RV

Kauai : Top 5 Things to See and Do

Kauai (aka the Garden Island) is the oldest island out of the whole Hawaiian chain. The island is lush and exotic. Kauai does not have any active volcanoes and is the best island (in my opinion). We gave some recommendations for the Big Island (here), so now we are ready to give you our recommendations for Kauai. What did we have fun doing? What recommendations do we have for our readers?

We have been to Kauai a few times (Zach more than myself) thanks to his parents. They have a timeshare here, so we usually go with them. The first time I came to Kauai was right after I studied abroad in Spain. I flew back to Austin, Texas for one night and then flew to Kauai the next day! Talk about jet lag! But I instantly fell in love with the island. We are sure you will too!

Favorite things (in order):

Na Pali Coast – The only true way to see the coast is by boat or helicopter, that way you can get the true vastness of the coast line. The cliffs and valleys are incredible. You can look at a picture, but seeing this place with your own eyes is next level. You can read more about how to see the Na Pali Coast here in a blog post I did a few weeks ago.
Tunnels Beach – This beach has a spectacular backdrop and the snorkeling is next level. There are various places you can park, but we like finding one of the little alleyways to park in. They give you the closest parking to the best snorkeling spots at the beach. The drive down to Tunnels is incredible and a fun thing to do by itself. Don’t be a jerk and walk out on the coral. Find a small sand spot to walk on and swim out. Don’t walk out on the coral until it gets deep enough. If you decide to go snorkeling, we love renting our gear from a little surf shop in Hanalei. We get it for the week and use it at various beaches during our stay. If you go to Hanalei, walk around, do a little shopping and enjoy the beautiful waterfalls coming down the mountains behind this quaint town.
Waimea Canyon – The drive is very windy but the canyon views are amazing. The Grand Canyon of the Pacific is a sight to behold. There are a few lookout points, but we liked to just pull off on the side of the road and have a private viewing area. The end of the road is one of the wettest places in the world and a gorgeous lush ocean view at the Pu’u O Kila Lookout. If you are a hiker, bring your hiking boots and do a few trails while you are up there.
Queen’s Bath – Visit at your own risk! This “bath” is one of our favorites to visit. In the winter especially, Queen’s Bath is very dangerous because of the high tides, strong current and large rogue waves. But the two times we have gone in the summer, it was not bad and we felt safe. Still be wary of rogue waves that can wash in the bath and pull you out to sea. After a hike down a dirt path (very slippery mud after a rain), you take a left once you get down to the lava rocks at the ocean. Keep walking until you come upon this beautiful bath. Teeming with ocean life, we recommend you bring your snorkel gear.
The Beach House – Make a reservation for around sunset time. The food is good and the sunsets here are perfect. You can sit on their grass lawn and watch the surfers or the usual wedding and sip on a mai tai while you wait for your table. Reservations recommended. Also, bring some cash, because valet is the way to go here. And bring your good camera. The staff is happy to help take your picture.

Have you been to any of these places? What were your thoughts? Anything a must-see?

Mahalo,

The Fabulous Life of an RV Wife

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Road Trip from Hell – Part 2

Thank you for joining us for Part 2 of our terrifying trip to Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks. If you haven’t read Part 1, you can find it by clicking here. Enjoy.

A few hours had already passed by this time. Finally, I got a hold of a nice tow guy who couldn’t tow us himself (because of the 36 foot travel trailer), but gave us the number of the nice people at Sanchez towing that could. He also told me I needed to call the highway patrol to get an officer out there to help guide traffic. So that is what I did. I called highway patrol and then Sanchez towing. They said they could get someone out to us in 35 to 40 minutes.

As I rounded the corner to head back to Zach and the kids, I saw a couple of trucks stopped around our rig. They had managed to get us unhooked from the RV. Upon arrival, I learned that one guy was going to pull our trailer up a half mile to a shoulder area and another man was going to tow our car up to that same area until Sanchez towing showed up. It was about 45 minutes until night time by this point. The highway patrol showed up 30 minutes later and then our tow truck pulled up right behind him. The tow truck could only take the RV or our vehicle at a time and then come back for the other. So, we decided to coast our car down the mountain and Sanchez would take the RV down after us. The highway patrol followed our car to make sure we made it down safely. We coasted into an RV park near that last gas station before the Park. But, the night wasn’t over.

