Yesterday afternoon we took a dinner cruise along the Napali Coast. Great food, humpback whales, porpoises, booby birds, and albatross framed beautiful views of this rugged coastline while we swayed in 10 foot seas. That’s why the horizon is askew in some photos.
A great day. I slept for 10 hours!
Paul
Today we did the north shore. While Norman and Janet went to a meeting Jean and I explored Hanalei. Think Puff and the land of Hanalei and you will have a picture of the culture. This is a town that proudly says they have no public wifi in any business and suggest that you unplug and relax. Lots of long hair, beards, surfboards, and bronzed bodies. I did find a shirt for a souvenir.
Norman and Janet met us and we went to a beautiful unnamed beach. Lunch was at the top of a cliff over turqouise water and rocks. Then we hiked down a short steep trail to a long beach with very few people. Lava piles interrupted the incoming waves, creating sand banks on the beach. Beautiful!
Jean and Janet at lumch
Jean collecting sea shells.
We drove to the end of the road looking at beaches and houses. One for sale sign on a woebegone fixer upper caught my attention. It was $1.5 million!
Tomorrow we are taking a dinner boat trip to the Napoli coast.
Paul
Today we ventured to Waimea Canyon. It was a sunny, clear morning with no fog or clouds on the mountains. We were told this is a rare occurrence, so felt lucky. On the way west we swung down to Numila to visit the Kauai Coffee Company. In addition to coffee they make fruit smoothies, which some of our party sampled. I sampled the coffee, which is interesting since I don’t drink it. Like my experience in Costa Rica, I found some of the coffees to be very tasty.
We drove up toward Waimea Canyon with few stops because we were afraid the clouds would descend up on top before we arrived. The views at the end of the road were spectacular. After a lunch at the top we began our slow drive back down, stopping at every opportunity to take photos.
Finally our day ended with dinner at Brick Oven Pizza.
![20150111_201829[1]](https://travelswithpicasso.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/20150111_2018291.jpg?w=640&h=853)
This came highly recommended in the Funk Kauai Guidebook. It met expectations and we came home well satisfied.
A great day! Tomorrow the north coast.
Paul
Safely arrived in Kauai today, lounged around the resort, watched the Seahawks game, and cooked a tasty dinner of fresh Mahi Mahi.
Here are some photos on our lanais.
Chickens are everywhere! This rooster and his harem seem to like our lanai.
Tomorrow Waimeia Canyon!
Paul
The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2014 annual report for our blog. Our travels were less intense and shorter than other years, but we still enjoyed sharing the places we went and our painting activities. Most of all we enjoy comments from friends and followers. 2015 will see us return to Europe, so watch for new posts and sign up to follow the blog to get notified when we post.
Here’s an excerpt:
A San Francisco cable car holds 60 people. This blog was viewed about 2,900 times in 2014. If it were a cable car, it would take about 48 trips to carry that many people.
We returned home last night after one last rainy day on the road. We left Rogue River early and drove through the southern Oregon mountains. It was beautiful even though a bit stormy. Lunch was a brief stop in Salem to see Jean’s paintings on display as part of the NW Pastel Society show. Home before dark!
Paul
Today it began raining just north of Sacramento and is still raining after dinner in Rogue River Oregon. We are loving the moisture after weeks of mountain dryness. No photos today because before the rain all we saw was ugly central California. Besides I can’t take pictures while driving.
Tomorrow we will stop in Salem where Jean has some paintings in a show and then home!
We left Williams this morning under sunny skies and 20 degree air. This is the first state or province on this trip that has not threatened us with snow, but Arizona has other dangers.
Here’s one last look at the desert before we crossed into California.
The drive through the Mojave Desert was starkly beautiful. Tonight we are in central California.
Paul
Today we visited our friend Cathy and went to Wupatki National Monument. Cathy’s all-terrain walker enabled her to see some of the sights of this unique ancient pueblo site. While cool, the sunshine made it great weather for a leisurely afternoon exploring the ruins.
California tomorrow.
Paul
This is a snap of sunset last night in Albuquerque.
This morning there was 6″ of snow on I-40 east of the city. We drove west and found sunshine in 30 minutes that lasted the rest of the day. Tonight we are in Williams Arizona.
Paul
