Kauai, the Garden Isle

Driving around the southern and western part of Kauai today.  I had to stop at the Lihue Walmart for new sandals first.  While we were there, we had to watch out for the chickens in the parking lot.  We were told that in the past, Filipinos brought the chickens in for cockfights.  Having seen some of these fighting roosters in the Philippines, they look just as tough.  All of them got loose after a typhoon on the 1990s and now they are all over.

Walmart rooster

Warning sign

Next up was the Spouting Horn in Koloa.  This was a little more impressive than the blowhole we saw on Oahu.  I think this was timing though.

Spouting Horn, Koloa

I insisted we go to the Kauai Coffee Company, of course.

Coffee trees

Drying the beans

Right down the road were the ruins of  Fort Elizabeth, a Russian fort that was there from 1815 to 1864.  It was established to provide a way station for Russian ships trading between East Asia and the Pacific Northwest.

Ruins of Fort Elizabeth 

Right across the Waimea River from the fort is where Captain Cook first landed in Hawaii.

Cook's landing spot 

Captain Cook statue

We drove up HI 520 to what is known as "Hawaii's Grand Canyon", Waimea Canyon.  It was pretty impressive.

Waimea Canyon

Waimea Canyon 

Niihau lookout, Waimea Canyon Park

Looking down the canyon.  It was getting cloudy.

Made it to the top (5140 ft) but this is all we could see.

Tried to take back roads back to the hotel.  The GPS wasn't working, so we did it the 20th Century way with maps.  It's hard to get lost on an island like this though.

We found the westernmost independent bookstore in the US in a small town called Hanapepe.  I got a book for the plane ride back.

Bookstore in Hanapepe

We came across something called Alekoko Fishpond.  I saw the sign but didn't know what to expect.  Turns out it belonged to Kauai royalty in ancient times and (according to legend) was guarded by royal children with supernatural powers.  The sister turned into a lizard and the brother (Alekoko) into a shark.

Alekoko Fishpond

Tomorrow we'll explore the eastern and northern sides of the island.

Did you know: Niihau is a privately-owned island which has a population of about 250.  There are no roads or electricity and the residents speak Hawaiian in an effort to maintain their culture.