Michele Bigley - Explorers Guide Kauai: A Great Destination

A COMPLETE GUIDE

KAUAI

A COMPLETE GUIDE

1ST EDITION

Michele Bigley

Dedication

For Eddie and Kai, who were with me all the way, so youll always know where to find me.

Copyright 2009 by Michele Bigley

First Edition

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any way by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages.

Website URLs listed in this book were current at the time of publication. If you find information that has changed, let us know at and we will use that in preparing future editions.

ISBN 978-1-58157-084-7

Cover and interior photos by the author unless otherwise specified
Book design by Bodenweber Design
Page composition by PerfecType, Nashville, TN
Maps by Mapping Specialists Ltd., Madison, WI The Countryman Press

Published by The Countryman Press, P.O. Box 748, Woodstock, Vermont 05091

Distributed by W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 500 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10110

Manufactured in the United States of America

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

GREAT DESTINATIONS TRAVEL GUIDEBOOK SERIES

Recommended by National Geographic Traveler and Travel + Leisure magazines

[A] CRISP AND CRITICAL APPROACH, FOR TRAVELERS WHO WANT TO LIVE LIKE LOCALS.
USA Today

Great Destinations guidebooks are known for their comprehensive, critical coverage of regions of extraordinary cultural interest and natural beauty. The authors in this series are professional travel writers who have lived for many years in the regions they describe. Each title in this series is continuously updated with each printing to ensure accurate and timely information. All the books contain more than one hundred photographs and maps.

Current titles available:

THE ADIRONDACK BOOK

ATLANTA

AUSTIN, SAN ANTONIO & THE TEXAS HILL COUNTRY

THE BERKSHIRE BOOK

BERMUDA

BIG SUR, MONTEREY BAY & GOLD COAST WINE COUNTRY

CAPE CANAVERAL, COCOA BEACH & FLORIDAS SPACE COAST

THE CHARLESTON, SAVANNAH & COASTAL ISLANDS BOOK

THE CHESAPEAKE BAY BOOK

THE COAST OF MAINE BOOK

COLORADOS CLASSIC MOUNTAIN TOWNS

COSTA RICA: GREAT DESTINATIONS CENTRAL AMERICA

THE FINGER LAKES BOOK

THE FOUR CORNERS REGION

GALVESTON, SOUTH PADRE ISLAND & THE TEXAS GULF COAST

THE HAMPTONS BOOK

HAWAIIS BIG ISLAND

HONOLULU & OAHU: GREAT DESTINATIONS HAWAII

THE JERSEY SHORE: ATLANTIC CITY TO CAPE MAY

KAUAI: GREAT DESTINATIONS HAWAII

LAKE TAHOE & RENO

LOS CABOS & BAJA CALIFORNIA SUR: GREAT DESTINATIONS MEXICO

MAUI: GREAT DESTINATIONS HAWAII

MICHIGANS UPPER PENINSULA

MONTREAL & QUEBEC CITY: GREAT DESTINATIONS CANADA

THE NANTUCKET BOOK

THE NAPA & SONOMA BOOK

NORTH CAROLINAS OUTER BANKS & THE CRYSTAL COAST

PALM BEACH, FORT LAUDERDALE, MIAMI & THE FLORIDA KEYS

PALM SPRINGS & DESERT RESORTS

PHOENIX, SCOTTSDALE, SEDONA & CENTRAL ARIZONA

PLAYA DEL CARMEN, TULUM & THE RIVIERA MAYA: GREAT DESTINATIONS MEXICO

SALT LAKE CITY, PARK CITY, PROVO & UTAHS HIGH COUNTRY RESORTS

SAN DIEGO & TIJUANA

SAN JUAN, VIEQUES & CULEBRA: GREAT DESTINATIONS PUERTO RICO

SAN MIGUEL DE ALLENDE & GUANAJUATO: GREAT DESTINATIONS MEXICO

THE SANTA FE & TAOS BOOK

THE SARASOTA, SANIBEL ISLAND & NAPLES BOOK

THE SEATTLE & VANCOUVER BOOK

THE SHENANDOAH VALLEY BOOK

TOURING EAST COAST WINE COUNTRY

WASHINGTON, D.C., AND NORTHERN VIRGINIA

YELLOWSTONE & GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARKS AND JACKSON HOLE

YOSEMITE & THE SOUTHERN SIERRA NEVADA

If you are traveling to, moving to, residing in, or just interested in any (or all!) of these enchanting regions, a Great Destinations guidebook is a superior companion. Honest and painstakingly critical, full of information only a local can provide, Great Destinations guidebooks give you all the practical knowledge you need to enjoy the best of each region. Why not own them all?

