Week 4 - The Island of Kauai

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July 29th - We Move To Kauai

 

The Molokai airport is really small with only 3 gates, two going out, one coming in. Your pretty basic airport. The one noticeable thing is that they are required to have the exact same security equipment to check your bags as the larger airports. So when you walk into the lobby (OK, there isn't really a lobby) you have a ticket counter and the TSA (security) and that is it. The room is full. You can get maybe 5 people in line and your out the front door. When you finally get through the security checkpoint and arrive at your gate (2 steps past the checkpoint), you get to sit in an area that might hold 40 people on a good day. The plane rolls up near the building and you have to walk maybe 30 - 40 yards to the plane outside on the tarmac (runway). The baggage claim is even better as it is completely outside, covered, but outside. So you get off the plane, walk to the claim area, the truck with your luggage comes by and throws it on a counter (non-moving) and you grab your bags, walk 50 yards to the parking lot and leave.

I would have to add that the sounds of the small airport are deafening. The door behind the ticket counter that leads to the plane were open and so when a plane arrives the sound of the engines will complete drown out all conversation until they turn the engines off. All the time the wind from the propellers (yes, propellers) blowing through the airport. Quite the experience. Your really need to do it at least once. We got on the plane which only held 30 people and headed for Maui. Maybe a 30 minute flight. Then we had a 2 hour wait, left through the same gate and a little larger plane and headed for Kauai.

On our way to Kauai we crossed over Molokai, waved our goodbyes, and headed east. We passed by Oahu and Waikiki, and saw a submarine just leaving the port. An awesome sight indeed. The trip to this island was really uneventful as the weather had cleared and we had very little bumps the entire flight. My wife, Dot, hates bumps. She thinks the plane is going to crash every time she feels the slightest bump. Sitting next to her on a plane (with bumps) is an experience you won't soon forget. At any given moment, when a bump occurs, she will let out a stifled yelp, grab my arm or leg, hard, and go into her high stress mode. Meanwhile my arm (or leg) is loosing circulation and my fingers are beginning to turn white. I usually have to pry her hand off my wrist to save myself from loosing any appendages. Thankfully I didn't have to experience that on this leg of the trip . . . well, ok, once!

 

Once on the ground in Kauai, we got our vehicle. It was my lucky day as we got upgraded to a Jeep Commander (from a Cherokee) for no extra cost. We then had to wait a couple of hours for the rest of our visitors from Sacramento. This week we had 3 couples from our choir joining us; Bob & Kay, Vaughn & Diana, & Barry & Leanne. Bob & Kay arrived first. Even with the large SUV we had rented there still wasn't enough room for all the luggage. Our passengers, Bob, Kay, & Dot had to have bags on their laps while I drove (lucky me) and Bob had this huge suitcase on his lap that kept hitting the dash and changing the temperature in the car as we drove to our destination. It was quite the ride. The other 4 travelers were scheduled to arrive a couple hours later but got their flight changed and actually arrived slightly ahead of Bob & Kay but there was one small problem. . . Their luggage didn't! So they ended up waiting at the airport until previously scheduled arrival for their luggage and so arrived at the condo a couple of hours after us.

We all unpacked and got organized. The condo is a 4 bedroom, 4 bath on two floors. Three of the bedrooms and 2 baths are downstairs while the other 2 are upstairs along with the living, dining, and kitchen. So each couple had their own bedroom and bathroom. I thing it makes better friendships that way! We all decided on a small diner just down the road and went to dinner which was pretty good. A place called CJ's at the Princeville Marketplace. We followed that up with a trip to the grocery store to get some breakfast supplies and then back to the condo and bed. Dot and I have been on Hawaii time for 3 weeks but our other travelers were 3 hours ahead and from their perspective it was 1:00 in the morning and way past their bed time.

So we all crashed with plans to arise the next morning and figure out what to do for the rest of our week.

 

July 30, 2006 - A church, a lighthouse, and some soup.

