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Take a hike
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Take a hike

October 13, 2014
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It’s been almost four months since R and I landed on this little green island and with the lack of seasonal change here (no golden leaves, no cooler temperatures or fleece jackets and nothing pumpkin spiced in sight) the four month mark is prime time for a little homesickness to kick in. It’s not overwhelming, but every now and then I really, REALLY miss Boulder – the food, the people, the mountains, the ability to walk to more shops and restaurants than I can count.

With both Richard and I working from home we are also guilty of not getting out as much as we should. We’ve met a few people, but it’s not as easy to make new friends as we thought it would be since we don’t have traditional workplaces to get us started. This is especially troubling because I need to gather a group of people willing to help me with my thesis research for free! Fingers crossed I can find these people soon because it is hard to call on strangers for free help! In any case, we’re slowly starting to get involved in some activities here and we are looking forward to getting even more connected however the difficulty of getting connected on top of the insanely hot temperatures make me think about Colorado and what the heck we are doing out here often.

With the homesickness kicking in, R and I have gotten out into nature and tried to do things that we loved in Colorado here in Kauai. Colorado and Kauai share incredible natural environments and even though there may not be snow or evergreen trees here there are mountains to climb and lots of them.

At the end of September we went on our first Kauai hike and instead of easing into it we picked a 7.8 mile trek out to a point along the NaPali coast called the Nualolo Trail/Lookout. This trail starts in Kokee State Park which is in the Waimea Canyon. We were told that when we start to feel homesick for Colorado that our first stop should be Kokee not just because it is in the mountains, but also because it is cooler, much cooler in fact. After winding our way up the canyon to the park and trailhead we jumped out of the car and noticed it was only 71 degrees! A very welcome surprise since we’ve been in the mid to upper 80’s through the last few months. We laced up our shoes, layered on the sunscreen and bug spray, put Ellie in her harness and hit the trail at about 11:00 a.m.

We have a great Kauai trails book and thankfully we had read about the Nualolo before attempting it because it is a doosie of a trail, especially on the way back. The first few miles of the trek start downhill and wander through incredibly interesting and varied landscapes from thick, lush rainforest to tall grass meadows, to dry, dusty mountain ridges. The last quarter mile of the trail takes you along a traverse not for those with a fear of heights or wobbly balance. This trail is also not one to attempt if there has been any heavy rain. The red dirt here in Kauai turns into super slick red mud when it rains and this trail would be impassable and dangerous in wet conditions. Thankfully the trail was bone dry the day we trekked and the view at the Nualolo Lookout is nothing short of breathtaking – teal and azure water, stunning green and red NaPali Cliffs and dense tropical valleys that make helicopters look like tiny flapping birds.

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At the lookout we marveled at the view, snapped a few pictures and stopped in the shade for a snack and water break and then started our trek out and UP. Remember how I said the first few miles of the trail are downhill? It’s more than the first few, truly the trail slopes downward the entire way to the lookout which means the way out is ALL uphill. Also, the first part of the trek takes you through dense forest, but the majority of it wanders through open ridges and tons of sunshine. We probably should have started our journey a little earlier to avoid the highest and hottest sun, but we didn’t. The first mile out of the lookout is tremendously brutal! A VERY steep incline with lots of boulders and tree roots to stumble on plus hot sun and intense humidity made for a very slow and sweaty return to the car. We drank every drop of water we brought with us and we packed more than we thought we would need. Our advice to you if you decide to hike Kauai (and you definitely should!) is to pack double the water you think you and any furry friends traveling with you will need or travel light by buying a water purifier you can take with you on the trail and is able to filter out bacteria and other yucky stuff.

Although intense, the trek was everything you want in half day hike. Incredible scenery, great workout and very few other people cluttering the view.  We made it back to the car dirty, sweaty and tired around 4:30 p.m. making it the perfect half day hike. The trek wore us out but not enough to keep us from enjoying dinner and margaritas out that night to celebrate the start of R’s 28th year on the planet. We highly recommend this trail to any experienced hikers or those beginners with enough patience and determination to meet the challenge. You won’t regret it, we definitely didn’t and look forward to doing it again with friends.

