The Final Hawaii Post

Over a month after our return home, and I am finally finishing up our "travel log." This is a long entry..... I should probably break it up to keep the reader's attention, but, oh well! One hint--I saved the best for last!

Living in flat, ugly Dallas, the thing I looked forward to most on our Hawaii trip was hiking (OK-it was a toss up between that and the beach!). Each time we have gone, we have done at least one or two new, amazing hikes. In Maui, Nat and I did the "Baby Commando" hike, which was great. I had high hopes for Kauai, but knew it would be difficult to do much with two babies. For all our hikes, I carried Zoe in my Ergo baby carrier (which I absolutely love and swear by--absolutely no back pain whatsoever, regardless of how long I hike or walk with her in it, and she is about 18 pounds.), and Zach hiked as far as he could and Corey carried him back on his shoulders. This made me very nervous, as several of our hikes were very steep, had long drop-offs, involved climbing over huge tree roots and rocks, etc. But we all made it back in one piece.

Meaha'ulepu Trail

 The first tiny "hike" we did was Meaha'ulepu, just to the east of the Hyatt Regency and Shipwreck Beach in Poipu. It is pretty mild--easy even with flip flops, and Corey's parents were with us and did great. It is along the ocean and has a small degree of climbing, but was mostly flat, and affords some beautiful views and a wild, windswept coast.

 One of the few short, steep climbs

 Nana, Corey, and Zach

 Our little family

 Nana and Papa

 This bushy landscape somehow reminds me of Kramer's hair (from Seinfeld)

Pihea Trail

The next expedition we took was the Pihea Trail, at the very end of the road to the northwest. We drove through Koke'e State Park and Waimea Canyon to get there. A couple of years ago, Corey and I took a 6.2 mile (roundtrip) hike on the Awa'awapuhi Trail, because we were looking for something a little like the beautiful (yet treacherous) Kalalau Trail we hiked in 2008. It was nothing like Kalalau. 90% of the trail is through the woods heading steeply downhill, it was hard, slick clay we hiked on, and the only real view was at the very end, looking down on the Kalalau Valley. Then you just had to turn around and hike steeply upward on the return. I wish we would have researched the trails in the area a bit more, because this time, we decided on the Pihea Trail, which I had declined before because I heard it gets really muddy and marshy in spots. IT WAS GORGEOUS!!! It was a bit steep in parts, but not terribly difficult. It was fairly dry during our hike-it just sprinkled a little, which helped us decide to turn back before it got dicey. But it had BREATHTAKING views the entire way. I really wanted to hike further than the half mile we went, but we hadn't really planned on doing any real hiking that day. So once Zach was worn out and the rain started making the path pretty slick, we turned around, which was just a bit past the half mile point. I seriously cannot say enough good about this hike- the scenery, the trail, everything was lovely!

Kalalau Trail 

Corey and I had wanted to hike at least the first 2 miles of the Kalalau Trail that we did a few years back. It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life, and I wanted to enjoy at least a little bit of it again. However, it is a pretty strenuous hike with a lot of elevation change, climbing up tree roots and rocks, and deathly steep ledges that end in the ocean hundreds of feet below. I was very wary of bringing the kids at all, but Corey's parents had not been feeling well that day, so we either had to bring them with us or forfeit the hike for who knows how many more years. While the in-laws were at the condo resting themselves, Corey and I took the kids on the beautiful drive over to the North Shore all the way to the end of the road. It takes about 1.5-2 hours from the South Shore, and has some great hiking and snorkeling along the way. We waited forever for a parking spot and hit the trail. We only made it a half mile again before Zach was tired, and I was really worried about pushing on any further since Corey insisted on carrying Zach back on his shoulders, so we travailed to the first beautiful lookout point, took a bunch of photos, and turned back.

 Check out our sweet hiking shoes-good grief!! 

 Caution signs galore!

 Kind of steep and rocky, eh?

