April 13, Thursday on Kauai

 Thursday, April 13

Another sunrise, nothing spectacular but nice to see the sun!  Today we plan to travel north and along the northern coast.  We have reservations to visit a lighthouse and wildlife refuge at noon.

Instead of the Grab 'n' Go, we decide to try some Hawaiian donuts this morning at a place called Island Craves.  The mango-filled ones are excellent and Beth enjoys the chocolate macadamia nut ones.  Maple bacon is ok too.  

First stop is nearby Kealia Beach, which is a beautiful place to walk.  Quite a surf here and apparently always windy, judging by the trees.

We continue north to Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge.  (Yes, that's Hanalei from Puff the Magic Dragon. and I can totally see him frolicking in the mist.)   The only thing we see frolicking here, though, are lots of nene - the Hawaiian goose, which is the official state bird.  They are protected and are making a great comeback from near extinction.  Lots of road signs near places they frequent.

They are attempting to encourage wetland habitat here, as well as growing taro.  Taro root used to be a staple for the Hawaiian people (pounded into poi), but has declined in popularity.  As less is grown, the wetlands it requires have diminished as well, diminishing bird habitat.

Goose-stepping?

We attempt the Okolehao Trail, but find it too muddy.

Next stop is the small town of Hanalei, where there are quite a few shops and rentals for kayaks, etc.  Beth checks out the local fish market which has some good looking filets, along with various versions of poke. If it was closer to lunchtime.... 

This church built in  1834, with the name Wai' Hui'ia ou i, is very pretty.  In traveling we have seen churches of all denominations.  

Including this one we saw earlier and thought Brett might find interesting!

It is raining a little now and then as we head through Princeville.  Some big money homes here and a magnificent golf course.  Home to Ben Stiller, Pierce Brosnan, Michael Crichton, Natalie Merchant, Bette Midler - nope, we didn't see any of them.   This "tiny" Neptune fountain too.

Kilauea Point Lighthouse is our next destination and we are happy to have reservations, as we see people being turned away!  Not a lot of parking space. This is the northernmost point of Kauai.  Opened in 1913, its official name is the Daniel K Inouye Point Lighthouse. It was automated in the 1970's. 

 It is set amidst the Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge, a sanctuary for seabirds, and there are MANY.  It is fun to watch them soaring on the ocean breezes.  Signage let us identify some, like these red tailed  tropicbirds, 

and this  huge Great Frigatebird.  

There are also albatrosses, petrels, boobys and more. This one was gathering nesting material...

Many are nesting on the hillsides, and some even make burrows.  The government has built a fence inland a bit to keep predators from reaching the birds.  If you look closely at the pictures below you will see some white dots, which are nesting birds.

We can see the rain coming, and the wind picks up too, stirring the surf and blowing us toward the small visitor's center/gift shop.  We just make it before the skies open!   Fortunately, it only lasts 10-15 minutes, and then we head back to the parking area.

 Driving back towards the hotel, we stop again at Island Craves as Greg is craving a vanilla milkshake, and we share a burger.

We decide to head back down to Po'ipu Beach, and today we find a parking place.  The place is super busy though and we see no signs of the monk seals and turtles which are said to frequent this area.  There are some people body surfing or using boogie boards, and even a few fisherman.

Back at the hotel we catch up on email, pictures, postcards, etc.  Greg goes for a swim and then feeds the birds that visit our lanai. This is a red crested cardinal! The body is blue so it is quite colorful!

For dinner we head to Tiki Tacos, which was recommended, and try their fish tacos - good, and one called surf 'n' turf which is beef and shrimp - also very good. 

Our last night in Hawaii.  Tomorrow we head home.