End to End

We were out the door early this morning to visit Waimea Canyon and Kōkeʻe State Parks. It was raining steadily as we drove around the southern end of the island, but when we stopped at the Hanapepe Valley Lookout, we were treated to this sight.

On the tour yesterday, our guide highly recommended Ishihara Market in Waimea. We got here around 9:00AM and bought some of the few remaining bento boxes and musubi to snack on in the car.

Spam musubi, teriyaki chicken musubi, inari, katsu bento, and mochi

After leaving the market, we didn't realize that we missed the turn onto Route 550/Waimea Canyon Dr. and kept driving on Route 50/Kaumualii Hwy. In Kekaha, we followed the signs to Waimea Canyon, which put us on Kokee Road, an alternate route. An alternative, more winding route. There's a good reason why I am behind the wheel for most of our road trips. 🤢

When we reached the Waimea Canyon Lookout, we paid for our entrance fees ($5/person) and parking ($10) at the self-pay station, which covered us for both parks. Then we walked up to the viewpoint to see the Grand Canyon of the Pacific.

Our next stop was Puʻu Ka Pele Lookout for a view of Waipoʻo Falls. The pullout wasn't well marked, so we parked in the picnic area across the road.

 

A little further beyond this was the parking area for the Puʻu Hinahina Lookout. It was only a short walk to a platform with an end-on view of Waimea Canyon.

We continued on to Kōkeʻe State Park and Kalalau Lookout. At approximately 4000 feet above sea level, our views of Kalalau Valley and the Nāpali Coast were slightly obscured by the clouds, but gorgeous, nonetheless.

The road ended at Puʻu O Kila, where we hiked a small bit of the Pihea Trail for some additional (cloudy) views of the Kalalau Valley from the rim.

After coming back down from Kōkeʻe, we stopped at Porky's in Waimea to pick up some lunch to eat in the car on our way to the Princeville side of the island.

Hawaiian style pulled pork over rice or in a grilled cheese sandwich

We also made a quick stop at the Kauai Kookie factory in Hanapepe hoping to score some free samples, but there were none to be had. But we did buy a big bag of chocolate chip cookie rejects. They might be deformed and broken, but the taste is the same!

Our destination for the afternoon was Anini Beach on the north side of the island. Snorkeling for the boys and a nap on the beach for me!

Afterwards we decided to continue driving to Hanalei for dinner. What do you get when you need a break from rice? Pizza, of course...

...followed by shave ice for dessert!

By the time we finished eating, it was completely dark, and the rain was coming down pretty hard. Needless to say, the drive back to Wailua was a little nerve-wracking! According to Google Maps, we covered about 160 miles today!