Princeville, Kauai: What I did not mention yesterday was the weather. Yes, it is warm, but it rained (poured) on and off all afternoon and evening. Dave ventured out for a walk between cloudbursts and Lucy tried one of the many bikes in the garage. The weather was much improved this morning, so we went ahead with our plans.
Lisa had made entry reservations for the Kilauea Point Lighthouse and National Wildlife Refuge. The lighthouse is under repair after being badly damaged in a storm in 2021. The lighthouse was so damaged, serious repairs were required and the bolts used to put the lighthouse together 100+years ago needed to be reproduced manually… and the new bolts were on the UPS plane that blew up in Louisville last month. Repairs are on hold.
There were birds everywhere on the point around the lighthouse. Species include Red-tailed Tropicbird, White-tailed Tropicbird, wedge-tailed Shearwater, layman Albatross, Red-footed Booby, Great Frigate bird and Hawaiian Goose (Nene, common crossword answer). We did not see a Booby today. Bummer.
After visiting the lighthouse and watching for water spouts from the cliff above the sea, we went to lunch in Kilauea. Another cute tropical beach town, there are a few restaurants and shops. Lisa chose a plate-lunch fish place and we ordered grilled mahi-mahi that came with rice and macaroni salad.
There were a zillion chickens on this island, as sometimes in the 90’s a huge storm blew through and all the chickens flew the coop and are now breeding like rabbits and are everywhere. We saw a rooster cross the road in Kilauea - using a crosswalk! Just a coincidence, I know, but why didn’t I grab that shot with my phone camera? Dang. No alarm clock needed here - there are roosters behind the house.
The afternoon was spent on Anini Beach at the northern tip of Kauai - a beautiful beach with plenty of coral for snorkeling and great wind for kite boarding.
I had an important job today: make sure the TV was sorted out to watch the Ducks in the Orange Bowl on ESPN at the ungawdly hour of 7a. This house has great WiFi and a fancy (and very smart TV), and luckily I was able to log-in with my Disney+ ID, pay for a 3-day pass with Apple Pay on my phone and somehow get into ESPN on their Sling app. Geesh! Mission accomplished, and thank goodness I didn’t leave it until 6:55 tomorrow morning, or we would have missed the first quarter. Ha.
Our travel agent Lisa had dinner reservations at a place they like that has Fettuccine Alfredo on the menu, as that is our traditional menu on New Years Eve. It was delicious - and enough for four people! Lucy ordered the dish off the children’s menu and it would have been the perfect amount for me.
Until my next update, I remain, your Happy New Year correspondent.