They were booked! Now, we were stuck at the RV park with no vacancy. The RV showed up 10 minutes after us on the tow truck. They had to find a place to turn around all 36 feet of Beauty as we affectionately called her before the Texas hail storm, now we call her Ratchet. We quickly started to call around places, but now it was 8pm, almost completely dark out and all RV parks were closed. We were finally able to locate an RV park we could book online and it was only 22 minutes down the road. So, Zach, Lawsyn, Huxton and George went in the tow truck to the new park. Our rational was that Zach could help back the RV into our spot, hookup the rig and then get the babies fed and in bed. Knoxton, Brixton and myself stayed at the no vacancy RV park in our broken car until the tow guys could come back to get us. At one point, a nice family from Florida with four teenagers came out and offered us burgers. After about an hour and a half, the tow service got back to us and we made it back around 10pm. It was a LONG day! We had been in the car for 11 hours!

The story is not over yet…

The next day we had to get our car towed to a repair place. And then we found out that our RV spot was booked after our three night reservation. We had no car to move our RV with! It was going into the weekend and we needed to be out on Saturday! We called back Sanchez towing and they would be able to help tow us to another spot at the park, but the new spot only had enough electricity to only run one AC at a time and temperatures were rising – literally. A park we had called the night of the breakdown called us back and said they had an opening available. She would keep it open for us starting Friday for a week and then hold another week for us. Well, Sanchez called us back and said they were unable to tow Saturday morning like originally planned, but Friday night they could get it done. We had an hour to breakdown our camp and get ready for them to come and get us. Thank God the new park had reserved Friday for us as well thinking we were getting in very early Saturday morning. The kids and I got a taxi service to come pick us up and Zach came a few minutes behind with the tow company and our RV.

I know there were a lot of terrifying moments about what the heck we were going to do, but there were also a lot of moments where things worked out and people were very kind and helpful as well. We are still waiting for the car to get fixed, but now we have a place to stay and enough electricity to run BOTH our ACs.

I know sometimes we only see the positive things people experience while traveling full time, but these scary moments are a reality too. Thank you for sticking around to hear about our crazy road trip into the mountains.

Do you have a crazy story like ours? We would love to hear about it!

Road Trip from Hell – Part 1

We are going to switch gears today and discuss the crazy occurrences of the last few days.

It was moving day at Foster Park, where we had been staying for a few days while visiting Los Angeles and the Channel Islands National Park. The day was very relaxed, unlike most moving days. The boys and I went to a local laundromat to wash all our bedding and extra clothes we had accumulated after just 12 hours (we had gone to the laundromat the day before as well). We had to be out of our camping spot by 11am, so we were locked and loaded to go on the 4.5 hour trip by 10:45am. Our destination was a boondocking spot right outside of Kings Canyon National Park but as you will hear, we never made it.

We were on the road and were making great time. The kids were not their usual screaming selves. On our way through the mountains heading to Bakersfield, the brakes started to smoke, so we pulled off the road and gave them a rest. We had just replaced our brakes less than a month prior and paid extra for the “top-of-the-line” brake pads and rotors, but I guess towing 11,000 pounds through mountains will take a toll on everything, even new brakes.

We made a stop for lunch at a truck stop right outside of Bakersfield and to give our brakes another rest and then continued on. Most of the journey was on small town roads. We passed clementine, olive, and grape farms. Really beautiful and hard to resist the urge to not pullover and pick some fresh fruit from the trees and vines along our route.

Cue the road that now makes me shudder when I speak of it, the dreaded 180…dun, dun, DUN! The incline started off pretty strong from the get go. We were on a two lane road, one lane going each direction. We passed the last gas station until you got to the park and still felt good about our journey. We had read reviews about the boondocking spot we were heading to. We were not staying in the park, but right outside of it. What could go wrong? Many people had stayed there and were able to pull their RVs up the mountains to the spot, why can’t the Beast? That is when the smoke started.