 But totally worth it!! That is Ke'e Beach below. We snorkeled there for awhile afterwards.

 I kept wondering if it was safer to have her on my front or back, in case I fell. Luckily, I didn't fall. But since most hiking packs place the baby on your back, that might be the safest route, though having them on front gives a similar center of gravity as pregnancy, which I am used to. Thoughts???

<----------See that there ledge? Egads!

 This is what the drop-off looks like from above. Can you see why I was a little nervous?! It goes straight down a few hundred vertical feet.

 I adore those peaks. Adore them.

 It was extremely windy up on our little viewing perch. I was truly happy to be there with my little flock!

 Kalalau Beach is about 9 or 14 ish of theses sea cliffs over. I never get tired of these views!

 My legs are a little buff after all that hiking, huh?

 Beautiful jungle surroundings.

Secret Falls

I was really wanting to pack in some action for our last day in Kauai. Corey's parents had been ill for a day or two, so we didn't get to do some of the fun stuff we had wanted with them. The kayak trip up the Wailua River that leads to the Secret Falls hike was something I had wanted to do on our last trip, but we were wary about having an 18 month-old with us. I am now pretty comfortable with kayaking with an infant/child, and wish we would have done it last time. It was a little tricky, but instead of starting the several-mile kayak trip from the river's mouth with the tour guides, we rented our own kayaks from the Hawaiian Village that leaves only a 10 minute paddle to the trail head. It was a little tricky keeping Zoey still, and I couldn't paddle with life preservers on both of us and her tethered to me and sitting on my lap (if someone knows a better way to kayak with an infant, please share!), but Corey's manly muscles took our whole family upriver in no time at all. His parents took their own double kayak. 

The people who rented the kayaks out gave us a little map with direction to Secret Falls, and warned that the hike was a little hard and they didn't recommend taking the kids. Since we had done Kalalau the day before, which I think would be graded as much more difficult and dangerous,  I was not too concerned. It was just a 1 mile hike each way, and pretty flat, with just some tree roots and rocks to climb over, and a couple of river and stream crossings. We decided we'd turn back if it got too rough, but wanted to give it a try. 

 This is what the first part of the trail looked like--pretty flat and easy.

 The river crossing was a little deep and tricky, but doable with the rope.

 The trail hugged this riverbed, which was rocky and steep in some areas, and grassy and shallow in others.

 There were definitely some beautiful, serene views!

 This was the stream crossing where we missed the "Trail" sign that led to the falls. If we had crossed upstream where those other rocks are, the sign would have been right in front of us. It was not visible from where we crossed, so we kept trekking on, wondering why it was taking so long to get to the falls. It was a loop trail, so I was worried we would pass the falls and end up where we began. Suddenly, the trail got much more narrow and elevated than before. Then, it began drizzling rain. We hiked about 100 yards in the difficult conditions and then sent Corey, the Scoutmaster of the Universe, on ahead to see if we were close to the falls. He was gone 5-8 minutes and said the trail didn't get much better, and there were no falls or people in sight. With the rain falling harder now, we knew it was too dangerous to go on (though if it had been just the two of us, we probably would have kept going) and decided to turn back. 

There was this particularly narrow area, about 8 inches wide and slanting downward, where the trail had been tricky before, but was now soaking and muddy. Corey traversed it first, with Zach on his shoulders, with no issue. Following were his parents, then Zoey and I. I could see that Roger and Cheryl were having a particularly tough time getting through this area. They were holding hands, trying to help each other over the slick ledge. Suddenly, they both slipped, and with their backs to the ledge, slid down about 20 feet to the rocky riverbank below! 

We were all instantly terrorized! I immediately knew there would be serious injuries, possibly even paralysis, and was trying to figure out how a rescue team would get them out and how long it would take to do so, since I knew my first task was to get my children to safety. It had taken us 45 minutes to hike to this secluded area, and the river didn't seem deep enough for kayaks in some spots, and the thick brush would not allow for a helicopter landing. I was also faced with the immediate task of crossing that same obstacle with Zoey strapped to my chest so I could get to Zach while Corey slid down to help his parents.