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Sunday seemed like any other day. I mean being on vacation you wake up, watch the sun rise, eat some breakfast, plan your day. I have been doing this for the last three weeks. I guess you could say I am getting used to the routine. Well, Saturday night the Kauai gang discussed the possibility of going to church on Sunday but no one could come to an absolute conclusion.  Figures. Trying to get eight people on the same page wouldn't come easy. Except for the fact that God doesn't work that way. He knew what he wanted us to do. He just hadn't told us yet. Anyway, Kay gets up on Sunday morning and grabs the yellow pages and says that she and Bob had decided to find a church to attend and went back down stairs to search the phone book. About a half hour later she comes back up with Bob and they tell me they have found a church, the ad said it was spirit-filled. Perfect. Just the church to go to. Just like we all believe. Except that no one else in the group knows this decision, as they were all still in bed. "Services start at 9:30 AM so we are going to leave about 9:00", Bob says. "Cool", I said being non-committal. Dot had not slept well and I was going to leave the decision up to her. Last I checked she was still sleeping and it was just after 8:00. As the others woke up and found out what was happening, they all one by one decided that they would join Bob and Kay. I was the only hold out. Well, as they were getting ready to leave, I checked on Dot and found that she had been up, was dressed and nearly ready to go. So I asked her if she wanted to join the rest of the gang and go to church and she said yes. Great! The gang was going to church.

It took me only a few minutes to shower, shave, and dress. Church clothes here in the islands consist of shorts, t-shirt & sandals. Really easy to decide what to wear. We took off and headed to Kailuea about 10 miles back toward the airport. Kailuea is famous for it's lighthouse which is currently being renovated but is a historical monument. So it would make sense that the church was called Lighthouse Christian Fellowship. It was situated off the main highway about a mile back into a valley. The building is a shell of what could be a storage area of what could be farm equipment. The congregation numbers about 60 to 70 with a large transit group (those own a condo here but only come a couple of times a year. We were warmly welcomed and made to feel right at home. The worship was great and Pastor John delivered a really good sermon regarding fear and how to overcome it. We spent some time after the service talking to some of the worship leaders and were invited to see the new church they were building and hoped to move into by September. They are putting up a real nice facility about a mile the opposite of the main road nearer the ocean. It will be a pavilion type building in that there will be no walls or windows but instead it will be totally open to the weather. It is built such that rain will not get in and they will hang a special cloth that lets in the breeze but not moisture in each opening. I put a picture of the building on my photo site. We promised to pray for them and left to find some food.

The place we wanted to eat at, Coconuts, was in Kapa'a but when we got there it was closed. In the islands, lots of places are closed on Sunday. A good thing I think. More time to spend with family. Anyway after driving around Kapa'a a while we settled on a place that Dot and I had visited 20 year ago on our 10th anniverery, Ono Family Restaurant. We remembered the place because we had stopped in to have dinner to celebrate our special day and I had this killer soup. And guess what? They still served the soup. Couldn't still be the same after 20 years could it?
Well, Dot ordered the soup and declared it was exactly as we had tasted way back then in 1986. They also make great burgers, probably the best I have had in years. A great place to stop if your ever in Kauai and Kapa'a.

We headed for the condo after lunch and ran into some heavy rain. Dot & I, along with Bob and Kay went back to the condo for a nap. We still were trying to catch up on our sleep. The rest of the gang headed for the lighthouse.

The Kilauea Lighthouse is the northernmost point of the main Hawaiian Islands. Built in 1913, it was had the largest lens of it's kind and guided ships heading to and from the Orient. In the 1970's its light was turned off and this landmark was replaced by a low-maintenance light beacon. The lighthouse is located on a narrow peninsula and remains one of Kauai's most popular attractions. Native vegetations and an informative visitor center attract thousands of tourists to this site to bird watch, view the sweeping cliff and ocean vistas, and revel in Kauai’s past. Moku'ae'ae Islet, is just offshore from the peninsula. It is a bird sanctuary and often home to the Hawaiian monk seal that may be seen lazing in the sun near the shoreline.

The rest of the day was spent in rest. The 6 friends were still trying to get changed over to Hawaiian time. We drove into Hanalei for dinner and had since it is Sunday, a lot of places were closed. We settled on pizza and had a great time of fellowship.

Monday, I tackle the Princeville golf courses. Bob and I are scheduled to play the Makai course tomorrow and Friday, and the Prince course. Ought to be interesting.

 

July 31 - I love golf . . . but it doesn't love me . . .

