panoramas and fish

after my lonely night on the beach, I met up with the groom's friend and his wife for a hike.

we headed to the North Shore, to the Na Pali Coast.

when we got to the trailhead, we decided to fuel up for the trek. we enjoyed a little lunch on the beach. then headed to the trail.

it was rather wet and slippery. but, as we continued along the mud and wet rocks, the panoramas we caught glimpses of through the trees were breathtaking.

well worth the messy climb.

at last the trees were less dense. fewer hanging on to the stee cliff side. we could take in the entire view.

the uninhabited Na Pali Coast stretching off into the distance. magnificent cliffs sharply meeting the ocean. lush vegetation. the variation in the colors of the ocean and land, incredible.

pausing many times along the way. views to take in, pictures to take. amazing shots. too many to post. (perhaps too many already.)

I had warned them about my photobug tendancies. about the 200 shots I'd taken on my first hike. luckily my new friends liked to snap away and admire the view almost as much as I do.

in my packing frenzy before I left, I had not grabbed my Camelbak. luckily the groom's friend had one and offered to share with a "would you like to suck on my hose."

who could pass up such an offer. and his wife was more than willing to share with me. we thought it was very amusing.

the guy passing us did as well. although he didn't know we were speaking of hydration.

I suppose eavesdropping without fully understanding can be even more entertaining.

the trail continued to get more and more slippery. and it began to pour. we decided it was time to turn around, besides we wanted to get a little snorkeling in.

the snorkeling was great. large volcanic rocks covered in algea and coral off Ke'e Beach provide a great place to look at the fish. hopefully the underwater pictures will turn out.

after we left the snorkeling behind, we stopped for a drink and dinner. a friend at the coffee shop near my office had reccommended the Dolphin in Hanalei. very glad I mentioned where I was going before I left. the ahi was incredible.

an incredible dinner with amazing new friends, quite the way to spend my last evening on Kauai.