Maha'ulepu Heritage Trail // Poipu in Kauai, Hawaii

If you're following along with the Scripture Memory / Dwell Richly printable, here's the verse for week 29: 

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Psalm 46:1 (NIV)

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If you're looking for a lengthy yet leisurely trail with lots of breathtaking views, the Maha'ulepu Trail will be perfect for you. As always, bring lots of water. It's an adventure filled with incredible lithified sand dunes. 

This trail was super close to our hotel in Po'ipu. You basically walk the coastline (and walk on the edge of a golf course at one point) then hit a semi-secluded beach at the end of the trail. We were running out of water (and daylight) so we didn't spend much time on the beach this day. However, we did drive back a few days later (incredibly bumpy dirty role with lots of pot holes - motion sickness almost got the best of me) and spent the afternoon bathing in the sun with only a couple of other people around. Bliss, my friends. Sheer bliss.

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Here's the random, infamous pink chair...

You can also find an ancient open-roofed sandstone sinkhole called Makauwahi Cave but it was closed by the time we got there. 

Hawaii : Makapu'u Lighthouse of Oahu / Adventure Is Out There!

After our spontaneous adventure, we continued on our hike up to the Makapu'u Lighthouse. 

There is no way this lighthouse could ever be hidden. It's a pretty clear picture of Matthew 5:14-16.

"You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven." 

Isn't it beautiful...

The entire path lasts about two miles. Apparently, it is the prime spot for whale-watching on the island from December to April. Maybe we'll get the opportunity to see the migration one season!

In the meantime, the lighthouse proves to be a fantastic sight to behold for now.

Do you see the white fence that leads to the lighthouse? 

Well, we found it and tried to follow the trail. Instead, an electric, locked fence denied us of entering. 

Booooo.

We explored a few more paths along the way. As I was taking more photos of the lighthouse, JD was being adventurous. A little tooooo adventurous for my taste.

My heart practically beat out of my choice when I turned around and saw JD sitting on this rock (aka the top, outermost point of a 500-ft cliff). I took a few photos as I walked closer to him (in a quiet panic) and asked him gently to please get off of that rock before the wind blows him off. 

In my defense, it was insanely windy. 

Whew. Fortunately, he somehow maneuvered a safe dismount and we got some incredible photos from it. Just looking at this photo makes me queasy. Haha! I really wish I had the boldness for adventure that he has. Gosh, he's awesome.

We hiked several more of the trails and headed back to the parking lot. The ole' Subes was awaiting our arrival. We couldn't have asked for a more fitting rental car than a Subaru. Have you seen those commercials!? The commercials alone make an adventure-seeker want to drive one.

If you decide to take a stroll to the lighthouse, check out the other paths but be careful. Most people were only walking the paved road to the lighthouse. They missed the adventures hidden among the off-course dirt paths. As we were walking, JD said, "Life is really what you make of it." I replied with, "Adventure is out there!!" 

Have you ever been on an adventure (physical, emotional or mental) that challenged you?? Was it worth the risk?

October 3: Koko Head Challenge

If you are ever on the island of Oahu in Hawaii, Boots & Kimos is a must-try! MM invited us to this little restaurant that we had to actually sit outside for quite a while just to get a table. Don't let the wait deter you. They serve these deliciously rich macadamia nut pancakes, which had a sweet macadamia nut sauce flowing over the 3-pancake high stack. I read that people love this sauce so much that even the Betty Crocker Company wanted to sell their product. What!? Yeah, it was that good.

After JD's teleconference, we set out to find Koko Head. We drove around for a bit trying to find the start. Somewhere along the road, we ended up at the Botanical Gardens. The GPS couldn't find it either. Just as you shouldn't let the wait deter you for the awesome-ness that will be served to you at Boots & Kimos, don't let the difficult-looking hike ahead deter you from Koko Head. It is most certainly not for the faint of heart, but you can do it.

You'll want to take lots of water (three

Camelbaks

per hiker's back should suffice), a camera, a Bible, and someone awesome to motivate you the entire way up.

