Up High in the Sky

On Thursday, we embarked on our first helicopter ride, an open door ride around the island around Kauai. This is one of the few ways to truly see what the island is about. So much of Kauai is difficult to get to and much of the island is impossible to get to with a car. Of course, you can do an all day hike, camp, bike or boat your way around. We chose a 60 minute ride above the island.

It started off very nice - easy take off. We saw the plantations, farms and resorts on our way to the good stuff. Soon we arrived at Waimea Canyon and some nasty weather. Okay, maybe it wasn't all that severe, but the bouncing of the helicopter and surrounding rain and wind freaked me out. Of course, I was in the middle of David and the pilot so my vision was limited anyway. Despite both the weather and my limited view, I still think the whole thing was incredible. The island is absolutely stunning - 3,000 foot cliffs, incredible (and mostly unreachable) beaches, deep canyons and stunning forests.

We relaxed Thursday night with an incredible and delicious dinner at Roy's. The service was impeccable and the food outstanding. The chef really plays up the flavors of Hawaii and we left very full and satisfied.

On Friday, our last full day in Kauai, we ventured out to Waimea Canyon via Canyon Drive. This narrow, winding road leads 19 miles along the edge of an impressive canyon to a vista looking into a valley dropping nearly 2000 feet to the sea. It really is incredible.

We flew out of Kauai to Honululu and then onto Seattle on Saturday. We stayed a night in SeaTac Airport and left for Chicago Sunday morning. It is good to be home with lots of incredible memories and more appreciation for the diversity of this country than ever.