This book would not be possible without the generous support of my parents, Pat and Bruce Bigley. I would especially like to acknowledge my mom, who not only wrangled beachgoers to tow our car out of the sand for a case of Heineken, but who is also a great travel companion and food taster.

I am indebted to Kim Grant for answering even my silliest questions as if I had just asked about the intricacies of neuroscience. Humble thanks go out to editor extraordinaire, Laura Jorstad, and the whole Countryman Press crew.

Pat Griffin, Rosemary Smith, Sue Kanoho, and Cat Rietow graciously shared their Kauai, which helped me to find the heart of this book.

I appreciate all the people, visitors and locals, who offered up their favorite spots for you to enjoy. Most especially: Coralissa and Ivan Delaforce, Ali Nachman, Oliver and Maceo Reyes, Julie and Steve Bierer, and Lorne Bigley and his family.

Eddie, your tireless love, confidence, research, and draft reading continuously makes me feel unworthy.

Mahalo,
Michele Bigley
December 2008

Our first halting place [on Kauai] was one of the prettiest places I ever saw...

Isabella Bird, Six Months in the Sandwich Islands, 1890

From a lanai in Haena, I drink Kona coffee and write this during my favorite time of day. The rain, now traveling south, has delivered the smell of plumeria and salty surf pounding onto the white sand beach. As a redheaded honeycreeper sings from the top of the ohia lehua tree, it appears. Double arched and stretching from Makana Mountain to the Pacific, I am reminded how every moment on Kauai is a makana, a gift.

A popular saying here on Kauai is: If you didnt have rain, you wouldnt get the rainbows. Nor would this isle feel like an outcast sister to the rest of the archipelago. Verdant, yet bursting with shocks of red, pink, yellow, and even blue flowers, this mountainous island represents what all mainlanders imagine when jetting to the Pacific. The remote inland hosts Mount Waialeale, one of the wettest spots on the planet, inaccessible by car. This lush heart is home to waterfalls that vein in all directions, feeding rivers for the 5 percent of the island that is populated: the mellow coast. Here, no building is higher than a palm tree. Locals, wearing flip-flops and board shorts, talk story over kalua pig, leave work early to surf, and are slow to accept change.

Yet change has arrived on the island. The farming industry is hurting; traffic plagues the east shore; the Superferry has created an environmental battle cry; big-box stores threaten mom-and-pop shops; the landfills are nearly full; land is getting too expensive for locals; endangered birds are going extinct at the highest rate in the United States; yet tourism is at an all-time high.

Which is why I had to write this book.

Kauai is my favorite place on the planet. I love how the opal-colored Pacific contrasts with the zillion types of green along the north shore coast. I adore the always shocking Na Pali Coast, watching humpbacks migrate past the Kalalau Trail; Mark Twains Grand Canyon of the Pacific, the Christmas-colored Waimea Canyon; sneaking up on a sunrise wedding, chatting with the woman who owns the shave ice truck in Poipu, having to get to Country Moon Rising Bakery early enough to get the good sweets, full-moon bonfires, hitting up a local farm stand for fresh lichee, the waterfall you see on the way to the north shore. I love the chickens, the rain, how long it takes to get to Polihale, how everyone from gas station attendants to restaurant workers asks how your day is. I love how the community helps one another out, during storms and for Easter concerts. Theres the traveling Childrens Museuma local nonprofit teaching youth the history of local crafts, free hula lessons with Auntie Bev, daily farmers markets, and the weekly Aloha Center Craft Fair. I try never to miss Friday Night Art Night in Hanapepe, outdoor movie night at the Sheraton, Aloha Fridays lei-making events, and the monthly slack key guitar concerts. Nor can I leave out the simple pleasure of sharing a cocktail at a beach bar while local musicians serenade the sea. Most of all, I love how whenever I return, this Garden Isle feels like home.