{Alright, it's not that bad - but it's pretty tough if you're not in a daily routine of hiking such craters.}

As you may be enticed to hike Diamond Head due to its popularity among tourists, we would suggest against it. Grated, we haven't hiked it but we've heard that Koko Head's views hold many more marvelous treasures than Diamond Head. Plus, it's less crowded, less touristy and more of a challenge. Koko Head was formerly occupied by the military in order to transport personnel and supplies to a lookout post on the summit. How did the military get up to the peak? By trams and railways, of course!

And how do hikers get up to the peak? You guessed it - by walking more than 1,100 steps - or old railway ties. These railway ties have a tendency to be fairly spaced out every few feet so people with long legs (i.e. JD) have a higher advantage of defeating the trail with more ease than those with short legs (i.e. Whit).

This is Koko Head. Doesn't look so bad from here, huh? Please note that, yes, the baseball field you park beside

is

, in fact, the parking lot that will eventually lead you up to Koko Head. Don't second guess yourself... or triple guess if you had the same difficulties as us.  

The small hike's trail from the parking lot to the beginning of the massive hike's trail...

Oh, this is it. After the hill from the parking lot, followed by the paved road, you should embark on something similar to this.

Now

does the Koko Head trail look a bit tougher? 

We made it to the top!! Haha - kidding. This photo was taken maybe 1/8 of the way up. We were still fully energized at this point. 

This is the face of a man ready to defeat Koko Head. Yes, my sweet husband does smile all of the time.  Even in the face of defeat. It's a truly beautiful thing. I aspire to be more like him in times such as this.

He has a stamina that I just can't comprehend. At this point, I'm taking the photo from a little further behind him on the trail... as in, this photo is in full zoom. My energy was fading rather quickly... 

But, there were awesome views to sustain our wariness. 

Yeah, this reminds me of a roller coaster too - right before you lose your stomach. Vertigo, anyone?

Another fully-zoomed photo of my husband trekking at full speed ahead. He would let me catch up with him every now and again, but I just kept falling behind. I kept saying, "Gosh, I really need to get a work-out regimen."

Still working on that one...

The 500th step. 

Hydration is KEY!! I wish we had those Camelbaks about right now...

This is the bridge. Yeah. The bridge. As in, there is nothing underneath these railway ties except a vast span of nothing, and then maybe some grass below that nothingness.

Or at least that's how you may feel when crossing it.

You can also take the side trail to the right, if you're terrified of falling through. In other words, we took that trail on the way back down.

The Hikers vs. The Mountain

The beauty of this trail is that you will find an infinite amount of camaraderie. It's all of you vs. the mountain. This girl was one of many people that we shared encouragement with. I wish that we had gotten a snapshot of

the man carrying a baby on his back

. Oh yeah, and

the guy who was carrying his girlfriend down the mountain

.

THAT

is motivation, my friends. And it helped give us that push to keep going.  

Water break!! Did I mention that you should hydrate during this trek?

And this would have been the perfect place to pull out the Bible. Seriously. It was absolutely breathtaking. I mean that literally and figuratively. :) It was a great place to rest, take in the view, and hope that you would not fall forward the slightest bit or it's Jack and Jill the whole way down.

Props to my sweet husband for taking this cool pic. I'm so glad I wore my wedding shirt that day. It made for a pretty cool element in the photo, don't you think?

Oahu at its finest on a cloudy day. At this point, we were so high and the clouds were so filled with rain that it began to sprinkle on us. The rain was also motivation for continuing on. It was kind of like the voice of God saying, "What's up, Todd's? Why don't you join me on top of this crater? I've got some pretty cool sights for you. Oh, you need water? Here's enough to carry you through."

You may think this is the top, as it is the end of the ties. Don't be deceived, friends. My husband is merely resting for the first time on our hike. 

