some and one in particular scared us silly. It was an amazing, guttural moaning that sounded life like!
How nice to find some sandstone on the shore – not quite like Jerusalem, but some of the color was right! The constant spray of the sea has caused the sandstone to erode into short extremely sharp and weirdly shaped pinnacles. 
The strength of the ocean is, oh so, evident at this vantage point. The local fishermen often drop their lines here as they can see their catch before they cast.
This was one of the most beautiful vistas I saw on the island: a span of grass, rugged mountains in the background and beautiful aquamarine ocean. What more could anyone want?
We turned around at Ha’ula Beach; it certainly didn’t appear to be swimmer friendly; in fact it can be particularly hazardous for swimmers and is rarely visited except by horseback tours from a nearby stable.
There was still time to see Shipwreck Beach. The beach was named for an unidentified wooden shipwreck that is long gone. One of the beach scenes in 6 Days and 7 Nights was filmed here. 
As in the movie, locals often jump from the cliff on the left, know as Makawehi Point. Due to the high winds, primarily surfers use the beach: boogie boarders, body or wind. Swimming can be difficult even in calm waters. The beach is adjacent to the Hyatt Resort: they use a system of colored flags to signal ocean conditions. There was lots of activity on the beach: a wedding and Louise posing as a mermaid!
The sun was setting and we thought one more stop would finish the day. Sunset at Poipu Beach. The crowds were waiting for the sun to set and we joined them!
The weekend activities continued with an overnight excursion to the west side. We were headed to Koke’e State Park, which is at the summit of the Waimea Canyon. The park is more than 4500 acres of forest wilderness at an elevation of 3600-4000 ft above sea level. The rainforest, bogs, and breath taking views of the Na Pali Coast and the Canyon are the draw. Our first destination was the ‘Banana Poka RoundUp’: a daylong environmental education fair of mountain music, workshops, exhibits, and family activities.
It has become a “west side” tradition, with a more urgent message to save the Kanaloahuluhulu Meadow (where the event is held) from development. The core message of celebrating conservation efforts is heart and soul of the environmental agencies and organizations who participate in the event. Koke'e Natural History Museum, a sweet little museum adjacent to the meadow, provides interpretive programs and exhibitions about Kauai' s ecology, geology and climatology.
The festival is named for the resilient and spreading banana poka vines that sport candy-pink blossoms that threatens to crowd out native Hawaiian plants and trees of the upland forest. Banana poka is only one threat to Kauai’s native forests.
Basket makers happily spent the day learning to weave the pliable vines into vessels of functional form and beauty to the strains of beautiful Hawaiian music. Unfortunately, the vines were gone when we arrived. We also missed the “crowing” as in rooster contest.
On a wet island like Kauai, a dry hike is hard to find! In the desert-dry gulch of the Waimea Canyon, known as the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, one is not likely to slip and slide in the muck along the way. Because we were not (emphasis on not) interested in hiking into Hawaii’s Grand Canyon, we opted for the trail to the Lower Waipoo Falls. 
The lower falls has showering cascades and several small soaking pools. There are several panoramic overlooks along the rim.
For additional views of the canyon, we decided on the “flattest”(according to the guidebook), but strenuous Pihea Trail. There were unbelievable views of the Kalalau Valley, the largest valley along the Na Pali cliffs, as we looked down from the back ridge of the valley. The views extend 4,000 feet down the mossy, fluted cliffs of the Kalalau Valley, which drops sharply into the ocean. The views inland extend over layers of folded forested canyons and ridges to Mount Waialeale, the wettest spot on earth with an average of 451 inches of annual rainfall.Louise, a hula dancer herself, pointed out the Opala Tree.
This tree is nicknamed the Hula Tree because the leaves ”dance” with the slightest breeze. How does one capture the movement of the leaves? Video - my first. (I don’t know how to edit this but the first 30 secs are great!)
We were warmly greeted at Linda’s house (our B&B for the night) with lychee martinis! Yummmm…
The next day we were headed to the beach at Polihale State Park. This requires 4WD; so the “bad boy” truck was our means of transportation. This required Louise to ride in the back. Along the way, we stopped to see the artwork of one of their friends, and acquired a beach umbrella from Pat. This proved to be a godsend!
After 5 miles on bumping gravel roads we arrived and it was heavenly! Keith and Louise were introduced to shade at the beach.
This Kodak moment captured the perfect solo cloud on the perfect beach day. It doesn’t get any better than this!
One last stop on the way home was at Glass Beach. It was a bit disappointing in terms of finding beach glass. It was, however, interesting to learn that the glass was from a former landfill that is the cliff you see in the background!
And so by the end of the weekend, I was “back in the saddle” with my hiking legs in good shape and my body upright!
And the adventure continues….
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