HANAKAPIAI!!!!

HANAKAPIAI!!!!

This hike was Gnarly!!! We woke up early on saturday, 6am, made breakfast and packed some lunches and drove to the Napali Coast on the north. We got there early enough that not many other people we around and we found the trailhead and got to hiking! I carried our 30lb baby - our bag of sandwiches and towels - and nikki carried NOTHING! hahahaha... jk she offered to carry it, but I love her too much. haha cheesey!

Starting the hike / 1/2 mile mark / along the coast / me and the 30 lb baby

So the hike meanders up and down along the Napali Coast for two miles until it reaches a secluded beach. This beach is dangerous! Seriously, I saw a discovery channel bit about it before we moved out here about how dangerous the waves/current are there. In fact, right before you get to the beach, there is this SCAREY sign that says how many people have died at Hanakapiai beach. BEWARE!

The sign

We were a little bummed when we got there. There was NO SAND! Every picture I saw showed the most beautifully sandy beach, but apparantly the sand has been washed away recently because it was completely rocky! It was still super pretty though and we relaxed and watched 10ft swells crashing into the nearby rocks! Also, little stray kittens roamed around chasing birds. It was really nice!

The former beach / What is left now (notice the cave to the right of my head)

Then we kept on hiking. From there it is two more miles inland along a muddy river trail to the most beautiful 300ft waterfall I've ever seen. The trail was crazy and we had to criss-cross this river multiple times.

By the time we finally made it to the falls (4 miles of hiking in), we were exhausted! It was hard work! It was so pretty though and we had left early enough that we were the only ones there! The water was ICECOLD! I got in it very gingerly and then swam my freezing way over to the falls. It was amazing! The water is crashing down and as you approach by swimming it gets louder and louder. You think to yourself, "What am I doing?!...What if I die?!" Finally, you get under the falls and the water comes crashing down on your head. It stings a little, but feels great and you swim through to the other side behind the falls. You do the same thing as you swim out and after you clear the water you can turn over on to you back and stare up the 300+ foot cliff at the gallons of water pouring over! Its surreal.

Freeeeezing cold waterfall!

Nikki ALMOST did it! haha...the water was tooo cold for her. She did make it in waist deep and she promiesed me that next time she's going all the way. We'll do it in the summer time and it will be better.

After that, we dried off and set up a picnic spot and ate our delicious sandwiches Nikki had made and took a nap. While we were eating, droves of hikers started arriving which made us glad for the early start so we could miss the crowd.

Our lunch spot

Finally, we packed up and started heading back. Going back was soooo tiring and all the downhill hiking killed our knees. We stopped at the 'beach' again, which was full of people and Nikki found a nice rock recliner to rest on before we started the final leg back.

The most comfortable rock resting spot / The water / The view

Also, on the way back we saw a naked lost boy. That was fun. hahaha. Apparantly, some punk whiteboy teenager was out there with his buddies and I guess he got dared into taking is trunks off....well of course his buddies stole his shorts so next thing we see is this white butt come jumping out of the trees ahead of us chasing down his friends to get his shorts back! HAHAHA!

Swinging on the vines after the hike!

So we finally, made it back and were sooo tired. We watched the movie Drive that night and ate at Hamura Saimin...an awesome and tasty noodle house. Ahhh hawaii life is nice.

Tune in next time for more adventures in Kauai!