Hawaiian Gecko

One of my favorite creatures here in Hawaii, is the Hawaiian Gecko.  They roam the walls of everyone's homes - inside and out,, and eat bugs.  At night if the light is on in a room, and bugs are flying around on the outside of the window as they are attracted to the light, these brightly colored little guys sneak around and feast.  As they do, you can see their cute little bellies pressed up against the window.

If they get frightened they may drop their tail  - so some are seen with a short stump or a skinny new little tail starting to grow.

I've heard it said that having geckos in your home brings good luck.

Although some people are grossed out by them, they know they are always welcome in our home.  I enjoy their company and their beautiful color!

Beautiful Kauai

After viewing Waimea Canyon we continued the climb up to the most beautiful overlooks.  For a while some clouds came in so the Napali Coast wasn't as clearly visible, but gorgeous anyway...especially when this little rainbow appeared.....

We continued farther down a trail and by the time we came back, the clouds had cleared a little from the rainbow scene above, and we could see the coast line more clearly.  What a beautiful place!

Jurrasic Park was filmed on Kauai, and I'm told that this meadow is where some of the scenes were shot.  See what I mean about so many shades of green!  It's unbelievable.  The combination of intense blue sky, beautiful clouds and rich green landscape is a feast of the eyes...and the soul...

Waimea Canyon, Kauai

Last week we explored Kauai.  As we all know,  Kauai is known as the 'Garden Isle,' and if you've ever wondered why, just visit...and when you do, you'll say 'no duh!!!' The place is gorgeous.  I've never seen so many shades of green in one place.  I sounded like a broken recorded all day long as I exclaimed over and over, "oh my gosh this place is so beautiful."
One of the places we visited was Waimea Canyon.  This canyon located on the Western side of Kauai, is often referred to as the Grand Canyon of Hawaii.  It's 3000 ft deep and about 10 miles long and it looks like a painter had a hay day with colors ranging from reds to browns to grays.  You can't help but stand there in awe and the longer you do, the more you see.

Pelagic Magic

Picture yourself  out on a dark night... in the middle of absolute nowhere in the ocean, suspended in about 6000ft of water, with your scuba gear on.  You may as well be swimming in molasses it's so dark, and who knows if up is down or down is sideways, because it's all just....black!
Last night, Garry and Hunter (my oldest son) and I voluntarily placed ourselves in this situation.  We ventured out about 3 miles west off the Kona coast, took a giant stride off the boat under a beautiful moon, and descended into the abyss to see what we could find.  On the surface our flashlights seemed so bright, giving off a bright wide beam of light, but down below that bright glow became a very small insignificant shaft of light.  But...in that small shaft of light we could see the most amazing little creatures - some the size of a pea and others 2ft long, all while knowing that from down below we were most likely being watched by large toothy creatures like blue sharks, tigers and oceanic white tips.  We watched in awe as bio luminescence flashed through some of our new found friends while others propelled themselves through the water with wing like appendages.  Some resembled jellyfish while others like feathery transparent worms.  I caught a couple on video...the coverage is not great but it gives you an idea....

Conversing with Emma...

Emma

The other day, Garry and I locked the keys in the car.  We had our good friends, the Broadhurts with us, and were in a town called Naalehu, on the south side of the Island.  I called the kids to tell them we would be late in coming home, and a couple minutes after hanging up the phone, my 10 year old daughter, Emma, called.  Emma is my little organizer.  She likes to have all her ducks lined up perfectly and standing at attention.  Here's how the conversation went:

Me:  Hi Emma

Emma:  Ah...hi Mom...I don't suppose you have a key hidden under the jeep someplace.....

Me:  No Love, we've been meaning to, but hadn't done that yet.

Emma:  Ok so what's your plan?  Are you going to camp there - do you have food?  I suppose you had a picnic and locked that in the back of the jeep too...

Me:  No we won't camp here, we'll figure this out, and yes the food is still in the jeep.

