Day 9: Journey to Waimea Canyon

This morning we pulled into the harbor of Nawiliwili on the Garden Isle of Kaua'i. It was very picturesque with its golf course bordering the cliffs, its beaches and lighthouses, all with the backdrop of the beautiful mountains. This is the oldest and smallest island we'll visit, coastline only 90 miles and population only about 60,000. 

We set off west across the island to the town of Waimea and then north along the winding mountain roads towards the Waimea Canyon. This canyon is referred to as 'the Grand Canyon of the Pacific'. It is 10 miles long, 1 mile wide and 3,600 feet deep. 

It was a very impressive sight and as you'll see from the photos there is a lot more vegetation growing in this canyon than in the Grand Canyon. Some parts of Kaua'i receive an unbelievable 37.5 feet of rain a year, the rainiest spot on earth. As you can imagine the landscape is very green and lush on this island. 

As we reached the bottom of the mountain we made a quick pit stop at the Kaua'i Coffee plantation. We were able to sample some of their coffees and walk through the plantation to look at all the coffee bushes. 

Then we detoured to Spouting Horn park to watch a water spout rise and fall with the tide. Like Old Faithful, just a lot more frequent and a lot smaller! Finally got back to the ship at about 3pm - almost missed our buffet lunch! ;-)

Since by now we had well and truly had our fill of group tours and tour buses (8 days straight is enough to last us a lifetime, or at least until we're too old and decrepit to rent a car and go it alone!) we headed off on foot in the direction of the beach. We dipped our toes in the ocean then found a bar in the most idyllic spot overlooking the beach with its swaying palm trees and blue water. This is what you picture when you think of Hawaii!