Prayer is second nature in times like this, and I have absolutely no doubt that God was watching our little hiking party closely and sending rescuing angels before we even asked. I made it over the treacherous area to Zach while Corey took off his flip flops, threw down his hat and backpack, and shimmied down the ledge as carefully as he could, though his landing was very hard and his feet were swollen afterward.  (I just found out he was wearing flip flops. What the heck?! That explains the foot swelling, which I did not understand at the time.) As a side note, once we got back to safe ground, Corey wanted to go back for his stupid hat. Seriously?!! I offered to buy him a new one in order to avoid another casualty!! Cheryl beat me to it, and got him a sweet Kauai Lagoons golf course hat. He earned it.:)

 I was pretty much frozen there with Zach and Zoey, trying to assess the situation and damage, and figure out what to do. Zach was seriously traumatized to see his grandparents fall over a ledge. We all were, but I knew I had to calm him. So I told him we were going to pray and ask Heavenly Father to help Nana and Papa to be okay and make it back alright (which seemed pretty impossible at the moment!). I especially know God hears the prayers of his pure little ones, because within minutes, Roger and Cheryl were both back on their feet. They were totally freaked out (can't think of a better term here), but I couldn't believe their legs, pelvises, and spinal columns hadn't shattered.

 It is hard to tell exactly how far down that is, but Corey is about 6 feet, so I would estimate it was 20-25 feet below where I was sitting (still too scared to stand up!!). That is the equivalent of two building stories! Their feet were obviously sore from all the force of the fall, and Roger's back was scratched up on the outside, and who knows what on the inside, just a few months after having his third major orthopedic surgery. Honestly, I've taken a lot of Physics, not to mention loads of Anatomy and Physiology, and with that logical understanding, was certain there would be severe damage to bones and nerves. The explanation I know to be true is that there are angels there to cushion many of our falls, whether we see them or even believe in them. I have seen several instances of accidents in my family over the past few years where those involved were more than lucky to walk away--especially with only mild injuries. I am so very grateful for that blessing. I know many times that things don't turn out this way. I do have faith that if it part of God's plan, that he will grant us the faithful pleas of our hearts. I also know that He sometimes has other lessons for us to learn that involve overcoming tragedy. Thankfully, this was not one of those times. :) 

 To finish the story, there were about 50 more yards of dangerous terrain to cross before the path widened and lowered closer to the riverbank. Luckily, Corey, Roger, and Cheryl were able to traverse the rocks and roots along the river below. Meanwhile, I put the pack on my back, and held Zach's hand as tighly as I could to get back to safer ground. After 25 yards of walking, we suddenly heard Cheryl yelling in pain again. She had gotten her traumatized foot stuck in some roots, I think, and heard some snapping sounds in her ankle. She was sure it was broken. Corey and I again wondered how he and his semi-injured dad would carry her out on the long, narrow path. Corey picked her up, set her down in a safe area, and after a few minutes of assessment and assuming there was probably a break, Corey tightened her shoelace and had her lean on him to walk. Miraculously, she was able to put a little weight on it and get back to even ground! I was, of course, freaking out a bit up on the trail by myself with the children, not knowing exactly what was going on below, but I just kept praying, step-by-step, and clung to my children until we arrived at a wide opening that met up with the riverbank. 

I wondered if and how we would make it back to our kayaks, and then to the car, with Cheryl's injury, but it seemed like the more they walked, the better things got. There was a huge rush of adrenaline that was helping us all, for sure. She kept saying that she just wanted to get back, so she kept trucking along! Seriously, she is such a trooper!! As we got to the creek crossing pictured below, we were informed by other hikers of the sign we had missed, and shown the really steep, tall, rooted path that led to the falls. They said it was another 10 minutes or so, but we opted to go straight back since we had to figure out how bad things really were, if we were going to make our flight, etc. 

