This was a very active day - we had an appointment with a helicopter at 12:15, which worked out very well because it was kind of a windy, gray-weather day. We started (or tried to start) at Lydgate park south of Kapa'a, which has a few protected swimming areas and a large play structure. It was too windy to be very much fun - so we asked a lifeguard where we might go to avoid the island and he suggested Mahaulepu Beach on the southside. We didn't have tons of time between leaving Lydgate and needing to be at the helicopter - so we raced to Mahaulepu after viewing Spouting Horn in Poipu (Mahaulepu access required some very bumpy dirt roads through sugar cane fields) to picnic for an early lunch.
Mahaulepu is a very special place. Not in the dreamy, sun-soaked, tropical island-feel way - but in a hidden, quiet, ultra-natural exploratory way. The over-cast day may have provided an even more "secretive" feel to the beach - I would love to go back on a sunny day and see how feels compared to the time we were there. We were sorry to rush, but we ate our lunch in a little protected cove within the umbrella of a tree and walked along the beach (which has a very soft, deep, large-grained sand) a bit before racing back to our car to head to the airfield.
The helicopter ride was worth every cent we paid (and a family of 5 adds up - Ford almost fell asleep - and there was no way I was wasting his fare on a nap so I woke him up). We circled the whole island, as depicted on a map I posted on another day's blog.
Excellent way to see the entire island, and many fantastic sites. Riding early in the trip is good because you can get a good sense for the entire place; riding late in the trip wouldn't be bad either because it is fun to see places you've been, from above. I guess I'd recommend taking it in the middle of your Kaua'i stay, just like we did. I definitely feel that Kaua'i seems to be the best island for the helicopter because of the diversity of the island and your ability to see it all in one 50 minute flight.
After the flight, we hit Kalapaki Beach which is in front of the Kauai Marriott. The kids loved the surf here (although Alex took a serious beating from one close-breaking wave - a good body-surfing lesson to learn without injury). Though the weather wasn't great, we hung out here into the evening, grabbing dinner at Duke's Canoe Club which was very fun.
No comments:
Post a Comment