Follow the trail up to the tippy top (the beaten path to JD's right) and you will see some views that will almost knock you off the peak. It's a great photo op and resting spot!! We also met a super nice couple up here that took our picture for us. 

Here's a view into the crater. I had nightmares of falling off the peak into this crater during the nights that followed taking this photo.

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After enjoying the view, get ready....

...give each other a good luck kiss for the way down...

...and go!!

You may be tempted to run, hop, skip, or jog down... but be forewarned. Your feet may run out ahead of you and BOOM. Jack and Jill

again

. Not cool. Especially when you have short legs.

The treacherous bridge. Round 2. I'm pretty sure I crawled down backwards this time.

Is it that noticeable that JD graciously took the camera from me halfway during the hike? Can you also tell that he was super far ahead of me again on the way down? His legs are so much longer than mine.

Time for my muscle pics. 

I AM WOMAN!!... with a Dasani bottle in my hand.

JD took some pretty cool photos as I was cautiously hopping down the roller coaster-like trail. You can check out a stop motion clip we put together at 

this video

towards the end. 

Though this particular hike was quite strenuous, it was awesome and rewarding at both the peak and the end. We encourage anyone and everyone to have a go at it. Don't give up. Rest when you need to. Drink more water than you think you can even handle. Most importantly, enjoy it. Savor the battle because it is indubitably worth it. (Can you tell we've been watching How I Met Your Mother shows lately on Netflix?)

A Coconut Crackin', Tree Climbin', Hula Dancin', Adventurously Hikin' Hawaiian Recap

We still have one more daily recap post coming later this week (fingers' crossed), but we wanted to go ahead and post this video of our luau (finally!!) and the infamous Koko Head hike (post coming soon).

Music Choice

Boy with a Coin - Iron & Wine

Beautiful Day - U2

In other news, it seems like we'll be around Huntsville for a while. Yippee! Project corner, here I come!! I've already been working on some new projects and I cannot wait to post about them, in hopes you get some inspiration. As for Huntsville, we're excited that we may finally get to check this place out and enjoy it for a while.

Do you have any suggestions for our Huntsville adventures? 

Weather willing, we are super pumped to hike Walls of Jericho this weekend. I found out today that Davy Crockett hunted there. This happily serves as Reason #104 to hike the Walls of Jericho. 

Have a happy Tuesday!!

September 26: Exposure to the Filipino Culture

JD and I ate breakfast together at CJ’s again. Those macadamia nut / coconut pancakes are basically the only local food that we’ve enjoyed on Oahu.

While traveling, JD and I have both picked up reading for enjoyment. I finished the book “I Don’t Know How She Does It” while on this trip. The book laid out a vivid perspective on the working mom vs. the stay-at-home mom. Though it was eye-opening, it tended to be quite depressing at parts. This is not a book I would recommend; however, I have not seen the movie. Have you seen it? What would you rate it?

MM, JD’s cousin, and I hung out today. Our plans were to hike Diamond Head but those plans faltered a bit because of car trouble. Luckily for us, we were in close walking distance to the mall. I bought some nicely designed travel journals and a sweet driftwood birdhouse, which we gave to my parents for Christmas. It was unbearably hard to part with, but I know they will love it just as much as I did.

MM’s uncle picked us up at the mall and fixed the truck. MM then took me to Max’s, my first Filipino restaurant. It was a little different than I expected. She ordered a squid on a platter and I ordered the only food I was familiar with (thanks to Mrs. Josie cooking it for us on the holidays)… pancit. Despite my lack of interest in the food, MM and I had a blast! She was great and the spontaneity of the evening was delightful and intriguing. I’m thankful for the chance of meeting family on Mrs. Josie’s side. [If you're wondering "where JD came from" (as some people put it), his mother is full Filipino and his dad is caucasian. I can hardly wait to see what our babies will look like one day.]

Today served as a late morning and a late night for JD at work. With our travel schedule, we’ve learned that “home” can even be a hotel room. This has become one of my favorite quotes and images I’ve seen on Pinterest: Home is where your husband is.