Deja Vu in Waimea Canyon

Though we were happy as clams spotting sea turtles and monk seals at the beach near our cottage, we made sure to set aside one day on Kauai to visit a Hawaiian landmark: the famous Waimea Canyon. Like seeing hot lava on the Big Island, or touring Pearl Harbor on Oahu, no trip to Kauai would be complete without it.

Take one ancient split in the earth, follow it up with a millenia of erosion, and what you get is an amazingly deep canyon of orange and purple rocks, with a narrow river winding along the bottom. WAY DOWN at the bottom.


Though we could have taken advantage of the many hiking trails in the canyon, we opted for the lazy person's driving tour instead, making sure to stop at several overlooks along the way to take a peek into the abyss. The views were spectacular, stretching from one horizon to the other, and three-quarters of a mile straight down to the river below.


As we gaped into the magnificent chasm, we wracked our brains trying to think just exactly how we would describe this to the folks back home....mmmmm.....somehow it seemed so familiar, but also like nothing we'd ever seen before.......And just then the guy next to us turned to his friend and said, "It's like the Grand Canyon. Only greener." Yup, that was exactly right.

Turns out it also struck Mark Twain that way, well over a century ago. Legend has it he was the first to dub Waimea Canyon, the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific."


We followed the winding road deep into the park until it ended, four thousand feet above sea level. And found ourselves up in the clouds. They literally wafted through the parking lot as we got out to take a last look.

At first we couldn't see a thing through that misty air. But after just a few minutes a cool breeze whisked the clouds away completely, and an amazing scene emerged at our feet. WAY DOWN below us, a deep valley opened to the sea. Kalalau Beach was tiny in the distance. Specks of white turned out to be waves, dappling the blue expanse at the horizon.

Four thousand feet above sea level, it's tough to really get a handle on the perspective. At the center of this picture, you'll see the tiny white streak of a boat's wake along the coast, VERY far away:


Seeing Dan in the foreground still doesn't give a proper sense of scale:


To the west, the mysterious island of Niihau emerged from the mist. Privately owned, it's off limits to the public, hence the nickname the "Forbidden Isle." It's also known as the "Isle of Yesterday" because the two hundred or so native Hawaiians residents don't use electricity or drive cars, and their primary language is still Hawaiian. It's a little bit like Amish country, island-style.

We felt a little sneaky peeking over in their direction:


This photo gives you an idea of the dry landscape of western Kauai, near Waimea Canyon:



Back in the little town of Waimea we stopped at Jo Jo's Shave Ice for a yummy treat to end a spectacular day.