I started to see smoke coming out of the car in my side mirror. We pulled over on the side of the road to investigate and the smoke had stopped. Nothing was leaking, so we decided to continue on and stop at the next stop to check again, but we never made it to the next stop.

The road is very windy with straight cliff drops down. Now remember, we are on a two lane road. When we rounded a sharp corner, our car decided it didn’t want to go any further. After about 100 feet (give or take), it was done. The transmission fluid had left a path of defeat all the way up to the Beast’s final resting place. We just sat there for a minute, unable to move, thinking what the HECK are we going to do. We have a 36ft travel trailer hooked onto the back of us and there is literally NO spot to turn around and no spot to pull over to or coast down backward to. We were stuck with a straight drop to our right, a mountain to our left and sharp turns in front and behind us. So, after pondering our next plans, we jumped out of the car, put the brakes on, put chalks behind all the wheels on the truck and trailer (since we were on a serious incline) and got out our safety equipment. We had about 4 hours until night time and we needed to get busy.

I grabbed Zach’s cell phone (mine took a swim in the Pacific a few days prior) and walked back down the mountain until I had cell service. I started calling all the tow people that were nearby, which are not many. No luck. One tow service even said he would call around and see if any of his guys were available and never called me back and stopped answering my phone. Perfect!

Stay tuned to hear how we were rescued and the continuation of the worst day we have had so far.

XO,

The Fabulous Life of an RV Wife

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Na Pali Coast Boat Tour

You can’t hear about Kauai and NOT also hear about the Na Pali Coast. This jaw dropping north side of Kauai can only be reached by boat, helicopter or on foot. Many movies have been filmed on Kauai from Jurassic Park to Pirates of the Caribbean. When (not if) you go to Kauai, you MUST plan to see this side of the island. We choose to go by boat or helicopter, since the on foot option includes 11 miles on a very difficult trail (from what I hear). You will need permits and camping gear to get there. You take the Kalalau Trail from Ke’e Beach (pronounced: keh-AY).

We recommend traveling by boat or helicopter – we have done both- to really see the vastness of the coastline. The last time we traveled to the Na Pali coast by boat was a few weeks ago. We used the Blue Dolphin company. We have used them before and they are terrific with customer service. They let our boys “drive” the boat and they were very helpful for people who were getting sea sick. You have about an hour of snorkel time before or after driving the boat down the coastline almost to Ke’e (which is the end of the NaPali coast). The cliffs are breathtaking and the captain gives you an awesome history lesson about the coast while you are cruising by. They also provide breakfast and lunch (depending on when you go) and drinks.

We did take a drive up Waimea Canyon. If you go to where the road dead ends, you can see some amazing views at the Pu’u O Kila lookout, which shows canyon views on the ocean side. You can also drive to Polihale State Park and see part of the Na Pali coast from there, but again, you wouldn’t be able to see the incredible cliffs like you do from boat or helicopter.

What is your favorite form of transportation to see the Na Pali coast? Are you ready to visit Kauai? One of our favorite places by far!

Mahalo,

The Fabulous Life of an RV Wife

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Big Island : Top 5 Things to See – The good and the meh

The Big Island (aka Hawaii, aka the Orchid Isle) is the youngest island out of the whole Hawaiian chain. The island is also the biggest of all the other Hawaiian islands combined! The Big Island also has active volcanoes, so this is probably the island you want to hit up if seeing a volcano is on your bucket list. We came, we saw, we got battle wounds to prove it! Did we enjoy ourselves on the Big Island? What did we have fun doing? What recommendations do we have for our readers?

We posted a few articles going into detail about some of the things we did. You can go check them out on our page, under Travel, or in the links I have added below. So here it goes…

Favorite things (in order):

Papakolea – Green Sand Beach – Difficult hike – We would recommend either hitching a ride with the locals or being in somewhat of a decent physical shape. See article here for more detail.
Punalu’u – Black Sand Beach – You drive right up to the beach. If you already made up your mind to take the drive to Green Sand Beach, Punalu’u is on your way. I would probably do Punalu’u first, because after the hike to Papakolea, the only thing you will want is a chair and a cold beverage (and maybe some ointment to massage into those torn up feet). Additional details can be found here.
Manta Ray Tour – Not for the timid or novice snorkeler. We would also not recommend it for people who get seasick easily. See our article here.
Snorkeling at Kahaluʻu Bay – Terrific for first timers. Our six-year-old really enjoyed it and we saw SO MANY FISH. The bay is protected, so the area feels very safe and there is also a lifeguard stand. Rent your snorkel gear from Snorkel Bob’s , NOT from Boss Frog’s.
Helicopter Ride – The ride over the Kilauea Crater was definitely the highlight of the tour. Read more about our flight here.

