TRAVEL | SELF-AWARENESS | LIFE

Kauai — Have You Changed, or Have We?

It may be too slow-paced for you or it may be just what you need

My partner and I are debating which Hawaiian island to visit. Or, to revisit.

Yes, it's a nice problem to have.

First-world problems, I suppose.

We’ve been to Oahu once together, also once separately, before meeting in life. We’d enjoyed Maui twice. Kauai once. Lanai once, but just for a few hours, taking the ferry for a day trip from Lahaina.

Molokai has been top of my list for a while, but the ferry route from Maui was eliminated and my airline of choice, Hawaiian Airlines, has decided to eliminate flights to Molokai. Those Molokai residents are determined to keep their island authentic, mostly tourist-free and old-school Hawaiian. I can dig it, but alas, Molokai remains a future goal requiring more strategic planning.

Eddie and I settle on revisiting Kauai for the first time in ten years. We really loved Maui the last time we visited, but at this moment, we’re missing the “Bali Ha’i-like feeling” that one experiences while gazing on the green rugged mountains of Kauai’s north coast.

For the uninitiated, Kauai is the oldest of the main Hawaiian islands, geologically, and one of the wettest places on earth. It’s referred to as The Garden Isle and for good reason — you will encounter more shades of green here than in Emerald City, OZ. This means it takes some discernment in perhaps planning a trip not in winter or spring, unless you aim for your Kauai Hawaiian experience to be like all Seattle, all the time.

Or, you just learn to “chase the sun” as the locals do.

Easiest job in the world? A weatherman or weather girl in Hawaii. Every part of the island is different from moment to moment, so you can never be wrong in your prediction. Try it. Look at the Weather app on your phone all day long but it’s 90% wrong hour by hour. So stop looking, gal! Just step outside to feel the air, or drive to the part of the island that’s more reliably always in the sun.

We touched down in the airport town of Lihue and secured our rental car with ease — Kauai’s airport remains old-fashioned and breezy, even in 2023.

Having been to the island once before, we know what to skip this time around. Waimea Canyon, dubbed the Grand Canyon of Hawaii, is indeed beautiful, but may not be worth the full drive up and back that takes away half a day of your Hawaii beach time.

We head north and pass through the town of Kapa’a, a cozy workaday place that’s oceanside, tropical and busy, yet not flashy in the typical tourist sense. In fact, this time around, it seems a little more worse for wear.

Just slightly. Nothing major. An imperceptible feeling that some things have been let go. Eddie spots some graffiti. I notice a few more down-at-heel Hawaiians carrying their belongings around. Not homeless, per se, but spending all day in the local park.

Perhaps Hawaii too is experiencing the all-now-too-familiar American problem of too many people falling through the cracks due to inflation, post-covid job loss situations or a depletion of safety nets.

Only 20 minutes away from the airport and my brain is already starting to re-evaluate our decision to revisit Kauai. Had the island really changed? Or had we? Most likely we were just not on “island time” yet — still judging everything with the impatience and bitter mainland filter.

Ten years ago we’d specifically placed ourselves at an AirBNB in Kapa’a due to its central location, giving an explorer easy access to both the North Shore and South Shore of the island. You can’t visit either without passing through Kapa’a somehow.

This trip we’ve opted to stay on the North Shore, so we head that way as the drizzle mists our windshield, mists my forearm hanging out the window.

The stunning green mountain scenery is still the same — whew — but somehow the weeds, bushes or mini-trees on the side of the road have grown to the point of being eight-foot-tall walls of green. It feels like we’re in some South American jungle, but thankfully without the humidity, snakes and spiders.

That’s one of the beauties of this island — the unspoiled natural beauty. On Oahu I have a feeling a lot of this would’ve been cut back and managed, but here on the Garden Isle, nature is left to do its thing and thrive.

By some AirBNB algorithmic fluke or perhaps a too-much-inventory issue we’ve scored a very affordable condo in Princeville on the north shore.