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Well, it finally happened. I got to play golf in Princeville, Kauai, HI! What a great thing. It is like going to Mecca for Islamic's (OK, that a real stretch). But, really, it is a wonderful course. We played the Makai course which is really three very different 9 hole courses. The ones we played yesterday were the Lakes course and the Woods course, and just like their names, they had a lot of that on each course. Both courses wind their way through the Princeville complex and are very challenging. I liked the Lakes better only because the Woods course had a lot of blind shots. Those are shots where you really can't tell where your ball will land and what is up ahead. The Lakes course had lots of water but I only got in the drink once.

I played pretty well for the first 8 holes and then the "wheels came off" so to speak. Meaning that I didn't play very well at all for the next several holes. Not sure what happened. Obviously I forgot what I was taught and struggled. After about 5 of those holes I was able to get back on track and play the remainder of the course OK. Two of the holes (both number 9 holes) were my worst giving me a meager 108 for the day. Not something I am proud of, but if you were to subtract the strokes over par for those two holes I would have carded a 98. Water and out-of-bounds will really wreck your game.

However, we haven't played THE course . . . the Prince course. That comes on Wednesday. The Prince course is rated the #1 course in Hawaii and we got nearly a 50% discount so that makes it even better! It really does. Check in on Thursday to see how we did.

The rest of the day we traveled to Lihue and added Bob & Dot as drivers on the SUV. There was no extra charge for that and so now Bob and Kay can get away by themselves while here in Kauai. The girls have a shopping excursion planned while we play golf on Wednesday so Dot has been tagged as the designated driver.

While browsing the "coupon books" on Sunday, Bob found a dinner show with the play South Pacific. It was loosely based on a James Michener book and was made into a movie that starred Mary Martin and was filmed right here in Kauai. Anyway we all had a great time at the show which was very well done and lasted nearly two and a half hours. We had great seats right up front and the food wasn't bad either considering it was a "cafeteria style" buffet.

It seemed like a long drive back to the condo as we didn't get in until 10:30 PM and we all have to get up early for our Na Pali coast trip on Capt'n Andy's Zodiac boat tour. Check back on Wednesday for a detailed account of that exciting trip.

 

August 1 - Let it Rain, Let it Rain . . . OK, Stop already!

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Tuesday was our Na Pali Coast tour. We all got up early, ate some breakfast, and were out the door by 7:45 AM. It took about 90 minutes to get to Port Allen on the southwest side of the island where we were joining several other tourists for a cruise on Capt. Andy's Zodiac boats.

It was drizzling when we left, and the rain increased steadily as we moved closer to our destination. Just before we arrived, it stopped and the sun came out. Great! It is going to be a good day . . . WRONG! Just about 15 minutes before we were to head for the boat, another downpour came, this one lasting for about 30 minutes. Our trip to the Na Pali Coast was cancelled due to weather!

So what do we do now. Our whole day just became freed up. Barry, said he had heard that there was a great beach on the west side and all we had to do was travel to the end of the road and the State Park that was there. Cool! So off we went. Bob, Kay, Dot and I in our SUV following Barry, Leanne, Vaughn & Diana in their car.

We drove for about 30 minutes when Barry stopped at a sign point the way to the State Park as down this dirt road. Now mind you, it hasn't really stopped raining yet and the road was pretty wet with large puddles. Of course that doesn't stop Barry. He plows ahead down the road carefully negotiation each bump and puddle. I followed right behind but in the SUV and having 4 wheel drive I didn't worry about the bumps and puddles. A couple of puddles looked as if they might be too deep but Barry went right through them, his car getting dirtier and dirtier.

After about 30 minutes of this we finally came to the beach. Nice State Park. No kiosk, no signs, no nothing. A large wooden roof that covered a couple of picnic tables and that was pretty much it. Now, it was raining pretty good again. Part of the group walked down the hill to the beach to check it out in the rain and so for about another 20 minutes the rest of us got acquainted with a young couple from Southern Calif.

When we finally had enough of the beach, we all climbed back into the cars and headed out to find some lunch. The rain was coming down harder, the road was filling with water and I took the lead speeding up a little to smooth out the ride and besides I was having fun throwing muddy orange colored water out both sides of the road as I attacked the now large pools of water collecting on the road.

