Kauai

I prescheduled this posting. We are currently at sea and am not able to make such elaborate, photo heavy posts. I figured I would break up the string of passage related posts with some of our Hawaii memories.

Oh Kauai how we love thee. Almost 16 (!) years ago Tor and I honeymooned on Kauai, then we returned 11 years ago to celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary. We were very excited to come back and share the island with our boys, so we made sure to budget plenty of time to spend here before leaving on the passage to Alaska. We made the overnight passage from Honolulu to Hanalei bay on the North side of Kauai, the traditional jumping off point for passages to the Northwest. Hanalei Bay also meant reunion with Asunto for a few days before Kolby left with crew to sail the boat to Sitka and Kristine flew home with the kids (they will fly to Sitka to reunite with Kolby and Asunto). 

Kauai has not disappointed. It’s every bit as great as we remembered, maybe even more so because we’ve had more time here to meet locals and we’ve learned the most fun ways to play in Hawaii for our family after spending 6 weeks or so here. For a few days while Asunto was still here, we each rented cars and did some playing and sightseeing together, as well as Costco provisioning (again with the provisioning!)

My best day here? The day Kristine and I took a surfing lesson! The instructor was great, the beach was perfect  for the dads and kids to play on while we were in the water for two hours, and the waves gentle enough for us to comfortably learn and big enough to have fun. I got up a bunch of times and truly had a blast. Kristine said it was her perfect Hawaii day, and I completely agree.

We even met a family actively working toward cruising with their three kids. They invited us up to their house which is on 27 acres in the mountains (they are caretakers) with a pond for swimming and boating, wide expanses of grass for running around in, a trampoline and lots of animals to watch and hold…not to mention the kids to play with. It was heaven for Lars and Odin, and so fun for Tor and me to meet another family on the cruising path.

All in all we couldn’t be happier with our time in Kauai.

Odin happy to get to to Hanalei Bay

The one clear view we got of Waimea Canyon

This is what it mostly looked like at Waimea Canyon

The kids made the best of the foggy wet weather at
Waimea Canyon and found trees to climb in. It felt
distinctly Pacific NW like.

The crews of Yare and Asunto at Hanapepe

Damming the stream at tunnels beach

Lars, Odin and Fynn happy as clams at Tunnels Beach

Surfing lesson with family involvement!

Tor got video of us catching waves, but no still pictures.
Way too fun!

We look professional, no?

The post surfing lesson photo

Rock Quarry Beach where we had our surfing lesson
was perfect for the whole family. Lars was particularly
enamored with the rope swing.

Rainbow shave ice, a necessity!

I had the gourmet ginger and lilikoi shave ice, a sweet
ending to a perfect day of surfing and beach play.

Pre passage chore, haircuts!

Beautiful sunset at Beautiful Hanalei bay.
We saw the green flash for the first time ever!

Photographer Lars catching some evening cockpit time.

Lars and Tor hamming it up

Lars playing 'Tarz-man'

Beautiful Hanalei bay, with a full rainbow. Amazing.