Kauai- Day 4

Vince and I woke up the next day and were thrilled to see that the sun was out; the weather for the long hike back was looking good! We enjoyed another breakfast on the beach, replenished our water supplies, packed up camp, and set out for the trail.

One last look at the beach

Action shot!

Me crossing one of several streams along the way...

Whew! Vince and I made it out before sunset; check out those steps/floors!

Able to relax knowing we'd made it back safely, our appetites were running on all cylinders. We'd heard good things about a little barbeque stop in a nearby town, so making it there was our first order of business ;) It was a great choice (I went back for seconds!) and we left there happy and satisfied. We hit the road proud of our accomplishments, made short work of the drive to our B&B in Waimea, and went to sleep looking forward to seeing more of the island the next day.

Kauai- Day 3

Refreshed from a good night's sleep, Vince and I woke up the next day eager to explore the Kalalau Beach area. We enjoyed our camp breakfast of biscuits and gravy (thank you Mountain House) by the beach, drank our coffee to the sound of the waves on the beach, and headed out for an a.m. stroll.

 

We found the coolest spot at the end of the beach :D



Me in the corner (for scale!)

Vince enjoying the view :)

We spent the morning checking out the beach, getting fresh water, and hoping for some sunshine, but the clouds were not going to give up, so we went back to the tent to relax. It was nice being "unplugged!"

Wild goats showed up to check out the scene that afternoon- too cool!

We got up and walked the beach later on, but the weather wasn't the greatest, so it was a fairly uneventful day. That said, we were grateful for the tranquility and the time together, so we made the best of it and hoped we'd be as lucky with the weather going out as we had been hiking in...

Kauai- Day 2

Our alarm clock went off bright and early our first morning in Kauai and, although I am NOT a fan of mornings in general, I was excited to see what we had in store. Vince and I had decided to hike the Kalalau Trail on the island's Napili Coast. It's 11 miles (each way) of switchbacks, cliffs, and jungle, so we would definitely be checking off the "adventure" box!

We hit the road long before the sun came up to give us time for coffee, 

 a quick breakfast, and an opportunity to get a parking spot at the trailhead

Our stop of choice: the Kilauea Bakery

Deciding what to pick was the hard part!

Our baked goods were still warm in the to-go box- YUM!

With our parking spot secure (yay!) we enjoyed our treats

in the car, readied our packs, and set off for the trail

The gentle beginning...

Amazing views were around each corner- we were speechless

We took a quick water break and enjoyed the sound of the

waves against the shore before getting into the serious part...

Can you spot the trail?

One of several pristine streams along the way

A feathered friend checking us out :)

Somewhere around mile 8 or 9...

Almost there...

Made it! We surveyed our camping options and set up shop

Our next chore was gathering water; luckily this waterfall made it easy! 

Beach pic for the books :)

Our first beach sunset of the trip- beautiful

What a day! Feeling quite accomplished, we enjoyed our camp dinner by the beach, finished organizing our campsite, and settled in for some well-deserved sleep

Kauai- Day 1

Our trip from Anchorage to Kauai was relatively quick and despite being a little tired from our red-eye, we hit the ground ready to roll :)

We made short work of grabbing our luggage, made our way to our rental car, and set off for our hotel. From there we spent some time getting organized for the next day- we had an early morning ahead of us and needed to be ready! With that taken care of, we freshened-up and headed out for dinner.

The chef at JO2 has been nominated for James Beard Awards several times, so I couldn't wait to check it out! We opted for the tasting menu- which proved to be an excellent choice!

First course: tomato sampler stracciatella 

Tahitian style ceviche

Sesame-crusted mahi mahi 

Miso-glazed butterfish

Jicama tacos

Valrhona chocolate crème brulee

Wow! Saying that we were impressed is an understatement. Not only was the food impeccable, but the restaurant staff were great. We left with full bellies and smiles on our faces, got settled back at the hotel, and drifted off to sleep looking forward to our upcoming adventures...

Searching For Sunshine: Kauai 2017

Up at work for both Christmas and New Year's, Vince and I had a quiet holiday season in 2016 and we were ready for some fun and vitamin D by the end of January. Like many of our fellow Alaskans, we packed our flip flops and set our sights on Hawaii- only this time we decided to check out an island that was new to us both: Kauai!

Birthday Fun!

This year I was fortunate enough to be off work for my birthday- and Vince (being the awesome husband that he is!) organized a fun get-together with some friends to celebrate. No one has EVER done this for me since I was a kid, so his efforts were the best present I could ever ask for.


So... what did we do? Vince bought us tickets to a Fall Music Festival that was held outside Taproot (a fun music venue in town). Alaskan musicians were featured, and there were several local food trucks on site. We bundled up and set off to meet our good friends Mike & Angie :)

Blackwater Railroad

Our little group had fun catching up and enjoying the scene, but we took a break to warm up (it was cold and rainy) and grab some off-site eats...



 

Spice is always welcome in my book, so I opted for Serranos' 



Tortilla soup, chips & guac, and spicy salsas were just what the doctor ordered 

From there, we headed over to Black Cup to re-energize before heading back to the festival in the elements. The weather was definitely not ideal, but we still had a blast; it is one of my all-time favorite birthdays to reflect on :)

The music fest was technically a few days before my actual birthday, so Vince had a few more surprises in store...

We finally made it to a bakery I'd been wanting to try for years :D

One of many tempting displays...

If I didn't already have a target in mind (the cinnamon rolls), choosing a treat could have taken awhile! We enjoyed chatting with the owner, picked out our goodies, and headed home to enjoy our breakfast in our pj's back at home ;)

I opted for the "traditional" cinnamon roll...Don't laugh too hard at the tape measure; it's part of my side project to find the best one in Anchorage hehe. I take food comparisons seriously!! Prior to my birthday, we had sampled rolls from 2 other bakeries in town, but I've yet to have my mind blown. This one, however, was pretty amazing :)

Vince opted for the almond cinnamon roll (which was surprisingly good!)

With our cinnamon rolls devoured, we enjoyed a leisurely morning reading the news, catching up with family & friends, AND opening some presents :)

Awwww! Balloons are so cute!

We eventually suited up for the gym, ran some errands, and did a few chores before it was time for dinner... I decided my ideal birthday dinner this year would be to stay at home and enjoy some crab with my honey. Pro tip: buy from Costco!

Our "crab feast" was the perfect ending to a pretty fantastic day :)