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Thursday, July 17th (our official 10-year anniversary)

This was the BIG day…the day we had built up to all week. We were going to hike the Na Pali Coast. The beautiful north shore of Kauai – uninhabited and protected by law. It's rugged mountain cliffs, sea caves, breathtaking beaches and tourquoise waters are the big draw. The official hike on the Kalalau Trail is 11 miles long and is the only land accessibility to the Na Pali Coast. On-line information (obtained AFTER our trip) describes this hike's official status as "strenuous" and it is rated 9 out of 10 for difficulty by the Sierra Club. BUT, we were only doing the first 4 miles – how bad could it be! Signs also indicated that it takes 2 hours to get to the beach (first 2 miles) and another 2 hours to get to the Hanakapi'ai Falls (another 2 miles). We didn't believe the signs. We are robust, athletic, and fast hiking adults who did not believe the average-jo-signage. Here is some more info I obtained on-line:

Extreme inclines and declines throughout entire 11 miles. Narrow footpaths on high cliffs. Loose rocks underfoot and from eroding cliffs above. Trail is slippery when muddy. Strong sun. Heavy backpacks can cause overexertion. Filter all water. Strong currents and flash flooding can occur at river crossings.

And – it was raining that day. Sometimes a sprinkle, sometimes sunny, sometimes a downright shower. But this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We packed some sandwiches and a couple of water bottles (5 to be exact), and drove down to the "end of the road" where the hike starts. We took these pictures in front of the trail head signs…but we DID NOT read them. Notice the recommendation for water (2 Liters per person!).

The hike to the beach was great.  It was raining, so it was muddy, but the view of the coast and the adventure of the trail made for a one-of-a-kind hike.

We crossed a river at the end (I slipped on a rock and fell in) which was lucky since our legs were covered in mud. But then our socks and shoes were soaked. We then sat on some rocks and enjoyed our lunch. We enjoyed walking on the beach, exploring the sea cave and Matt climbed on a rock for a better perspective (we thought he was a goner with that wave).

Next we had to decide if we would continue on to the "falls"…another 2 hours or so. Derek's top item on his Hawaii priority list was to see/swim under a waterfall. We all knew it. It could not be denied (although I was really praying that he would feel the beach was sufficient). It was unanimous…we would press on. So up we climbed, thru the jungle, over the slippery rocks, through the bamboo forests, in the mud, across the river (several times), etc.

It was amazing. It was hard. It was intense. Our muscles were tired by the time we got to the falls, but it was SPECTACULAR. Breathtaking. So BIG. You can't even capture it on film. Streaming down this cliff into a small pool of water. We guess-timated it to be between 200 and 250 feet tall. We weren't able to capture the whole thing…only the top or bottom…with our cameras. The pool was cold! Derek and Matt swam in it…Dana and I were soaked enough and didn't want to hike back cold on top of it. But Derek got his waterfall, and that made me happy.

But there was only one problem. Actually there were two:

1. We finished our last drops of water at the falls.

2. We had another 3 and 1/2 hour to hike back.

(These were taken with the water camera:)

I don't know if I've ever been so tired in my entire life. Every muscle was screaming at me. The first hour or two back were ok…mind over matter. But the last hour to hour & 1/2 was BRUTAL. You had to laugh or cry. I did both. At one point I thought we were only about 10-15 minutes out, but Matt (with his high-tech watch) informed me that we had about 45 more minutes. I thought they were going to have to leave me there and send a helicopter to rescue me. It was THAT bad. Our feet were soaked and cold. We were soaked. We were covered in mud. We were thirsty. To make things worse, I fell three times on slippery rocks…flat on my back or on my tucus. After one fall, Matt tried to help me up and I just wanted to lay there. On the slippery rocks. Then the clouds parted and the light shone through and I was convinced that heaven was coming for me! Of course, my comrades got a picture:

But we made it…safe and sound, alive and well, back to the beginning and to our car.

So let's recap…our 10-year anniversary was:

ADVENTUROUS

GRUELING

MEMORABLE

and,

and,

hold on – give me just a minute,

WORTH EVERY MINUTE!?!

(Oh, and we went to dinner that night…more on that tomorrow)