Meh things:

Meh means not so great, so you could skip them if you are short on time.

Kiholo Bay – The waters are not clear enough for snorkeling. They do have a good amount of turtles and some locals saw sting rays in the bay while we were there, but other than that, not much here. We hiked quite a ways to get to the bay and were underwhelmed.
Queen’s Bath (near Kiholo Bay) – Very short hike to the bath, but was unimpressed when compared to Kauai’s Queen’s Bath. No snorkeling to be had here (we didn’t see any fish). The cool water is very difficult to get in and out of, unless you do yoga on the reg. Bring a headlamp and go deeper into the cave if you are brave enough, or take some cool photos, but not much else to do.

Have you been to any of these places? What were your thoughts? Anything a must-see?

Mahalo,

The Fabulous Life of an RV Wife

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Big Island – Manta Ray Tour

*Sadly, this post is void of any pictures from our tour. I only took the one because it was dark and we were all in the water together.*

We did the night snorkel with manta rays. It was super fun, but kind of scary. I do not like swimming where you can’t see anything below you. I grew up in Austin and we have a few lakes in the area. I would still go skiing or swimming, but I was terrified the whole time. Manta ray tours are at night and we happened to be going on a night where the moon was nonexistent and the sky was cloudy. So, it was pitch black outside except for the lights from the island and I was pretty scared. Our six and nine-year-olds came along and did great.

You take a 30-45 minute boat ride to a spot just off the shore where the tour boat puts in surfboards with lights on the bottom that attract the manta rays. The lights actually attract the plankton that settles on the ocean floor at night. When the lights are present, the plankton rise up, which creates a feeding ground for the manta rays.

Manta rays are similar to their cousin the sting ray except they do not have a natural defense, so they are not dangerous to you. What is dangerous is the sea sickness you get from not being able to see anything on the boat ride over. So continuing on, you are holding onto the surfboard and watching these huge creatures do backflips right in front of your face. Sometimes you are looking straight down and then a manta ray is brushing up against your arms 1 inch from your snorkel mask.

Brixton wanted to go back a little early and not stay out the full time, so I went back with him, but Knoxton and Zach stayed out the whole time. Highly recommend going on this snorkel tour, but I would say only confident first timers. Quite a few people were getting into the water and hopping right back out. It can be intimidating, especially in the dark with rough seas (like the night we were out). Probably 6-8 people were getting sick off the front of the boat at one time, so also probably not for people who get sick easily. We took the tour with Hang Loose Boat Tours via TripAdvisor. We really enjoyed our trip and the guys were super nice and entertaining. Also, if the manta rays are not out the night you go, you can do another tour for free! We left at 7:30pm and got back at 11:00pm, so super late. Keep in mind that this is Hawaii time and if you are coming from the mainland (lower 48), it can be quite late, so definitely don’t plan the trip on the first or second day you are in Hawaii.

Have you been on a manta ray tour or are wanting to go? What is something that you have tried that is out of your comfort zone?

Have any questions for us? We would love to hear from you!

Mahalo,

The Fabulous Life of an RV Wife

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Helicopter Tour on the Big Island

Last minute, we decided to surprise the kids with a helicopter tour. I have always been fascinated by volcanoes, so flying over one was right up my alley. Who says that they want to be a volcanologist when they are 9 years old…this girl!

That day, we had to wake up early and go to Hilo. We were staying in Kona, so getting to Hilo is a little bit of a trek over the mountains and hills on Saddle Road. The drive was amazing. I mean, would you expect any less from Hawaii? When we drove up to the Hilo airport, we asked the kids what they thought we were doing, they responded with things like, “Flying in a private jet.” After a few guesses, Knoxton guessed right. The kids were excited!

