sleeps in the canyons

There really is not trip to Kauai without including a trip to Waimea Canyon. The "grand canyon of the pacific" is a gorgeous deep gorge full of blues, greens, and reds.

We arose early to catch the best light, and to grab a bite to eat. Thatmom had been begging to go to a specific coffee shop during our trip, and it was quite a ways away. It was, however, on the way to Waimea, so we grabbed breakfast at the Kaleheo Cafe.

Thatmom and Thatdad loved the Kaleheo cafe, and we were quick to join the bandwagon. Thatboy thought it was the best coffee he's ever had. The food wasn't so bad either!

I had the Bonzo burrito, stuffed with ham, peppers, mushrooms, onions olives, scrambled eggs, cheddar and Monterey jack. I didn't come near to finishing it and was full for the entire day!



Thatmom had her typical breakfast out - scrambled egg whites and fruit.


Thatbrother (and his finger) made his own omelet with Portuguese sausage, mushrooms, and red peppers.


UDubb had the Farmer's Omelet.


Thatboy has been won over by me ordering eggs benedict, so he did it on his own this time - the twist? It's a bagel benny! Bagel topped with ham, egg, and hollandaise.

Then we headed up the road to Waimea. There's not much to say about it, except it is SO BEAUTIFULLY AMAZINGLY GORGEOUS.

The west shore of Kauai (where Waimea is) is notoriously dry. Or at least it's supposed to be dry. This was definitely the rainiest day of our trip, so much so that it actually rained at dry Waimea.

The rain and the clouds made certain lookouts obscured, but in other places, the clouds lifted and parted like a curtain giving us what felt like a magical view.

The canyon is deep and red, not surprising since Kauai is know as the red dirt capital of the road. Most of it must be here in Waimea.

After our early morning, and long day on the road, in the car, we decided to just take it easy and have dinner at the hotel. Lucky for us, we had a pretty fantastic restaurant at the hotel - Nanea.

Thatmom and I split a green salad to start - and yes, there is goat cheese in there!

For dinner, Thatmom had a seafood pasta - shrimp, scallops, and fish.

I was tempted to get the duck, but Thatboy thought I should branch out and try something I hadn't had this week. Thatbrother had the duck instead. I thought the duck was better at the Beachhouse, but Thatbrother was very impressed with this.

I went with the greek pasta - which was declared the winner of the table with Thatmom and Thatboy. Filled with peppers, artichoke hearts, olives, and feta - salty but fantastic.

UDubb had the tofu which she raved about. It was a suggestion of the server she was glad to have taken.

Thatboy had bland bland bland chicken puttanesca. I know from experience that puttanesca sauce is brilliantly salty due to the olives, anchovies, and capers. We couldn't find even the hintiest hint of olives or capers in this.

Waimea is a definite "not to be missed" portion of Kauai. I just wish the weather was better and we could have spent more time hiking around. Although it was very cool to see some interesting waterfalls. It whetted our appetite for the next day - our tour of Kauai's waterfalls!