Kauai 2017

Kevin and I had a such a wonderful time, enjoying the beauty of the Lord in creation.

The vibrancy of the blues and greens and reds are unmatched.

Poipu Bay

We always enjoy walking along the coast from the Hyatt to the Sheraton and this time down to Ku'kui'ula Shopping Center.

The view from the Hyatt

Stunning blue skies, the gentle trade winds, the roar of the surf, and the incessant chatter of myna birds are part of the landscape.

Translucent orchids

Red spotted green gecko 

This little green gecko with red spots is hard to see...he's right in the center of the photo.

red hibiscus

20 mph winds kicked up the surf

The trade winds stopped for a day or two, and then the winds really picked up, and so did the surf. I spent some time trying to capture the waves rolling into Shipwreck Beach. The surfers where getting pounded, their surf boards flying in the air. I was amazed they lived.

Waimea Canyon

One of the surprises this trip is that they "turned off" the waterfall that used to be here. The woman at Ko'Kee Museum Store told us that they diverted the water to go to the East shore in August, and the locals don't even know about it yet.

The Forest

We went for a hike in the forest near the 17 mile marker by Ko'Kee. We've hiked the Kulapuhi trail several times. There are eight different kinds of forest birds that live here. We enjoy listening to them, and having a chance to see the little four inch elepaio birds up close. The are curious so they come down from the tree tops to branches along the trail and say "hi." It was raining as we walked and the grass and ferns along the trail got us soaked. But it wasn't cold and the beauty of the moss and ferns and tree groves was amazing. We loved it.

Elepaio (Kauai forest bird)

We could hear the elepaio chirping so we knew they were near. And then about 20 seconds into the video Kevin spotted a pair. It's hard to see them on the video, but in-person it is a delight. They are so curious, the books say that it's not uncommon for them to greet hikers.

Napali Coast

And by the time we got up to the lookout over the Napali Coast, the clouds had cleared and we have a beautiful view down 4,000 feet to the ocean.

Sky

I love the ever-changing sky in Kauai. The colors in the clouds, the depth and height, causes them to catch various colors of light. Really fun to watch. And the sea turtles were at Poipu Beach every morning. One morning we saw four along the shore.

Sunrise

The psalmist writes that the Lord's mercy is new every morning, and as we watch the beauty of sunrise, from the rising of Venus in the pitch dark, to the oranges, and yellows, and pinks, and the brilliance of dawn, we are reminded of this truth...God's mercy is new, every morning....great is Thy faithfulness. Here's a video of one of the sunrises when the clouds were reflecting pinks and oranges at dawn.

Flowers, flowers, flowers

I love the beauty of the flowers we see on Kauai. I could spend hours photographing them. Besides the beauty of the combination of color and fragrance, the detail and translucency is gorgeous. Here are a few of my favorites from this trip. Some almost don't look real.