If you had told the ten-years-younger me that one day we’d be opting to stay in Princeville, I would’ve laughed. It’s pretty and beautifully placed, the entire area pristinely manicured, but feels like Beverly Hills, an island in itself, set inside teeming, not-always-pretty Los Angeles.

We weren’t those kind of people, we didn’t want some all-inclusive-resort sort of place! We want the authentic Hawaiian experience, we’d thought. Yet, here we were this time around.

The place itself wasn’t luxury, just a dated condo within luxoriously scenic surroundings — a perfect description for how Eddie and I approach travel.

While our counterparts prefer to indulge in expensive unforgettable meals at fabulous restaurants, we forgo these experiences when we travel and instead get sandwiches, cook food in our kitchen, and use the money that could’ve been wasted on two pricey meals out (with drinks) to instead rent a place for an extra day or even two.

We don’t make a lot of money, yet we make travel happen.

Surround yourself with luxurious sights and views, but live a minimalist, non-luxurious life within that space. Put yourself in the way of beauty.

During our first two days we revisit some favorite snorkel spots, including Tunnels Beach. Still stunning. But it’s October, the calm ocean waters of summer have lessened, making actual fish sighting a bit challenging. Instead, we just enjoy the scenery and bobbing the warm ocean waves— no complaints there.

One morning we commit to the long drive to the South Shore to explore beaches and visit a favorite bookstore in the tiny town of Hanapepe. This side of the island is often ten degrees warmer than the north, and the sun doesn’t disappoint. The bookstore also provides a wonderful distraction and we thank the Small-Business Gods that covid and Amazon still have not destroyed this local attraction.

We chose to revisit Poipu for that day’s beach time, a great snorkel destination we’d enjoyed last trip.

Crowded. Kids, families and lovers everywhere.

Somehow, before, I hadn’t noticed all the mega resorts backing up against the snorkel beach. And again, October beach conditions, while nice for swimming, are a little too choppy for proper snorkeling.

It’s still stunning — don’t worry, we’re not total snobs — but most tellingly, I think to myself, this could be a beach anywhere — Florida, Ocean City, USA, Newport Beach, California. But not specifically and tropically Kauai, Hawaii.

Got it.

This revelation firmly secured, and our time in Hanapepi well spent, we opted to remain on the North Shore for the rest of our trip. When you’ve somehow scored lodgings on the nicest part of the island, why feel the need to rush all over the place? You’re here, you’ve arrived, just be on island time and drink it all in.

Take a walk around the grounds. Breathe in those coastal and mountainous views. Indulge in a ten-minute drive to Hanalei Bay and experience a place where you can swim in the ocean and still have the best view behind you as tiny streams of water pour down the gigantic mountains, a result of yesterday’s clouds.

Had Kauai changed, or had we?

Were we just older? Less full of a pulsating need to go, go, go?

Whatever had changed, it was for the better.

In fairness, some personalities may find Kauai a tad slow, boring. Late-night clubbing isn’t a thing here. In fact, some restaurants may just roll up the sidewalk at 8 pm and call it a night. You’ll have to save the big-label shopping for another island.

But Kauai was what we wanted and needed. We were finally off of mainland time and mindset and life was good.

Our final two days we journeyed to encounter more of the not-so-stereotypical Hawaii — exploring church-run thrift stores, trying a new juice at a unique food truck, and stopping to befriend some happy horses.

Best of all, we found a beautiful and unique beach with no facilities, no tourists, no walk-up bar, no snack bar, no piped-in music — just locals of all ages, an island river bringing kayakers to the Pacific, a short walk through an enchanted forest and since we had a beach umbrella, some of the best four to five hours of our lives.

Kauai hadn’t changed. We just needed to step away from the guidebooks and let our souls lead us to what we needed.

The best thing about Hawaii — if you allow it — is its power to force you to slow down and live as the locals do, with less worries, and authentic peace emanating from your face.

You won’t have the energy or inclination to even fake-smile for any photo. You’ll simply… be.

© Joe Guay, 2023

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