Last weekend we also hit another trail on the east side of the island known as the NouNou trail (or Sleeping Giant trail) This was much less intense, and a lot more muddy so we didn’t quite make it to the summit, but the views of the ocean and Homesteads below are fantastic as well. Also a much less intense incline to worry about – we saw many hikers in teva sandals and lugging expensive camera equipment which I wouldn’t recommend on Nualolo. Ellie enjoyed the NouNou trail and leaping from rock to rock along some of the washed out sections where you could see water had carved out the trail. This hike only took us a few hours and was a great way to get us out of the house for a while.

We look forward to more hiking in Kauai and hopefully some Colorado visitors to join us on a few for that extra dose of home. If you can’t join us on the island for a hike just yet, please send us green chile, rio salsa/margaritas or any other fall treats you can think of. The closest I’ve gotten out here were some delicious honeycrisp apples I found at Costco but they did make a very fine fall salad with butter lettuce, sliced almonds, yellow peppers and dried cherries. 🙂

XO
RT

Ellie on the beach
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Homeward bound

September 9, 2014
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Aww remember that movie?! It really was one of my favorites as a kid. Well, R and I recently experienced a puppy homecoming of our own that was way better than the movie. Thankfully no sassy cats or lost dogs were involved.

We moved to Kauai in July and due to strict pet import rules here we had to leave Ellie, our beloved Rhodesian Ridegeback mix, behind for about a month and a half. Thankfully we had the best pup sitter around to take care of her during that time (Thanks Linda!) but it was beyond difficult to leave her as we drove off on that sunny July afternoon.

So many people have asked about how we were going to go about moving Ellie to the island that I think it is fitting to dedicate a little blog space to the process of getting her here. I should tell you that it was not easy and it totally turned me into a constantly anxious, borderline crazy person, BUT it is totally worth it if you are considering a move of this scale yourself.

Before we can fast forward to Ellie’s arrival in Kauai, let’s go back in time. . . to February 2014.

February 2014 was when we decided to get serious about moving. Luckily we have had enough family and friends trek out to these little green islands that we knew the pet import process would be long and involved and we started to get prepped early (but not early enough since we had to leave the pup!). Hawaii is the only state (and one of the only places in the world) that is rabies free. That’s right, no rabies-infested animal has made it across the pacific and the state of Hawaii would like to keep it that way. Keeping rabies out of Hawaii is not easy, so bringing a pet to the island that could carry rabies is not easy either.

Because Hawaii is a rabies free zone, all pets that move to the island must undergo a quarantine process to ensure they are not carrying the disease. In the past, pets had to be quarantined on island for 120 days, but thankfully the state has revised this policy and pets can now qualify for direct release as long as all quarantine requirements have been met BEFORE the pet arrives.

For all of the details of the direct release program, check out this post on the Hawaii Life site or the Hawaii Department of Agriculture Site for all required paperwork. For an overview, keep reading!

  1. First your pet needs to have records of TWO rabies vaccinations
  2. Second you need to make sure your pet has an active and working microchip
  3. Third your veterinarian needs to conduct an FAVN blood test. This is a special test, that will cost a pretty penny ($200 or so) and has to be sent to a special testing lab at Kansas State University. Once this blood test is received by the testing lab, the 120 day waiting period begins. Since we didn’t start this process until February we didn’t have everything ready for Ellie to ship out with us in July.

You do not need to keep your pet away from other animals or keep them cooped up for any reason, but you do have to wait 120 days from the time of testing before you can welcome them to Hawaii.

  1. Your pooch also has to have several other veterinary appointments where a flea and tick treatment will be applied and a general health analysis will be performed to make sure the pet is fit to fly.
  2. Once you complete all of the following steps (again, definitely see the full information at HDA or Hawaii Life) You also need to make sure all paperwork is signed, sealed and delivered with proper veterinary signatures to the HDA no later than 10 days before your pet arrives in Hawaii.
  3. Don’t forget about booking the pet’s flight(s) and the fees associated with that and with releasing a pet in Kauai. The main animal quarantine is located at the Honolulu airport and to release a pet directly on a neighboring island packs on way bigger and outrageous fees. To direct release Ellie on Kauai would have been $500 more than to release her on Oahu and transfer to Kauai.