Zach was pretty shaken up about it all. He was a little afraid to finish the hike. I had to keep telling him what a great hiker he was, and that as long as he held onto me and followed the path, that he would be safe and fine. Then he said, solemnly, "Nana and Papa are not very good hikers." LOL!! Quite the contrary! Most people would have probably sat there worrying and waited for help to come. However, Roger and Cheryl got right up, shaken as they were, and headed back a difficult trail to safety, even manning their own kayak back to the village.

By the time we all got off the kayaks and back to the rental van, we were all a little calmer. Cheryl iced her feet, we checked Roger's scraped-up back, and we called the airlines to see if we could postpone our flight because we weren't sure either of them would be able to drive fine. It was going to cost about $1700 to change just Corey's flight, and we thought we could find a shuttle to take them to the airport for a lot less than that, if necessary. But once we returned to the condo to quickly pack, the adrenaline rush had subsided and everyone began to think that things might be just fine.  

The missed "Trail" sign

We amazingly made our flight on time, Cheryl and Roger picked up their rental car (and ended their trip fine--no broken bones or anything too serious), and we stepped on the plane for the red-eye flight back to Dallas. The kids slept pretty well, but the whole scene kept racing through my mind again and again. I kept thinking about how that could have ended so much more tragically, or at least seriously. It could have been one of us with the kids. I came to the obvious conclusion that we went too far in the narrow, dangerous terrain, risking everyone's safety--even our lives--in the process. After maybe 25 yards of the difficult conditions, we should have immediately turned back. Instead, we trudged onward, with a crummy map and poor directions, hoping for some amazing sights around the next bend.

Maybe a cliche life parallel, but situations like this often lead to personal epiphanies. Mine was that I have been entrusted with precious lives-my own and my children's, and even extending some influence to others. If I allow myself to ignore or miss crucial signs and directions, I am not only putting myself in danger, but many others as well--even future generations. It was humbling to see the effect that wandering off the correct path had during this single experience. We were all well-meaning enough, but we needed to have safety and security prioritized before adventure and enjoyment. 

Most people in the world would say that you miss out too much on life if you are afraid to take chances. I have to disagree. Adventure is doable--even recommended--but you must first make the proper preparations and seek out guides to lead so you are not putting yourself or others in grave danger. Too many people take chances when the stakes are way too high. I am so grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ as a guide in this life. There are enticements bombarding us from every direction, and it is so easy to let down our guard and falsely believe that forging our own way will lead to ultimate happiness.

 I may live a boring life compared to some--no alcohol, drugs, crazy parties, strapless dresses or even mini skirts. ;)) Going to church every Sunday, living my life by guidelines that are considered not only old-fashioned, but completely confining to many, and having complete trust and faith that my life is in the hands of a higher being that I have not physically seen or heard. I don't even question it. There is no need to do so. I know with my entire soul that my life is so much better by doing my best to follow my Savior. Living the truths of His gospel has brought me the most profound happiness I can imagine. It is the gospel of love, of mercy, of forgiveness, and of eternal happiness. 

Hopefully, we will get another chance to see Secret Falls, but if not, I will be content with all the amazing, beautiful blessings God surrounds me with every day. I am grateful beyond words for my amazing husband, my precious children, my wonderful family, our home, food, clothing, jobs, and on and on. I know I am not worthy of these great blessings, and I am so grateful for the priceless gift of Christ's grace that closes that chasm between what I deserve and what I receive. 

I am so grateful for God's love and protection this day in Hawaii, that my children were safe, and that no one sustained serious injury. I also hope Corey and I have learned to play it a little more safe in the future, both physically and spiritually. 

Until next time, Hawaii, Aloha oe!

 (If you made it to the end of this post, you are a trooper too!)