We stopped at a place called Wrangler's Steakhouse for lunch. Really good food. Highly recommend it. The rain got worse and so we headed to Poipu hoping that it would break by the time we drove the 30 minutes to get there. Poipu is like the South Beach in Miami. Today though, all the rain, it looked like a soggy normal beach town. We stopped briefly to see the Spouting Horn which is a small lava tube that when the ocean waves hit it, forcing large amounts of salt water through it resulting in a very large plume of spray shooting straight up into the air. By now it was raining so hard that we watched for only a couple of minutes and were soaked to the skin. Thankfully the rain was rather warm but still really wet!

We finally headed back to the condo, the rain never letting up the entire trip. Kind of ruined our plans for the whole day. However, for dinner we headed over to the Hanalei Bay Resort to their lounge as we had heard they had live Hawaiian music there and were pleased to find it true and spend the next couple of hours enjoying the live music, good food, appetizers and our fellowship.

Tomorrow I tackle the #1 golf course in Hawaii . . . the Prince Course!

 

August 2 - I finally saw Golf Heaven

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Today, Bob and I had a date with infamy . . . The honored and venerable Prince course in Princeville, Kauai, HI. This course was created by Robert Trent Jones Jr., and is rated the #1 course in Hawaii, one of the top 5 resort courses, and in the top 50 of 100 best courses in the U.S. Being a golfer, one just has to play it, like it or not. Though you may not like the result, you come away from this course knowing that you have played a great course and that you still have a long way to go to improve your game!

I believe that this course has just about every challenge a golfer could want and some he may never want to see again. You have tight fairways, small greens, ravines, lakes, deep sand traps, everything! You have landing areas surrounded by jungle, and lots of hidden corners where you just can't see where your ball is going. It is the most challenging course I have ever played and my score reflected that. This is a thinking mans course. All the lessons in the world would not prepare you for this course. Over all, it frustrated my game but I walked away, tired, in awe of it's splendor, and willing to tackle it again someday.

Of course we had wonderful weather. Gone was the rain and clouds and in it's place lots of sun and those pesky trade winds. It was very warm and humid yesterday and only because I have been here for nearly 4 weeks am I used to that type of playing condition. It might bother some people. The fairways were soft but not mushy which was a surprise considering all the rain we had had the day before. The sand traps were not as lucky as most were full of rain water creating a small lake in each one. I was in the sand several times mostly because you can't see the traps. Strategically placed they were a real challenge.

We will play the Makai course one more time on Friday and will have played every hole in the Princeville Club at least once.

Barry & Vaughn spend the morning scouting out beaches and snorkel spots and evidently found the place we all plan on hanging out at on Friday afternoon. The girls went shopping in Lihue & Kapaa and attempted to spend all our money (just kidding).

We ended our day with a trip to Hanalei for dinner at the Polynesia Cafe. This is a place where they serve great food on paper plates with plastic silverware and you sit out in the open air of the shopping center. It is surrounded by mom & pop type stores with lots of things you won't find anywhere else. The girls loved it as they were bobbing in and out of the many shops. The guys just stood around outside and discussed the events of the week.
 

August 3 - Another boring day in paradise . . .

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Yes, I said boring! Of course I really don't mean that. How can anyone get bored being in Hawaii? I guess if you stay here long enough it could happen . . . and today might be the day. I am staying home to nurse my ankle while the rest take off for different parts of the island.

My ankle has been getting steadily better. I have played golf on it two days this week and although it begins the round in really good shape, it ends up looking like a Macy's day parade balloon by the end. So, the more I stay off it, the better I am. But not being one to "rain" on anyone's parade, I have just endured the pain and continued trying to accomplish as many things on my vacation agenda as I could physically do. I have cancelled all my dive opportunities for the remainder of the trip as we never got to finish our certification dives and I had to cancel golf for about 2 weeks until I was strong enough to walk somewhat comfortably.

Bob & Kay, left early in the morning and went to the Princeville Hotel for breakfast. While there they experienced an "Alfred Hitchcock" moment. There were three ladies eating at a table next to them and the entire restaurant is open air. Well, the ladies got up to leave and almost immediately a couple dozen small birds descended on their table and proceeded to pick the leftovers that were on the plates clean. They were chirping loudly and attacking one other over the food. After about 5 minutes of this the birds took off, leaving nothing on the plates or tables. They cleaned it. Bob & Kay thought they had just been a Hitchcock movie. They then headed out to the end of the road to Ke’e (pronounced kay ay) Beach for a look around and did some shopping in Hanalei.

