Kauai - Part 3

 We really enjoyed being on the sunny south shore near Poipu, and had heard it was quite a bit rainier and windy up in the North. When you look towards the centre of the island there is a spot that they claim is the rainiest spot in the whole world. It usually looks like this:

Even though it looks like that in the middle of Kauai, Poipu was almost always sunny. We decided to drive up to the north shore to see what it was like. When I looked at the guidebook they recommended the Kilauea Lighthouse, and our neighbour recommended that we try snorkeling at Anini Beach. With a general plan we headed out to the north shore. The drive to Kiluauea is about an hour and 15 minutes depending on traffic. We stopped in Kapaa for some lunch and noticed it seemed like a cool little town to walk around. We also saw a few beaches along the drive that looked like good places to come back to on another day.

When we got to the lighthouse (also easy to find using road signs) we parked at the lot before you go into pay. This is actually a killer view of the lighthouse and the ocean. We decided we didn’t need to pay to go in and get closer, as this was a pretty good view already.

  

We drove a little further down along the highway until we came to Anini Beach. On the way you could pull off the highway and have a really good view back to the lighthouse. This was where you could really see the waves coming in. The surf on the north side of the island is quite different than what we were used to on the south side.

Anini Beach was actually quite beautiful, but a little chilly due to the wind. None of us were feeling adventurous enough to get cold snorkeling, so we just enjoyed the beach. There were other people snorkelling here. We would definitely try it another time.

          

Next, we drove a little further down to see Hanalei. We stopped at a lookout to take some pictures, then headed back home for the usual.

The next day Steve and I decided to have a date day. We headed into Kapaa to walk around the town and have a little lunch at the Shrimp Station (other location of the Waimea Shrimp Station). 

This is a very cute little town with your regular tourist shops and a multitude of food choices. The Shrimp Station was delicious as promised. Steve had the shrimp tacos and I had the coconut shrimp. The servings were big and a reasonable price for the food you got. After lunch we spent a couple of hours wandering the town. This is where we came across these two hilarious signs:

Now I'm a little curious how often you go to the liquor store during work hours if you have a special sign typed up?!?

So that evening we decided to go out for a “romantic” dinner for our date night. We knew we wouldn’t get reservations for The Beach House, so resorted to reading the airport paraphernalia. Low and behold we found a restaurant voted “most romantic” (according to this particular pamphlet anyway) that was not far from us. So we make a reservation and head to the Tidepools restaurant at the Hyatt. I’m not sure what I was expecting, but the physical building was nice. It was open air, there were little lagoons all the way around and you were kind of down away from the main hotel. The furniture was standard Hawaiian restaurant (not particularly romantic), but who cares right? The food was quite expensive. I don’t mind paying for expensive food once in awhile, but it better be extra good if it’s expensive! Imagine my surprise when I order crabcakes and it comes out looking like this… really????

Seriously?!? I don't usually take photos of my food... but this one needed documenting!

Someone enjoying themselves in the kitchen? Disgruntled employee? Oblivious employee? I’m not sure… but that is not my idea of what I want my food to look like in a romantic restaurant. I had the steak, which seemed to be mostly fat, but Steve’s food was good. The dessert was absolutely delicious, so we still left happy. But for $175… let’s just say that place is not on my list for a return visit.

That being said, we had a lovely date day. We caught up with the family the next day for more pool time, snorkeling, beachgoing, glorious sunsets and general relaxation.

Our final night we went out to Brennecke’s again which ended up being about the same price as Tidepools, but there were 5 of us instead of 2… and I personally enjoyed the food more (and the slushy girly drinks… we really love those!).

There were only 2 things we wanted to do that we didn’t get around to. I really wanted to do a boat trip up the Napali coast… but in the winter the water can be rough…and I get seasick… and we have seen it before. Maybe next time we’ll go at a different time of year and do that again. The other thing we wanted to do that we didn’t was the kayak and hike to Wailua Falls. Maybe next time. There will definitely be a next time, as this is now our favourite of the Hawaiian Islands.

Look at how happy we look when we are in Kauai!

Now it’s back to reality. Back home… back to work… until we get to hop on a plane again! 🛫