2017 Focus Word

Originally my focus word for 2017 was going to be creativity.

Then I read a book by my friend Tammy Christensen.

In the book she talked about barriers or limits we place on ourselves.

As I read her words, I thought about the various boxes I have put myself in.

The not-creative box

The not-a-very-nice-person box

The not-gritty box

The I-give-up box

All of those boxes.

I'm not very happy with where I have put myself.

So I thought some more about my focus word for 2017.

I thought about how I can change.

The only way to change is to really discover the barriers.

And then once the barriers have been identified,

discover ways to break through the barriers.

So my focus word for 2017 is DISCOVERY

I'm excited about this word.

I'm looking forward to discovering my creative side.

I know it is in me. I have just buried it because

of failed attempts at being creative.

I'm discovering how other people describe me.

For the most part, I don't think people would describe me

as a not-very-nice person.

I want to allow myself to see myself as nice and kind.

I'm setting goals for myself that will push me

and help me develop mental strength, fortitude and grit.

I'll be blogging about all of these things throughout the year.

I hope you will follow along.

I'm also doing Facebook Live videos to share growth and insights.

Here's to

DISCOVERY

A Hike in Waimea Canyon

When Dave and I visited Kauai six years ago, we went on some incredible hikes. Some of them were so great that we wanted to do them again. One of those hikes was to Waipo'o Falls.

Now, our visit six years ago was during a particularly dry year. We had been warned that there might not be much water flowing across the falls and that the trail would be hot and dusty. And the warnings were right on all accounts. It was hot, dry, dusty and the small falls were nothing but a small dribble. Still, the hike was worth repeating and one we knew that Katelyn and our 7 year-old niece could do (Katelyn doesn't enjoy hiking nearly as much as the rest of us).

So on one of the drier days, we all (minus Rich and Charlene) trekked out to the Waimea Canyon to hike to the falls. The trail that we remembered as dry and dusty was now soggy and incredibly muddy until we reached the ridge line that is traversed right before the falls. That part was relatively dry. The view from the ridge line is amazing, but if one is a bit nervous with heights, enjoy the view from a few feet back. And if you are hiking with young adults who have more bravado than sense, have them hike far ahead of you so you can't see how close to the edge they are walking.

The smaller falls were roaring, so different from six years ago. And even thought it wasn't a particularly hot day, some of us decided to swim in the pool to be pummeled by the falls. The water filling that pool was suprisingly cold! But the swim was so fun!

 Once we finished playing in this small pool, we walked back to the trail and hiked about 200 yards to the top of the Waipo'o falls. There was a crazy amount of water rushing across those falls and you could almost feel the spray!

While we were at those falls, there was a helicopter that flew a bit closer than any other helicopters we had seen that day. The chopper did a deep banked turn. I was glad that the passengers were buckled in tight. As it turned out, that was Rich and Charlene's helicopter! They were taking a helicopter tour while we were hiking and they were flying over us just as we were getting to the top of the falls. That was pretty neat.

As we finished up at the falls, the clouds began to grow heavy and we knew that rain was on the way. Not wanting to hike on an even muddier trail, we double-timed it back to the trailhead. Unfortunately, we didn't beat the rain and hiked the last half-mile in the pouring down rain. But even with the rain, everyone (including Katelyn) enjoyed the hike. The 7 year old, was tired of hiking about 200 yards before we reached the falls and there was no amount of cajoling that could convince her to walk the last 200 yards to see the falls. But, that worked out OK, because she got a bit of a rest and was ready to go when it was time to double-time it back to the trailhead.

I Have Goals for 2017

I plan on sharing those goals, but first I have to return to Kauai because Kauai was awesome. And because it is 12 degrees outside and I need warm thoughts of Kauai.

In my previous post I promised to share some thoughts about hiking in Kauai. I loved hiking in Kauai. This trip we tackled the first few miles of the Kalalau Trail, a rugged trail along the Napali coast. In order to hike the whole 11 miles, permits need to be pulled and we were too late in applying for these permits to get them (secretly happy that we missed the deadline). The day we hiked the Coast was a bit damp as there was a hurricane off the coast of the Big Island that was wreaking havoc with weather throughout the islands. The wetness caused some challenges along the trail.

The first part of the trail is rocky, and wet rocks are slippery rocks. This was easy peasy compared to the red soil that is found on the rest of the trail. When that soil gets wet, it is like a giant slip and slide. And let me tell you, it was pretty funny to watch and listen to other hikers as they navigate d across the slippery trail. Pretty sure that there were at least 2 couples who probably weren't couples by time they returned to the car.

About a mile into the first 2 mile stretch that is hikeable without a permit, you are hiking along a ridge and the view of the coastline is amazing!

This ridge leads to a steep downhill section that dropped us down to Hanakapi'ai Beach. In order to get to the beach, there is a stream to cross. I'm betting at drier times, this stream is crossable just by boulder hopping. The water was too high to boulder hop so I took off my shoes and socks and fjorded the stream (it was about thigh deep). Back at home, the streams are very cold,  so it was quite pleasant to wade into water that didn't automatically make every sphincter in your body clench.

Carson had beat us down the trail and we came up to the beach to find him like this

After a brief respite and a selfie with my guy

we continued up a spur trail to find Hanakapi'ai Falls.

This trail was a lot muddier, not as heavily traveled so not as maintained, and had many more stream crossings. By time we hit the second crossing, Carson had grown impatient with me taking off my shoes and socks, so he plowed on ahead never to be seen again...well not until Dave and I got to the Falls. I also got tired of taking off my shoes and socks, and honestly my shoes were so wet and muddy from the trail anyway, that I started just walking across the stream with my shoes on. Now, most people might be worried about blisters, but because of my running, I knew the importance of good hiking socks and had worn a lightweight wool pair. I'm happy to report that my feet had no blisters at the conclusion of the hike.

The falls were totally worth the 2 mile slog through mud, muck, pig trails, and multiple waist-deep stream crossings. The travel books suggest the hikers take a dip in the pool that is below the falls and a warmer day I could totally see the appeal. However, it was a rainy day and the mist coming off the falls was cold enough to discourage me from taking a dip. The boys wanted to the full experience so they both jumped in. Dave captured a video of the falls because these are the biggest falls we have been this up close and personal with.

Since this is an out and back hike, and we knew that the rain was moving in quickly therefore the trail would be even more treacherous, we headed back the way we came. As usually happens, the return trip took a little less time than the initial trip. Although, we did have about a quarter mile detour where we thought a pig trail was the real trail and we tromped around in a bamboo forest. Finally, Dave said this isn't right and set off to find the correct trail. Fortunately, as good as Dave is at getting us diverted on to pig trails (it has happened more than once), he is even better at getting us back on the real trail.

If I can talk Dave into going back to Kauai, I want to plan better so we can get a permit to hike the whole 11 mile trail, camp at the end of the trail, and then return the next day. The permits are for overnight camping. I haven't heard of anyone hiking the 22 miles in one day, although one of our zipline guides is trying to accomplish that. He said that so far he has been able to get to 18 miles. I bet he didn't attempt it on a day when it was raining. The slippery rocks, slip-and-slide red soil, and flooded streams would make it next to impossible to get that far.

More hiking posts to follow.