Feeding Time!

The video below was taken at Hideaways Beach (I think -- Betsy says it's Anini, but is more "flexible" than me). You can see how the waves play with this school as they munch on algae.

Tunnels Beach

Tunnels Beach, one of the best snorkeling spots in Hawai'i, had so far proven elusive on our trip. On our first couple days of snorkeling, we stayed close to home, and by the time we were ready to travel a relatively inconvenient 20 minutes to Tunnels, the weather had changed, and the beach was closed. Finally, the stars aligned, and we were able to get there earlier this week. Not only did we see practically every species of fish we'd seen at all the other beaches combined, but the water was cleaner and clearer, and the sun was shining brightly making for fantastic visibility. That, combined with friendly fish, allowed Tunnels to live up to its reputation.

Panorama of Tunnels beach (click to enlarge). There's an inner reef, visible in the foreground, and an outer reef, where the waves are breaking in the distance. It only take a few minutes to swim between the two. The only difference is that the bigger fish tend to hang out in the outer reef, though they occasionally make the trip in to visit friends and family. The Na'Pali Coast, a national park, starts on the left of the picture, and offers some wild hiking (see entry below).

Hawai'ian Monkseal basking in the morning light. They are remarkably unafraid of humans.

Betsy floats over a reef full of curious fish.

Finally! A good shot of these "rainbow fish" (I'm not sure what they're called) had been eluding me all week. They're fast and a bit shy. But at Tunnels, they were more photogenic. This one even seems to be smiling for the camera.

The humuhumunukunuku apu a'a, Hawai'i's former state fish, was a common sight at almost every beach.

But this variegated version was unique to Tunnels, at least in our experience.

Butterfly fish

I love the striations around the eye of the top fish.

Parts of the coral reef looked like miniature cities, complete with sky-scrapers and distant hills.

These tiny fish managed to find refuge in some of the coral.

"Hey, come here, I got something to tell you."

An Orangeband Surgeonfish and Eye-Stripe Surgeonfish talk about what it's like to be a surgeonfish.

Yellow wrasse, I'm guessing

Blue wrasse

The shore from a momentary snorkeling respite

The Threadfin Butterfly Fish Trilogy, Part I

The Threadfin Butterfly Fish Trilogy, Part II

The Threadfin Butterfly Fish Trilogy, Part III

Blue-striped Snapper

Farewell, Tunnels. We'll miss you.

Na'Pali Coast

The Na'Pali Coast is one of Hawai'i's greatest hikes. Eleven miles of essentially unspoiled coastline, passing through two beaches and ending a half-mile before a third that is only legally accessible by swimming into it from the ocean. The hike winds its way along cliff sides overlooking the crashing surf and turquoise waters far below, and then skirts into valleys to cross a stream, only to venture back out to the ocean. The result is an every-changing landscape of tropical forest, coastal views, and waterfalls. We hiked part of the trail, to Hanakapi'ai Falls, on a humid day, culminating in a swim beneath the waterfall.

Betsy at one of the many cascades along the trail

The beach itself was pretty rough, as evidenced by this makeshift sign.

Bamboo stands accented the trail on the way up-valley to the falls.

And Betsy didn't hesitate to play.

Pink flowers shed their needles on the trail, enhancing Hawai'i's reputation as paradise.

Our first view of Hanakapi'ai Falls

OK, twist our arms. We'll go for a little dip.

It was definitely cold, but swimming beneath and behind the falls was a rush. Not to mention reinvigorating for the hike out. Ahhh...

Return to Hideaways

The nice part about staying on the north shore is that so many great snorkeling beaches are so close. We returned to one of our favorites, Hideaways, this weekend. The steep trail down means that it's relatively deserted, and for much of our time there, we were the only ones on the beach. Both times we've been there, a kayaking tour has floated up for a break on their trip, confirming that it's one of the best beaches on the island.

This Ornate Wrasse was one of the few fish I saw for the first time on this particular snorkle.

Four-Spot Butterfly

This school of fish was feeding on the rock. A video of this event will appear on the blog shortly -- watch out for it because it gives you a great sense of what life is like under water.

Waimea Canyon

Waimea Canyon, on Kauai's west side, has been called the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific." When I hiked an 11-mile loop through it today, I remembered why I'm not a big fan of those types of comparisons. Shouldn't a place stand on its own? Waimea certainly did. Yes, it's a canyon, but the tropical island climate gives it a feel so much different than the desert heat of the "other" canyon. Lush wildflowers, dripping plant life, and thick clouds rolling in all added to the drama of the steep walls and red dirt drop-offs.

I suppose there are some similarities...

But the lushness of vegetation separated the hike in my eyes.

Clouds lingered over the distant ridge for the first part of the hike, until they dropped and started sprinkling.

This was pretty typical scenery on the Nu'alolo Ridge trail, which connected the first part of my hike on the Nu'alolo trail, to the second part on the Awa'awapuhi trail.

There's actually a rainbow in this picture. Light showers perforated the early part of the hike. Unfortunately, I couldn't get into a good position to take this shot until the rainbow had already started fading. It starts about 2/3 up on the left, and arcs down across the picture.

This gives you a sense of how steep the walls are.

What I liked best about the hike was how the view constantly shifted, revealing new contours as I snaked around the ridge.

I ran into a couple from Austria, who were kind enough to take this picture at the end of the Awa'awapuhi trail

Light finally infiltrates the Nu'alolo valley.

This little knob at the Awa'awapuhi vista was on a ridge that formed a barrier, keeping most of the fog on the ocean side (right), though it started sneaking through to the valley right before I left.

This shot was taken from the road out of the canyon. My hike was behind the ridge in the upper left, which drops off the other side toward the ocean. At one end of my hike, I was probably about 15 miles from our place on the north shore, but since the terrain is so steep and wild, I had to drive all the way around the island for access (not that far really -- maybe about 60 miles).