We had to wait for another party to arrive. Once they did, we all took a very brief training and got on our life vests. We followed the guide to the helicopter and he strapped everyone into their assigned seats. We took off and I felt WAY more comfortable than I thought I would. As I get older, I get more and more afraid of flying, but our pilot put my nerves at ease. She flew us around the Hilo side of the island and over various lava flows. She told us interesting facts about the lava and the island. She also told us Hawaiian legends about the lava and trees as well. We had a two-way radio, so we could ask her any questions we had. Brixton took control of the mic for a while, so we had to cut him off.

We flew right over the Kilauea Crater. A real volcano! I was jumping for joy inside – because I couldn’t jump for joy in a helicopter. The red lava is tempermental and only shows on certain days. Unfortunately for us, it was not showing the day we flew. But we could still see the crater and the sulfur fizzing out.

On the way back, Brixton fell asleep and I started to feel nauseous. Ginger candies helped keep my mind off the sick feeling that was building up.

Be aware that Hilo is extremely wet, so be prepared to encounter some rain while on your tour. If you are planning a helicopter tour on the Big Island, we flew with Paradise Helicopters and highly recommend their services. Don’t forget to tip the pilot!

Have you ever gone on a helicopter tour? Where did you go?

Have any questions for us? We would love to hear from you!

Mahalo,

The Fabulous Life of an RV Wife

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Our Adventure to South Point – Green Sand Beach (Papakōlea)

Green sand beach, also known as Papakolea, was formed thousands of years ago and gets it’s green color from olivine crystals that mix in with the sand. No, it is not green like grass. The sand has almost a yellow, brownish green hue. But not only is it cool to say you have been to one of only a handful of green sand beaches in the world, the vastness of the beach is reward enough for the excruciating hike.

Let’s discuss the hike, because it really is no joke. I read in a travel book that it was 2.25 miles, but seems much longer. We had mentally prepared for a long hike, but when we arrived, the locals said it was 3 miles. Three miles really didn’t sound like much for us. We had our 9 year old and 6 year old with us and didn’t think much of it. But, it is a challenging hike. I think part of the problem was the rolling hills. I would play a game and think that after the next hill, we would see the beach. But, the hills became continuous like a sick joke and I was tired of playing it’s game. To be honest though, by the time we got to the beach, I had forgotten the 1:15 hour hike.

The beach comes out of nowhere. You have to be at the edge of the cliff to see the beach. (For example, as we left, a man and his son were 60 feet away from the beach cliff and asked us where it was. Keep your eyes peeled for trucks and jeeps sparked together.) We stood there for a while just in awe of its size. I know you probably hear all the time that a picture just can’t do something justice, but I am here to tell you that it is the truth with these photos!

We hiked down a rickety stair and down the rock wall onto the beach. Zach jumped in the water and I held the boys’ hands in ankle deep water. The current is STRONG down there. On more than one occasion we were washed off our feet by the waves. I would recommend not swimming down there, but if you do, please be super safe. It only takes one rogue wave and you are gone.

After we played in the water for a little while, we climbed out and almost caved into riding back in a local’s truck (*see side note below). After blisters, stripping off one of our kids’ clothes, and some tears, we finally made it back to our car. Even though it ended up being a very difficult hike for us and our kids, it was our favorite place we visited on the Big Island.

*Side note, locals can drive you down to the edge of the beach’s cliff in their 4×4 trucks for a steep fee. You stand in the back of their pickup with other people who paid. You can take your rental 4×4 jeep, but make sure you go only if you have insurance. The divots in the road go so deep, we saw more than one jeep scrape the bottom of the car on rocks. Some roads are driven so much that they are 6 feet deep. Watch out for hikers and other vehicles around the corners. Drive at your own risk.

We highly recommend giving this beach a visit. And if the hike scares you, bring some cash and hitch a ride.

Have any questions for us? We would love to hear from you!

Mahalo,

The Fabulous Life of an RV Wife

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Our Adventure to South Point – Black Sand Beach (Punalu’u)

Hawaii continues to amaze me. From the hot lava fields to the windy grasslands to the lush forests, the beauty of this place is never ending. We decided to make the long trek to the south point, which is about an hour and half from Kailua-Kona on a one lane road through small towns.

