Basalt - A land of volcanic rock

Basalt

Basalt on the beach - Poipu Beach

Before any chemical purists begin to criticise, I realise that Basalt is not a primary element. Indeed that it is made up of plagioclase and pyroxene minerals which themselves are a combination of elements. But as this blog is called Fire and Ice, we agreed at the beginning of the process that we would take a loose view of what are elements and Basalt is so prevalent in today's activities that it is only right it gets an answer. It is literally the bedrock of Kaua'i and the other islands of Hawai'i.

Wednesday - Touring the South of Kaua'i

Breakfast

I woke at 3:30am this morning and got on with yesterday's post. I felt alert and refreshed after a good night's sleep. I was worried it might be too hot to sleep well, but the cooling evening and the fan above made it very comfortable indeed. 

I abluted at 6am and Drew did the same at 7:00am.

Drew is ready for his breakfast

Breakfast is served from 8am to 9am on the Lanai (veranda). When we went out at 7:50am, The four tables are set one for each room. So we don't end up eating across a common table, something Drew would hate. 

We sat at the table immediately outside the window of our room and were served coffee as we arrived.

Fruit and Compote

Next came a lovely plate of fruits and compote: this was a Blueberry compote with grains (Drew had mine and his own). With fresh orange, melon, pineapple and grapefruit. I made up for Drew having the compot by having extra orange, melon and pineapple.

Canadian Bacon, eggs and home fries

This was followed by a plate of Canadian Bacon, eggs and home fries served with a light tomato salsa on the side for us to share. It was yummy. 

Our Route Today

Our Wednesday trip - from Google TImeline

Google Timeline shows the overview of the trip very well, it was an extensive visit to the south of the island, but at Koke'e we had travelled up a mountain so that we were closer to the north shore of the island than the south. 

Beaches

With the GyPSy app as our guide we began our tour near our accommodation. I need to show a close up of the Google Map to really explain this early part of the day:

Around the beaches of Poipu

It looks like we went back on ourselves a few times, and this was the way the app encouraged us to get to know our surroundings. 

We left the Inn at 8:45am and headed for our first beach - Kiahuna Beach this is a small, sandy beach a short distance from our apartment. One of the fascinating things about the beaches of Hawai'i is that they look as if they have been consumed by the great hotel chains. Sheraton, Grand Hyatt, Marriott appear everywhere. But the Hawaiian State Government ensure that all beaches are accessible to the public and force the major corporations to ensure public access and public parking, so that the beaches do not become the preserve soley of those staying in the resorts. Kiahuna beach is in-front of a large Sheraton, it was so popular this morning that the Public Car Park was already full at 9.00am.

Beautiful sand and sparkling waves

Perhaps this is the answer to the question
Why did the chicken cross the road? To get to Poipu beach!!

We moved onto the next beach - Poipu Beach - with its delightful beach park. There was two large public parking areas here, so we got out and walked along the beach. Poipu Beach was named America’s Best Beach by the Travel Channel, and it is easy to see why. 

 Brennecke's Shoreline

At the end of the long sandy beach we come to Brennecke's Shoreline, Dr Brennecke was a GP in this area and was so respected by his patients that when he died they named this part of the shore for him.

Shipwreck's Beach

Our next beach stop was at Shipwreck's Beach, while the shipwreck for which it is named has long gone, the beach is picturesque and less busy than those visited earlier.

The beach is famed as a location for weddings and we were told to look out for a heart on the beach in which weddings will have taken place over the last weekend. And indeed there is was:

A Heart at Shipwreck's Beach

Having spent an hour and a quarter on the beaches it was time to move on. 

Don't get me wrong these are lovely beaches with their mix of basalt and yellow fine-grained sand they are excellent for sunbathing, swimming, surfing and other beach like activities. If you want to see more photos of the beaches please look at on my Flickr, they start here.  But neither Drew or I are beach people, so nice as it was to see them, I'm still scarred with eating grainy sandwiches with sand blown into them at the Slip in Swansea, the favourite beach location to which my Grandfather would take me. I've not been fond of beaches since then.  <<Co-pilot's note: It was Trecco Bay Porthcawl, here!>>

Prince Kuhio Park

Prince Kuhio Park

The next location on our route was the pretty park named for the Hawaiian Prince Kuhio. The park is set in the grounds of the former home of Prince Kuhio. 

Prince Kuhio Memorial

Prince Jonah Kūhiō Kalanianaʻole would have been the next ruler of Hawai'i if it hadn't been annexed by the United States in 1898. From 1902 to his death in 1922 he served as a US congressman from Hawai'i winning election to congress on 10 occasions.

Spouting Horn

From the park we travel to the, intriguingly named, Spouting Horn. Once you see the picture you'll understand the name:

Spouting Horn

Sorry I don't have any ability to share sound, because the image of the spouting water is enhanced by the deep growl the hole makes as the water is pushed out - hence the name Spouting Horn.

