A Wonderful Weekend in Kauai

You know how you have those weekends where it seems to go by in a flash but at the same time Friday feels like a lifetime ago? That's exactly how this weekend was. I was on Kauai and it flew by in a blink but I fit so many amazing things in!

I flew out Friday night and arrived in our condo around ten. Chatted a bit and went straight to bed. We had an 8am pick-up time. The day started at 8am and didn't end until well after 10pm. Every minute was amazing. We were there for the Hawaii State Paddling Competition in beautiful Hanalei Bay.



Our team kicked major ass, winning our division, winning three races and getting third in another. It was a total high point for our entire club.

I got to race which was really special. At state's you have to race in a koa canoe which is amazingly unique. I have never been in a koa canoe, I have never been around that much koa wood, and I have certainly seen a piece of wood that is that valuable. Each canoe is worth $60,000 to $120,000. As the announcer said "there are millions of dollars of wood on the beach today." Unfortunately my race didn't go very well. We barely didn't lose. But you know, we worked hard. And we're part of a winning team even if it's not a winning boat.

My friends Amber and Susannah as they prepared to take third in their race.

A race finish. I'm somewhere in there.

A beautiful silhouette. I particularly love this picture because my timing is spot-on!

At the end of the day we collected our club trophy and headed off to a luau thrown by a friend of our club. It was a super special event held in a past member's honor and was a true Hawaii moment. I don't think I'll ever experience something that authentically real to Hawaii. Lots of aloha in the most heartfelt sense of the word.

The next morning I was up at 7am and eating two packets of oatmeal to fuel up for a 32 mile race along the Napali Coast. It's race that starts in Hanalei and finishes somewhere on the south west side. I was pumped to get to see the Napali Coast from the perspective of a canoe. And I was not let down. I worked my little butt off with great reward and a ton of fun.

I took 167 pictures in less than 48 hours. This is just a small sampling. A much larger collection can be found on the Flickr link to the right.

The girls in my crew: Candace, Lisa, Gabi, Peg, Andrea and me. The guys called us "Waikiki Girls" and it cracked us up.

Hanalei. This is what I came to Hawaii to experience.

Does it get better than this?

The boys on our crew, local guys from Kauai.

Jenni, living in Hawaii.