Capturing the Moment

  View from the drone. This aerial shot is of the channel leading out of the lagoon at Anini Beach, one of the north shores most well-kept secret beaches. When you visit the island of Kauai, it is worth spending an entire day driving and exploring the North side of the island. There are so many hidden beach, snorkel spots, photo and wildlife hot spots, the towns of Kilauea and Hanalei, caves, and beautiful scenery around every turn. In fact, you might need more than one day. We tried to stop at all the hot spots. We saw nesting sea birds at the Kilauea Lighthouse, walked out to the end of the Hanalei Pier, flew my drone at Anini Beach, and even hiked up the Kalalau Trail into the Na Pali coast at the end of the road. We stopped to see the biggest taro patches in the state, and roadside snack shops in historic plantation buildings. The rains definitely came in, the closer we got to the end of the road. But that just added more waterfalls to the cliffs. Everything was green as it usu...

 How much of the island of Kauai could you really see in just two days. Read on and see how I managed to fit just about every corner of the island into two long days of driving and then think to yourself what you could do with an entire week!  Starting off centrally located was key. I stayed at the Beach Hostel in Kepa'a, which is about twenty minutes north of the airport. I separated my two days into a southern and a northern itinerary. There is one big road that goes around the coastline of Kauai, with a few roads heading inland to see waterfalls, rivers, and canyons. The coastline is awash with beautiful white sand beaches, and a number of hotels, resorts, vacation rentals, and restaurants to keep the regular tourists busy. But for the adventurous visitors who want to get off the beaten track Kauai is an untapped playground.  Just south of the airport lies Kalapaki Beach and Nauwiliwili Bay were surf lessons can be watched with mai tai in hand on the lana...