We spent some time here watching the water pour in and be blown out of the hole. It took Drew about 8 attempts to manage the best picture, as the water doesn't reach the same height each time. 

Spouting Horn is a natural phenomenon caused by erosion and undercutting of the Basalt by the sea, but the legend is that it is a trapped Lizard tricked by a Kauaian fisherman. 

It appears there was an even larger blow hole less than a mile away, but this was demolished in the 1940s as it blew salt water over the sugar plantations, which isn't good for sugar growth. I imagine today's entrepreneurs are regretting the actions of their predecessors. As they say over here: "It's the fastest way to earn a buck that matters!!" (The source of this story is the app, I can't find any other reference to it online.)

Old Koloa Town

The only remains of the Old Sugar Mill

The road beyond Spouting Horn becomes unpaved, so we turned back from here and came to Old Koloa Town. I recall that we passed this yesterday, but I didn't take much notice as it was in the thunderstorm as we travelled towards our accommodation. Old Koloa Town looked very different in a 89F sunny day.

The town was the location of the first sugar plantation in Hawai'i, as I mentioned yesterday, the population that came to work in the sugar industry was largely immigrant, coming from various Asian nations. The plantation was founded in 1836. 

Wooden route to the shops

While the mill is gone, the wooden buildings that provided the stores for the plantation are still in place and form the current centre of the Old Town.

Islands Soap and Candles

We went into a store where someone was making their own soaps and packaging them. We bought a little gift for our next door neighbour who is looking after our car.

We stopped at 11:00am at Koloa Mill Coffee Shop and were amused to see the sign to the ordering point marked out by painted yellow chicken feet. We were even more amused when one of the ubiquitous feral chickens (we have seen so many today we have started to forget to mention them) walking along the correct route on the feet signs.

The Chicken is following the path

Do you know where Captain Cook first landed in Hawai'i?

Well, guess what, it was here on the South Coast of Kaua'i that he first made landfall.

Statue of Captain Cook near his arrival point

In 1777 Captain Cook was in Tahiti planning a journey to find the 'North West Passage' across the top of the American continent. He left Tahiti heading north and it was by chance that he spotted the Hawaiian Islands. This was the first occasion a European had seen the islands and Cook and crew tried to make land at the first island they saw - Oahu - however the winds and currents were not favourable, so Cook finally landed on what he called the Sandwich Islands at what is now Waimea on Kaua'i on January 20, 1778. 

Cook was amazed to be able to speak to the Kauaians (he spoke Tahitian), not until this point did he realise that the master mariner skills of the Polynesian people enabled them to travel to and populate the whole of the mid and south Pacific long before the Europeans had the capacity to travel such large distances.  

While any one who learnt British history in the 19th and 20th Century will probably know Cook died on Big Island, Hawai'i in 1779, his original landing place is far less well known. So it was nice to be able to spend time at the monument today. An unexpected find on this holiday.

Waimea Canyon

The amazing colours in the depth of the Canyon

So at 1pm we left Waimea and began our trip up to the Waimea Canyon. The canyon is the largest canyon in the Pacific and having been up and seem it I can confirm it is a dramatic sight to behold. 

Haydn at the Canyon

Mark Twain is reputed to have called the Waimea Canyon 'The Grand Canyon of the Pacific'. The canyon measures 10 miles long, 1 mile wide, and more than 3,500-feet deep. 

There are lots of photos from three of the look outs over the Canyon on Flickr, so please have a look at them. 

The Canyon, as the voice of the app kept telling us, is nature's way of putting Kauai back under the sea. It was carved over thousands of years by rivers and floods that flowed from Mount Waialeale.

Mud - We missed the heavy rain by about ten minutes

It is worth noting that Mount Waialeale has the second largest rainfall in the world. Indeed some argue it has the largest, because the place that comes first is in a Monsoon area in India, so has half the year without rain, whereas the mountain here has 300+ days of rain a year. Indeed we missed a downpour by about ten minutes, seeing some very wet people walking down as we walked up to the lookout spot.

Kokee State Park 

As we travelled north from Waimea Canyon we come to  Kokee State Park. This is an elevated plateau 4,200 feet above sea level. My ears were popping as we climbed up. 

The Park is covered in forest and wild flowers, it has yet more views over the Canyon and is famed for hiking trails. Indeed the app kept telling us where we could do 1/2 day or full day hikes. Not today thank you. 

Haydn pointing to where the beautiful North Shore should be visible!

At the north of the park, the last point to which it is possible to drive we were promised sweeping views of valleys opening up to the North Shore of the island. At this point as well as travelling up the 4,200 feet we had travelled closer to the North Shore of the Island than the South where we began. However (and given the 300 days of rainfall this is not surprise) the viewpoint was completely obscured by fog or low cloud. Still the drive up was pleasant enough, but we didn't stay long. 