As you can tell, this is not easy or cheap, but it is worth it. Thankfully there are several wonderful pet moving companies that can help you get through the process. We hired Island Pet Movers and they were wonderful! They handled all of the paperwork and sent us step by step instructions throughout the process. They were always available via email and phone and put up with my incessant questions and anxiety.

They also met Ellie in Honolulu for the release and gave her a potty break before tucking her in for her flight to Kauai. I would absolutely recommend them to anyone!

There is some risk involved in sending your pet on a flight and accidents can always happen, but for Ellie it  was very safe. From the time she was checked-in at cargo in Denver, to boarding the plane, to arriving in Honolulu and eventually Kauai we encountered really caring and careful staff. My dad even said the flight attendants kept him posted on how many dogs were flying that day with Ellie (there were 6!) Sending Ellie on another flight is not something I want to do any time soon, but I would do it again.

There are a lot of details I’ve left out here so I don’t put you to sleep, but if you are sending a pet to Hawaii (or anywhere long distance) R and I would be happy to tell you more about our experience and everything we did to get Ellie here safely. For now though here are some pics of the happy pooch!

T + R

picture of salt pond beach, Kaua'i at sunset
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A sky full of stars

August 25, 2014
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R and I have been in Kaua’i for a little over a month now – how is that even possible? The clock has somehow sped up since we have been here. I don’t know if it is because the days are a little bit shorter here than we are used to compared to Colorado summers (sunrise 6:15 a.m., sunset 7:00 p.m. in Kaua’i) or because we are just getting into a work/life rhythm. Maybe it is just because we are busy and aren’t taking time to appreciate our days here as much as we should. Richard has made some major progress with the crazy electrical and shoddy rooms on the outside of the house and I’ve been buried deep in work and school with projects and scholarly articles. I’m excited for a little more time to focus on my thesis and getting that sucker done before my December defense date, but more on that later.

I had hoped that moving to Kaua’i would help us slow down and find a little more balance between work and play in our lives, but so far that doesn’t seem to be the case. On top of the work, school and renovations we are also trying to get acquainted with the island and new friends. With all of these things comes quite a bit of stress – especially with our beloved pup, Ellie, set to make her trek across the Pacific on Tuesday! (If you are the praying or good vibes sending kind of person please, PLEASE send some positive energy out into the universe on Tuesday for Ellie’s flight, I get sick to my stomach with nerves just thinking about it!) So, to bust some of the stress we are both feeling we try to make a point of getting out of the house and onto a beach at least a few times a week. It doesn’t have to be for very long, just long enough to take a deep breath and let go of some of the daily stresses we are facing. Tonight was one of my favorite nights on the island yet and it was oh so simple.

After working all day on school and chores we decided to have our dinner on the beach so that we could get out for some fresh air. We chopped up a quick salad from farmer’s market produce that R picked up on Thursday and threw in some delicious teriyaki chicken marinated in our homemade ginger syrup and soy sauce (I promise I’ll post a food blog soon – food here is ridiculously good!) We threw the salad, some bread, cheese and wine into our cooler and headed to Salt Pond Beach to watch the sunset and chow down. The beach was way more crowded than we thought it would be for a Sunday evening, but it calmed down and people left as the sun dunked into the Pacific.

Then the really good stuff happened, we brought our little beach grill and some marshmallows, chocolate and cinnamon grahams and made some oceanside s’mores and watched the stars put on an incredible show. Stargazing in Colorado is fantastic, stargazing in Kaua’i is out of this world! There is so little light pollution you can see the milky way with the naked eye and so many stars it is hard to distinguish even the brightest constellations. We geeked out and downloaded star maps to our smart phones and spent an hour just watching the night sky. It was good. It was relaxing. We needed it. We’ve got a busy and probably stressful week ahead (again – think of Ellie on Tuesday!) but the good news is we’ve also got Kaua’i and each other.

R+T

(P.S. I know you have that catchy Coldplay song stuck in your head now. You’re welcome.)