The Decompression of a Boomer

Tuesday, January 24. Day 5. (Or is it day 6? Jeez, it’s flying by…)
We are headed to Kauapea “Kay-oo-uh-pee-uh”
(about every one of these Hawaiian beaches and trails sound the same to me) Beach, otherwise known as ‘Secret Beach.’

The waves are magnificient.

We climb the rocks for a better view (you can see the Lighthouse in the far distance).

“Mountain Goat” is always ahead

and usually higher than the rest of us.

Uh, maybe we don’t want to get too close …

It might be approaching high tide

Don’t see anyone swimming…

We’re headed back to the car now.

Thank goodness we’re at sea level. I wouldn’t want to be climbing this hill in high altitude, I’m gasping for air as it is.

We drive to the Ki Lauea (great Scrabble word if you’re burdened with vowels) Lighthouse. I didn’t capture a picture of the Lighthouse, I don’t know why, you see it in lots of brochures. But I did capture a great view from the Lighthouse of the coastline (and Secret Beach, where we just were).

We learn about the Red-Footed Boobies

that are nesting all over Crater Hill

there, across the cove.

We’re pretty pooped at this point (literally) so we return home.

Except Eric is restless and hyped up to check out the ‘Hissing Dragon’ at Makapili Rock, or what I understand as ‘Rock Beach.’ He piques David’s and my curiosity and we decide to come along.

He had found the exact route to the Hissing Dragon by way of a one-lane dirt road that we drive on for almost a mile. Then it turns into a mud hole, so we pull off and walk the last half-mile of road

to get to the rock bench that runs along the shore to Makapili Point.

Rock bench? I was thinking ‘beach’ which is why I’m wearing flip-flops.

We climb over rocks for the next 45 minutes. I take no photos, I’m so focused on every step, and fearful of falling, or losing a flip-flop, breaking a flip-flop, stubbing my toe, breaking a toe …

We can go no further now. David and I meet up with Eric sitting on a rock.

“So where’s the Hissing Dragon, Eric?”

We wait around for a few minutes. I’m thinking of how I could catch a helicopter back.

Suddenly we hear a sucking noise coming from this crevice in the rock cliff a few feet away.

David walks over first. The water comes foamimg up and blasts out of the hole like an explosion. Holy %$*#!

I flip-flop over there and wait with my i-phone. Nothing happens for several minutes. Then the sucking noise… I take a photo. I take another photo, then another…. WHOA!

I fly 10 feet back from the thing. I’d hate to experience this exploding geyser at high tide.

We start heading back.

I’m flip-flopping at a ferocious pace to keep up with David.

Waves come thrashing up through rock crevices along the way.

What’s this thing?

Some kind of omen?

That white speck against the patch of green up there is Eric.

He waits for us to catch up.

Are you serious? I’m supposed to get up there?

This section is pretty sketchy. Especially in flip-flops. With your stomach tied in knots.

We’re back off the rocks now, away from the shore.

If you do get your rig this far in you may not get it back out.

What happened to these people?

We’re walking on the road again, headed to the car (sounds like a verse to a song, and I feel like singing it, too).

Yay! Whew! What a relief to find the car, undisturbed, right where we left it, was it two hours ago?

If you ask me, this whole excursion had all the makings (and evidence??) of a death march. (…Eric)

Yeah, well, I gotta admit, that Hissing Dragon was pretty cool.

Our trip was all play and no work. Except, well, you know that expression, ‘fish and relatives stink after three days.’ So by the fourth day David, Eric, and I thought it prudent to jolt ourselves out of ‘freeloading’ mode and offer Steph and Vic some assistance with home repair/improvement projects.

So we had a ‘work day.’ Starting with following Victor to the dump.

David and Eric are unloading our rental car. (I see Eric’s wearing his obnoxious Einstein shirt.)

I’m taking photos (hey, that takes two hands)

of them recycling boxes.

(Isn’t this fascinating?) Have photos, will post! Does this blog totally validate me or what, regarding my contribution on ‘work day’!

David replaced lights on the outside of the house

while Eric replaced lights on the inside

because Eric has a total irrational fear of spiders… uh, these Kauai spiders in particular…

which, I might add, were nesting in the outside bushes and along the roofline and which are completely harmless (as long as you don’t disturb their web).

Victor is famous for his Won Ton soup

Yum!!

He did most of the cooking:

Meanwhile, Steph never wastes a free moment, even on vacation,

researching scientific articles about bio-chemical processes to write her health blogs.

David is still replacing outside bulbs

Eric scrubs the grill

and repairs a deck chair.

I do have a picture of myself at work

lounging beside Steph on the deck (oceanview side) so she can discuss with me her theories on cholesterol sulfate and why its production (mainly in the skin from sun exposure) is essential to health. My work here in the above picture is three-fold: listening to Steph, producing cholesterol sulfate in my skin from sunbathing, and photographing it.

Our other quest was to find evening entertainment. We consulted the concierge at a nearby resort to investigate the local prospects of our favorite vacation past time: Karaoke. Verdict: None. (What’s that about? They KNEW we were coming?) So we had to improvise, implement Plan ‘B’ (Turn up your volume)

Hey. What can I say? Steph and Vic have an i-Pod with about a thousand tunes that connects to a Bose sound system.

Who needs Karaoke?

Yeah, well, when you’re vacationing in Kauai, everything you do is play.

So where were we?  Oh yeah, we had just finished lunch at the Koke-e Lodge and were watching Eric cast his magic spell over the feral chickens (tossing crumbs from his leftover sandwich).

We made our way back to our cars – in anxious anticipation of Victor’s hike – which would take us to two fabulous lookouts, the Kalalau and Puuokkela  in Kokee State Park. Say it aloud: “Kay-lay-lay-oo and Poo-oo-oh-Kay-el-ay in Koe-Kay-ee State Park ….”  Oh, forget it.

We’re on the trail now.  It’s a tad more rigorous than I had anticipated.

Steph on the trail - David above Steph

How did you get UP THERE, Eric? And how am I going to do it?

Oh, that’s right. You’re half mountain goat.

We climbed, clung, and clawed our way to the top.

David at the summit

We’re headed back down now

Clouds rise up the side of the mountain and roll over us

That’s the ocean in the distance. It follows the ridge. Or maybe the ridge follows the ocean.

We’re halfway down now

No, I guess it’s up.

And still up – before we gradually descend to lower ground.

The ocean comes into clearer view.

We’re down now. Headed back to the car.

Hey!!
Why did the rooster cross the road?

Because he owns it. Seriously. These fowl critters strut around like they’re the State bird.

We pass through Waimea canyon again on the drive home.

A mermaid washes up on shore.

"Cuddles Cutes"

And then another mermaid.

It's my Hubby!

Yeah, well we put them on the dishes when we got home.

What do you suppose those two were up to after that? …