Back to the South

Niihau Island across the channel

When we left Kokee soon after 2.00pm it was 68F (20C), by the time we were back down the mountain it was back up to 89F (32C). Having come up from Waimea via Highway 550 we opted to go back via Highway 50. This gave us some lovely views over Kaua'i's neighbouring island of Niihau. As Niihau is a privately owned island it is regarded as mysterious by its neighbours. It retains a polynesian culture much older than that of the rest of Hawai'i. Visitor's are not allowed on the island, giving it its nickname of 'The Forbidden Island'. 

First West then East

Track to the Na'Pali Coast

When arriving down to sea level (with more ear popping) on highway 50 we turned West towards the furthest westerly point of the island, the Na'Pali Coast. This is not called a wilderness park for nothing, it is accessible on horseback or foot, and by four by four for part of the way, but we had the sense to turn back when the highway ended. It is not possible to circumnavigate Kaua'i by road, and we are likely to see the other end of this coast on our northern trip tomorrow.

Having gone as far west as it was possible to go, we turned around and headed back east. Arriving at our accommodation at 4:15pm. A seven and a half hour touring day, which was a great deal of fun.

Dinner

Kukui'ula Village Shopping Center

We left our accomodation at 7:15pm for the short walk over to the shops of Kukui'ula Village Shopping Center where we had booked tonight's meal at Eating House 1859 by Roy Yamaguchi.

Eating House 1859

The restaurant was again full, so we benefited from having booked as we didn't need to join the wait line.

Edamame beans in Japanese seven spice

We started with a taster of Edamame beans in Japanese seven spice, there was a lot of sugar in this flavour, and I don't do sugar, so Drew nibbled on these after I'd tried one or two and found out how sugary they were.

The menu was short and simple, it is clear that Roy, with his Japanese American heritage and Hawaiian family background is making the most of the fusion between the cultures.

Eating House Poke with Hawaiian Ahi, Kampachi and Salmon
served in Orange Yuzu Soy with Cherry Tomatos and Pine Nuts

I took a chance and went for a Poke, Drew had tried one of these in Vancouver last year and been telling me that there would be a lot of it in Hawaiian menus, so I felt obliged to give it a try. It was surprisingly nice. I say surprisingly as I'm not normally a great fan of raw fish, but the marinade in which this fish had been marinated had infused it with flavour so it had the texture of a ceviche, rather than sushi. 

Tasting the Poke

The onion and tomatoes gave the whole dish a fresh flavour set off by the crunch of pine nuts. I managed all bar the pine nuts with chopsticks, but used a folk for the last few pine nuts, otherwise I might still be there.

Crispy Fried Cauliflower & Brussel Sprouts 

with Toasted Pine Nuts, Golden Raisins and Balsamic

Drew went with Crispy Fried Cauliflower & Brussel Sprouts with Toasted Pine Nuts, Golden Raisins and Balsamic. He thought this sounded odd, but the flavour was excellent. The sharp balsamic working well with the crunchiness of the cauli and sprouts. Drew hadn't seen either veg served this way before, but thinks we should look into how to do it ourselves when we get back home.

1849 Spicy Ramen Bowl with Roast Pork, Shrimp Dumpling, 

Won Bok, Sprouts and Red Ginger

As evidence that while I had booked the restaurants for the last four days in advance, I'd not considered what I was eating. Because when the 1849 Spicy Ramen Bowl with Roast Pork, Shrimp Dumpling, Won Bok, Sprouts and Red Ginger arrived I suddenly realised that I had had soup for main course for three nights in a row. This is not intentional, I just felt it would be good to stay in the cultural tradition of the restaurant with my choice of a Japanese inspired dish. 

Raman Spoon

What was really good about this soup is that each of the flavours was distinctive. The meat, the shrimp, the vegetables all added a distinctive character. If I was disappointed with anything it was that the soup called itself spicy when it was very mild. A dash of chilli or even chilli oil or a bit more salt/soy would have brought much more of the flavour out. The Raman Spoon tickled me, it made it quite difficult to eat tidily. as the spoon was so shallow you couldn't fill it as full as I would have liked (greedy for food as I am). I think I'd have gone with a soup ladle in preference. 😋

However between the spoon and the chop sticks I was able to finish the whole bowl full.

“Hapa” Burger with a Makaweli Beef and Kulana Wild Boar Patty,
smoked Gouda Cheese, Onions, Lettuce, Tomato, Avocado, Chips and Chipotle Aioli

Drew decided to have the “Hapa” Burger with a Makaweli Beef and Kulana Wild Boar Patty, smoked Gouda Cheese, Onions, Lettuce, Tomato, Avocado, Chips and Chipotle Aioli. This was a huge dish for him. The three onion rings were enormous, yet crisp and tasty, the chips were thin and crisp too with an excellent salt and pepper flavour. The meat was a nice combination, it was lovely and salty and meaty too. The bun was tasty. In fact, apart from the avocado, that Drew believes is a vegetable that should be banned, he eat every bit of it. Though his plans for dessert were waylaid due to the amount of food.

Fully replete <<Co-pilot's note: sigh, why can't he just say - STUFFED>> we left the restaurant at 9:00pm and were back in our accommodation and in bed by 10:00pm.