Barry, Leanne, Vaughn, Diana & Dot headed for Port Allen for another try at the Na Pali tour. Vaughn & Diana had their camera broken and had to stop along the way to pick up another. They made another stop in Poipu on the way to see things in a different light . . . Sunlight! If you remember Tuesday when we were there it was raining . . . hard. They got to Capt. Andy's and sat through the orientation but then found that the seas were much too rough for back problems or sea sickness so they ended up cancelling the trip. Instead, they drove to Waimea Canyon State Park, sometimes known as the Grand Canyon of the Pacific. At the end of the road there is a lookout with quite a view. Check out the pictures on my webpage under August 3 - Kauai.  http://photos.yahoo.com/dmchenry@pacbell.net

After visiting the canyon, they visited a couple more beaches, did some shopping, found the NCL cruise ship port and saw the Pride of America which Dot and I will be on beginning August 12. They ended up having dinner nearby at a place called Dukes and arrived back at the condo about 9:00 PM.

Bob & Kay got back from their journey around 3:00 PM, took a nap and then met me at the pool where I had gone to get some sun. We finished swimming around 5:00 pm and then they took me out to dinner at a place called Sabella's. There are several around the bay area in California. Really great food, especially the clam chowder. Just like what you would find on the Wharf in San Francisco! I had the grilled salmon and it was really tasty. The service was top notch also.

Tomorrow we tackle the Makai Course playing the Lakes course for a second time but getting to try out the Oceans course that was closed for maintenance on Monday.  Until then . . . Aloha!

 

August 4 - Golf, Surf, and a really good Luau

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Our last full day on Kauai. Dot and I were moving to Oahu on Saturday morning. Vaughn, Diana, Barry, & Leanne were moving to Oahu also but not until early evening. Bob & Kay were headed back to the mainland and home. No better way to end our week in Kauai then doing what each of us came to do.

Bob and I were back on the Makai course early. This time we played the Ocean course and Lake course. We had played the Lake on Monday but wanted to give it another try. It was our first time on the Ocean course. We played like we expected. Being our first time the Ocean surprised us on several holes. One was a shot from a tee high above the green in a canyon below which was bordered along the front by a lake. Another was a shot from a tee across a chasm (ocean inlet) to a green on the other side. Needless to say it was your typical golf. We even got rained on again. The lakes course seemed less forgiving then on Monday. I lost a few balls and made my usual dumb shots. Oh well, there is always next week. After all I am still practicing all those tips my pro gave me during my lessons. Yes, the lessons are working but I just need to focus better when making my shot selection.

The rest of the gang headed off to the beach. They drove through Hanalei Bay and to the very end of the road to a place called Ke'e Beach. It is very popular and is probably one of the prettiest beaches on the island. Yes, it rained on them also. Rain is not a bad thing here in Kauai. On an island that averages over 400 inches each year it is pretty much a normal occurrence. Anyway, they reported several turtle sightings and lots of really colorful fish.

We were all back together by 4:00 and on the road again heading for end of the week luau. This week it was the Smith Family Luau. The Smiths have been doing this since the 1940's, over 60 years of serving guests and they really know how to put on a party. We got there and were greeted by a tram that took us on a tour of the 30 acres of lush garden areas with the tour guide pointing out each plant and describing each area which represented each of the influential cultures that make up Hawaii. We were then able to watch as they unearthed the emu or pig from the ground where it had been cooking for over 6 hours. They bury a pig after building a large fire with hardwood. Then they add a special type of lava rock, wait until they heat up to a glowing red, and they cover the fire with banana leaves, wrap the pig and lay it in the pit and then cover the pig and bury it with sand. There it stays until it is unearthed for dinner. It is called Kalua pig and boy is it ever moist and delicious.

After a dinner that included beef, chicken, Ahi (tuna), several choices of salads, desserts and many other tasty treats from the islands, we were moved to a small outdoor theatre for a show which treated us to the dances and music of each of the Hawaiian influences. New Zealand, Tahiti, Samoa, Japan, & even Chinese were depicted with all the color and flash of each. It was a very good end to long wonderful week on Kauai.

Dot and I spent the next couple of hours packing the 8 bags we have carried with us these last 4 weeks. Tomorrow we fly to Oahu to be with our sons and their wives and we are looking forward to seeing them for the first time in nearly 5 weeks.
 

So click on the "Week 5 - Oahu" map at the top of the page to see our adventures with our family!