Frugal Bastard's Hawaii Trip 2007 - 23/5/07

Lazy morning. Visited nearby Wailua Falls. Impressive little twin waterfall. Probably really gets going during the rainy season.

Wailua Falls - up close

Wild chicken on Kauai at Wailua Falls. They were all over the place.


Drove to Hanalei and had lunch at Bubba's - Bill Clinton has eaten there. Waited 10 minutes to order and about 15 minutes to pick up - the place is that popular. The food was nothing special. Walked around the shops and bumped into Sandy from the helicopter ride.

Hanalei with a lovely backdrop


The tourist information center was more interested in selling us a tour than giving help about attractions in the area. Drove to Ke'e Beach, as there was no parking at Tunnels Beach where we were planning to snorkel, and it is about as far north as you can drive. The road to get there is very narrow and there are several one-way bridges on the way.

So many cars at Ke'e Beach. I had to go a fair way off road, with my don't-take-this-vehicle-off-paved-roads hire car, to get a parking spot. Can't believe how far off road I went. In a front-wheel drive too.

Beach sand was very hot under foot. Quite a few people at the beach and the snorkelling was good as there was an extensive reef. Interesting to see little fish pop their heads out of the holes in the reef to look at you and then dart back in again. Spent two hours there and the scenery - volcanic rocks, coconut trees, beach, trees with spindly roots, towering cliffs, etc, was breathtaking.

Lush vegetation on the way to Ke'e Beach

Single lane bridge of which there were several

Ke'e Beach

Warning signs at Ke'e Beach

Trees will grow anywhere in this tropical paradise

Banyan tree roots

Crazy Vines

Vines everywhere - it's a wonder the trees weren't strangled

Our hire car on Kauai

Volcanic rocks near Ke'e Beach

Peaks above Ke'e Beach

Beautiful Kaui countryside


Managed to get the hire car out but only because a car next to a big rock in the middle of the road was about to move. Would've done some serious damage to the hire car otherwise. Lucky as we could have been stuck for hours. The drive home, about 25-30 miles, took one hour and twenty minutes. Had tea at the resort's restaurant which was quite reasonable affordability-wise and the food was nice. Early night and booked a wakeup call for 4:45am.