Emma:  Ok so you know the jeep is like lego right - the roof and doors come off and the windshield folds down.  Have you tried taking any of it apart to get in?

Me:  Actually yes, I tried lifting up on the roof but its clamped down tight.

Emma:  Uh huh...soooo......have you tried with a coat hanger...have you asked anyone for help?

Me:  Yup, that's what we are busy with right now Love.

Emma:  Well...it's a good thing you have insurance!

Me:  yes it is, I could call a ......(she interrupted my speaking)

Emma: ...because you could use a brick and break a window.

Me:  ah, well I think we'd call for someone to help us before we do that.

Emma:  Well please keep me posted and don't worry we'll take care of dinner here for the kids.

Me: Ok Love, I'll let you know.

Emma:  Ya, call me when you're on the road.  I love you.

Me:  Ok Emma I'll do that.  I love you too.

Emma is so cute.  We finally got on the road after paying a tow truck owner $50 to open the jeep, and I called Emma to say we were en route.  Her reply was, "good, thanks for letting me know.  See you soon."
It's comforting to know that people care...I think....

White road

One of our favorite short hikes on the Island, is the White road hike.  It's not challenging at all and leads you to one of the most beautiful places...so it's fun to do with people of all ages.  It starts on the outskirts of a town called Waimea, and the trail follows some irrigation canals through bamboo forest and rainforest.

At the end of the trail you find yourself feeling like you're a character in Jurraic Park, or Gorillas in the mist, as you stand overlooking the most beautiful lush canyons, leading to Waipio Valley.  Cascading down the thick green canyon walls, are many waterfalls.
The only problem with this area is that it is wet most of the time, and there's a possibility that much of the hiking will be done in the rain.  It makes for a pretty muddy trail - which can be a total blast if you don't mind a little dirt on your feet.  There is always the possibility that when you reach the end, your view will be impaired by cloud cover, but either way, the scenery along the trail is absolutely gorgeous, and well worth going.

Kohala Mountain oysters!!!

   Ever heard of Rocky mountain Oysters?  Well yesterday I got to taste Hawaii's version....Kohala Mountain Oysters.  Just like everybody says about frog legs, alligator and any other strange thing...it tastes like chicken!  A friend of ours grew up on Kahua Ranch, in the Kohala area of the Island, and invited us to join him and his friends and family for branding, castrating, medicating and dehorning of calves, and oh my goodness what an unforgettable experience.  Aside from it being breathtakingly beautiful, it was awesome to be a part of.

The efficiency with which these paniolos worked, was quite impressive.  Within about 30 seconds, a calf was roped by the hind legs, dragged to where cowboys were waiting, then medicated, castrated, dehorned if needed and branded, and then Bob's your uncle, it was over.  Two or three times I helped out, which was a blast and a half...here's me in action.......

Good times!
When we were en route to the branding, I told everyone in the car that one thing I would NEVER do, is eat mountain oysters, and when I saw the cowboys preparing them and throwing them into the pan, I was even more convinced that I'd never try them.  They placed a cast iron skillet right on top of the stand that had the branding irons in it - a propane torch blasting fire through the whole contraption, and those poor testicles cooked away while the boys were working.

Every once in a while one of them would come with his bucket full and prepare them one at a time by slicing the skin off and tossing them into the pan, and then later return to stir them around a bit.

After standing in the cold wind for a while, the smell of the cooking "meat" smelled awfully good - especially after they sprinkled some garlic salt over the top.

Pretty soon I turned around to look at my 10 year old son, Aidan, and found him chowing down on one of the disgusting little morsels, and I figured that if he was brave enough to try one, then I am too!  So I did...

My first thought was that it tasted like a spongy chicken wing.  The taste was fine, the texture...not so much...but at least no one could call me a chicken for not trying.

After ward, the cattle were herded back out into their beautiful pastureland, and I have no doubt, were quite relieved to leave us all behind.

What an awesome day, in a beautiful place...