Headin' North

We forced ourselves into the car Friday to circumnavigate the island to the east and north as far as we could go (dead ends at the start of the Na Pali Coast). Packed up drinks, snacks, snorkeling gear and hit the road. I had an idea of quite a few beaches I wanted to hit, and figured if we liked what we were doing we would just stay or go as the spirit moved us. There is soooo much to see, and in a one day trip you just can't cover it all (not even in a month!) My plan to drive to the end of the road, and then work our way back and hang out where it felt good was changed as we approached a spot Maddie had picked from the guidebook...Queens Bath. It was near Princeville and was a beautiful little hike down a root-filled, dirt path through the jungle. If it was wet, it would have been treacherous (slippery roots), but as it was, the roots acted as stairsteps. Once we reached the ocean where a clear stream ran into it, we turned west (ask Maddie about the deposit she made) and made our way to this! Queen's Bath is a lava pool that fills as the tide comes in. Some people we ran into said it wasn't as full as they have seen it but it was still pretty cool!

The water in the ocean was crystal clear and we could see these huge turtles swimming off the edge of the lava flow. Too bad it was too rough to snorkel out there. Also, the views up and down the coast were phenomenal. On the way out we took advantage of fresh water stream to wash and shower the salt water off. Nice.........

Very near Queen's Bath was another beach that supposedly had good snorkeling and was pretty well hidden, hence the name Hideaways Beach. It turned out it was hiding...because I took the wrong path and we ended up on a beach (after a long, long walk) that wasn't so great as a beach or for snorkeling...but the views were great (below pics)! We didn't realize we were on the wrong beach until we got back to the car, and by then we were hungry and a bit whooped, so we opted not to try to find Hideaways Beach this go around.

We then drove to Hanalei in search of food. I found where I am staying next time I come to Hawaii...Hanalei is a great little town with a wonderful feel about it. I asked a local at Java Kai where the best place to stay would be, and she recommended the local YMCA for $15 a night with all the necessities...sold! Next time, I am there!! That way I can afford a hundred days instead of only 10! The kids got lunch at the Village Snack & Bakery..Brian got Mahi with brown rice and macaroni salad, which he woofed down with recklss abandon...and Maddie got "the best cheeseburger I ever had...you guys don't even know how good this is!" I went across the street to an organic market and got roasted potatoes & brown rice smothered in vegetarian chili (with a hude, crispy Fuji apple on the side). Needless to say, lunch was a hit (or we were just really hungry!) Now I just needed a tree to take a nap under...zzzzz. But no...there was more exploring to do...down the road with us! Next stop, Tunnels Beach for snorkeling. The roads on the North Shore are really congested with one lane bridges (part of the charm) so with lots of cars and people, parking can be problematic at times. Such was the case with Tunnels...although our hike to the beach turned out to be shorter than expected, and the snorkeling there was First Class...it supplanted Shark's Cove on Oahu as my first place snorkeling spot so far! We chatted it up with some nice people there and they pointed us to the area where they thought the snorkeling was best...and they didn't steer us wrong. Schools of fish in the hundreds, big, small, colorful, deep, shallow, warm, cool, turtles, eels, pipefish...wow...it was indescribable! We snorkeled until we were out of gas. Fantastic... After catching our breath and warming on the beach we reluctantly packed up our stuff because we knew there was one more destination on the list and right down the road...the end of the road at Ke'e Beach and the start of the Kalalau Trail along the Na Pali Coast. A few more one lane bridges and we were there and lucked into a parking spot (we noticed a fresh stream with a pool on the way for rinsing off after Ke'e). Well, Ke'e was alright, but the beach was small and crowded, and the snorkeling wasn't very good...maybe the charm is that it is the last stop on the road. Brian and I found the real gem as we snorkeled (Maddie opted out and stayed ont the beach to take pictures) west around a rocky point and found a secluded section of beach with towering cliffs as a backdrop. We got out and walked around the area (only 4 other people there) admiring the majesty of it all. One of the people was an Aussie dude that asked Brian if he saw any "totles"...Brian didn't clue into the accent for a bit until he realized the guy was asked for turtles...which we had seen, and susbsequently led him and his girlfriend to, for which they were very grateful.

So by now we were all pretty spent and ready to do the about-face back home. But before the drive back we wanted to rnse the salt off so we drove back to the stream/pool, and I told Brian later that our timing was impecable, for as we got out of the car, three girls in thong/skimpy bikinis had the same idea as us. Maddie didn't snorkel, so she watched glaringly from above like a Mother Hen as Brian and I enjoyed all aspects of the scenery around us. I had to pinch myself and make sure I wasn't dreaming...LOL!! Maddie was not pleased with the girls or our male oggling (the girls certainly didn't mind us being there)...she doesn't quite realize that's life and the male/female dynamic...we were just enjoying the moment and appreciating the way the Universe provides! Needless to say we didn't get any pics of that episode since Maddie was the official photographer!

So after rinsing we started back and stopped again in Hanalei for shaved ice at Paradise Shave Ice, coffee (to get me home awake) at Java Kai, and burgers (Brian) and fries (me & Maddie) at Bubbas Burgers. I gotta go back there (Hanalei)!! We arrived home safely ~8pm so it ended up being an 11 hour treat for all of us. It was showers, an Avatar episode on the web (Maddie & Brian, since we missed the airing at 630), then B.E.D. AAAAA - Aloha After Another Awesome Adventure!