Labor Day 2010

We spent part of Labor Day at Hanalei with some friends. The water was calm and warm so Carson went out to catch some waves on the boogie board while Emilia spent time designing her latest castle.

Hanalei Bay is the beach where I like to hang out with the kids while Todd is at work. The water is calm and the sand is the best in the island, plus the view is simply gorgeous. Today when I looked up to the mountains I could count five waterfalls.

The locals tell me that the water in the bay changes around November and waves of up to 20 ft crash into the beach. Pro surfers love to come here during the winter. I look at the water now and I can't believe it can change so much in just a few weeks.

In the morning we took the kids on a four mile hike (round trip) to Hanakapi'ai Beach. The trail was challenging as you can see by the photo on the bottom left. We had to climb and descend several times along a ridge overlooking the ocean, hike through mud and cross a river to get to it.

It was well worth it!  All along the trail the colors of the jungle to the left and the water to the right were amazing. To me the beach was just the end of a great trek. I only wished we could have swam in the water, but the strong surf makes it too dangerous.

By completing this hike Todd and I have officially circumnavigated Kauai - one goal down!