Kahuku to Kailua

Today was our first totally non-soccer day so we decided to try our hand at kayaking, and some of the best was supposed to be at Kanehoe and Kailua Bays. The drive from Turtle Bay to the east and south was absolutely beautiful...green towering mountains, palm-lined bays, jungle covered roads. One thing that did not bode well for us was a constant east wind at 20 knots. We figured we would check it out anyhoo and see how bad the surf was when we got down there. There were 2 choices I had picked, one to Disappearing Island in he middle of Kanehoe Bay, and the second to some islands off of Kailua Beach. Once we found where the kayak shop was, we decided it best to do the Kailua trip just because of the logistics of getting the kayaks where we would want them. For the Kailua Bay, we could park at the State park and pick up the boats near a canal/river that lead right to the bay near the beach...perfecto! So off we went against the wind AND against the waves (like biking uphill against the wind). Maddie and I were in a tandem and Brian had a solo kayak. I wanted to head to one of the Mokulua Islands (which are bird sanctuaries; one you can land on and stay on the exterior, the other you can't land on at all) It turns out this island is ~2.5 mile kayak, which doesn't sound too bad, but the winds and the surf conditions made it a VERY tough grind to get out there. I was talking Maddie through it, but Brian was on his own. Here's what the crew looked like right after we beached the crafts.

I don't think they were too happy with me for what we just went through (and I can't blame them), but after w refueled and rested and played on the island, they cheered up. It was so funny, where they were sitting in this pic, stuffed up in a hole in the rock, someone stashed 4 stakes and 4 horse shoes, so Brian got them out, set them up, and he and Maddie played shoes for half an hour. Horseshoes on a deserted island!

Views from the island.

I talked to some boys who had hiked to the top of the island and saw a shark off the east end of the island (which is where we planned to snorkel while there), so after I told Maddie, there was no need to unload the snorkeling gear. We hiked around a bit. I met another gentleman, Bill, who was out there on a single man outrigger. He was 71 years old and said he was born on Oahu in 1939 (so was there when Pearl was bombed). Had a wonderful conversation. We saw another monk seal trying to come ashore to have a nap but found it to crowded for his tastes.

So with the wind and with the waves we were back to the beach where we launched in a fraction of the time and with a fraction of the effort (for which we were all thankful!) We treated ourselves to pizza and shaved ice in Kailua, drove home, cleaned up and relaxed for the evening...well deserved. Ahhhhhh.....

Maddie found she got pretty burnt on the legs today...failed to sunscreen as requested....so tomorrow we will find things to do around here and get organized fo our flight to Kauai on Tuesday. I wanna try some more snorkeling where I heard the turtles hang out. Twas another fine day in Hawaii!!! Oh yeah..... Aloha!