We wanted to experience a black sand beach and Punalu’u Beach was the perfect spot. No hiking needed. You drive straight up to the beach, which has a concession type stand, a lifeguard on duty, a few houses/buildings and some local campers. There is a freshwater pond right behind the beach that is covered in beautiful plants and lilypads. The sand was hot, but bearable. Keep in mind that the back sand is lava rocks that have been pounded down over many years into black sand, so the sand is not exactly soft to walk on.

We brought lunch and our snorkel gear and boy were we glad we did. There are not many food options out here, so make sure and research where you are going to stop and maybe bring snacks with you. We have heard from multiple sources that the Punalu’u Bakery is terrific, but it was busy when we passed by. Again, there is a concession stand, so you can buy some overpriced chips or some woven palm tree hats made right there in front of you if you so desire.

The water is a little rough, but they have buoys that are a gentle reminder to stay in between them and the shore. We paired up. Zach took Brixton and I took Knoxton. We went out and saw a good amount of fish and turtles! This was the first sighting of turtles the kids had. You are supposed to stay 20 feet away from them, but by the time we spotted one, it was 5 feet away. The kids loved it! The snorkel mask we got for the kids is unavailable, but here is something very similar.

Another really cool thing is that at Punalu’u near the rocks, which are in the middle of the beach, there are spots with gurgling fresh water. We had read that Hawaiians would bring dried out gourds here and dive down for fresh water at this beach, but we didn’t know how easy it was to find. You can see the water coming up from the ground in a few spots in the tide pools. We all drank from the tide pools and it was the freshest water. Just be cautious of drinking fresh water from the ground here, because we also read about the use of cesspools on the island and how they leach into the freshwater on the island. Luckily, they are outlawed and any new developments need to have a proper septic tank, but existing cesspools don’t need to be changed until 2050.

Overall, this beach was fun and worth the drive for us and a must see if you enjoy going for a drive. We also hit up a green sand beach on South Point that was over an hour hike! Look for that in our next article, Our Adventure to South Point – Green Sand Beach (Papakolea).

Have any questions for us? We would love to hear from you!

Mahalo,

The Fabulous Life of an RV Wife

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Our Big Island Vacation – Hawaii

Aloha from Hawaii!

We finally got started traveling again. As many of you know, we had to return to Austin, Texas (our homebase) to have baby Huxton, so we had to quit traveling for a few months with plans to start again when things settled down.

We had been planning to go to Hawaii for three years. Usually, we go with Zach’s parents and they plan out two years in advance so everyone can take-off of work, etc. Well, COVID happened last year and we had to cancel our trip. So, we rescheduled for this year and had originally planned to bring the two older boys. Three years ago, we didn’t have Lawysn and Huxton, but it is amazing what can happen in three years. We held our breath with the assumption that things might change due to Hawaii’s restrictions, but we MADE IT! Sadly, the babies are staying back with grandparents, but definitely getting spoiled. We had a very relaxing plane flight without having to wrangle a toddler and infant and the boys are enjoying their “alone-time” with mom and dad.

Continuing with our travel day, we made it to the Big Island a little before noon. We had done the Safe Hawaii website where you have to fill-out all of your travel plans and upload your negative COVID tests from an approved place (we did Walgreens). We thought we were golden when we got back our negative results for the four of us, but when we arrived in Kona, they made us take ANOTHER COVID test…ugh! We were so confused. I thought I had done a ton of research so we wouldn’t run into any problems, but come to find out, the Safe Hawaii COVID tests are for the state and the additional tests we had to take were for the county we are staying in. So frustrating! We still didn’t get our test results back from the airport, so hopefully everything is kosher.

We are staying at an VRBO condo and it has the most amazing view (we did sacrifice not having air conditioning in the bedroom). But this view is spectacular for the terrific price. We plan on exploring some beaches tomorrow and have a night snorkel with manta rays for Tuesday!

We will keep you updated with our adventures and excursions. Send some recommendations of places we should see!

Have any questions for us? We would love to hear from you!

XO,

The Fabulous Life of an RV Wife

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