In and about Kauai - Feb 24

It was about 100 miles from Oahu to Kauai. The ship docked at the port of Nawiliwili (means 'the place of wiliwili trees'; wiliwili trees are the state tree of Hawaii, the wood is light in density which makes it good for making surfboards and its seeds don't spoil, are a powerful laxative, and, can be stacked and burned and made into a type of candle) on the east side of the island.  We got onto the shore excursion bus and went to the Grand Canyon of Hawaii (Mark Twain named it). 

This is a canyon made by the Waimea River. In the image we are at about 4000' and the canyon is about 2000' deep. We are on the west side of the island but the east side of the canyon. 

This canyon is only about 5 million years old (the Grand Canyon in Arizona is 17 million years old). At the top of the west side of the canyon that is a plateau with elevation about 4000' and is known as the Pihea-Alakai swamp. If classified as a swamp, it would be the world's highest. however, most botanists would classify it as a high elevation bog. 

The image of Ann is at Twin Falls, aka Opaekaa falls, near the Wailua River.

The next image of Ann is at the fern grotto. This is near the Wailua River on the east side of the island.


This site has had changes due to weather. In 1992, Hurricane Iniki tore out all the existing vegetation. Then in March and April 2006, a 40 day rainstorm (one site on the island got 92" of rain in March 2006) washed a lot of boulders into the grotto. The people in the picture are on a wooden deck built over the boulders.

The Wailua River is the site of dozens of movies (actually scenes of movies), e.g. Supergator (a made for Syfy channel film in 2007), Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) and, notably, Blue Hawaii (a 1961 Elvis film). 
 
In the film there is a scene in which Chadwick Gates (played by Elvis) is handed a conch shell. The guy who handed the conch shell in that film is now a local celebrity of sorts and was one of the musicians who played for us on the boat up and down the river.




The next image shows the kind of boat we took up and down the Wailua River.  


 

By this point, I had asked several of the guides on our shore excursions, the following question, 
"Where do Hawaiians go for vacation?" 

The answer was mostly, 

"Las Vegas" 


That is metaphorically like saying that if you live in Gan Eden (a.k.a., Paradise', a.k.a., the 'Garden of Eden') you vacation in Sodom.