Kauai

We're now back from a fantastic vacation in Hawaii, on the island of Kauai. My parents, Anya's parents, and my brother & sister in law all joined us there for a family reunion of sorts. It's unusual to get this entire group together (spread across the globe as they are) so we made the most of it. It was a very fun but also quite relaxing week.

Kauai is the 4th largest and 4th most populated island in Hawaii. For all practical purposes, it's the westernmost inhabited place in the United States proper (not counting territories, military bases, or closed islands). Northwesterly trade winds bring lots of moisture; Kauai's Mount Wai'ale'ale gets 460" of rain per year making it the wettest place on Earth. The lush vegetation combined with the rural feel - the largest "city" has less than 10,000 residents - thoroughly justify Kauai's nickname: "The Garden Isle."

Like the other Hawaiian Islands, Kauai is basically just the exposed peak of a large, mostly underwater volcano. It's the oldest island in the chain, and the volcano that formed it ceased erupting millions of years ago. All that rain has had plenty of time to erode spectacular valleys and canyons, including Waimea Canyon "the Grand Canyon of the Pacific."



Hawaii is of course know for it's waves and surfing, and Kauai is no exception. We spent the majority of our trip hanging around on various different beaches enjoying the waves. Many of Kauai's beaches are exposed directly to the Ocean, making them perfect for body boarding and surfing (like the one below).



There are a few sheltered beaches suitable for swimming, especially on the South Shore where we stayed. Here you could swim out over the rocky bottom and see literally dozens of kinds of tropical fish in all shapes, sizes, and colors. I only regret that I didn't have an underwater camera with me.



Anyway, I won't babble on any more - it was obviously a great trip. We took a ton of photos; they're separated into 4 different albums here. The "Top 35" album will give you a good overview of the trip; the rest provide a little more detail. Enjoy.