Soaring Over Kauai

I apologize for being absent from this blog lately. In a complete reversal from this time last year, I've been job-hunting rather than writing about my travels.

I want to finish posting about my trip to Kauai, though, because Aaron and I are going to Italy very soon! I know I'll want to post yummy photos of pizza and pasta and gelato — trust me, there will be a lot of them — once we return, so I'll do my best to wrap up Kauai before we leave in order to "make room" for Italy.

Although, who am I kidding? There's always room for gelato.

***

Aaron and I kicked off our first full day on Kauai with an incredible view.

Make that more than an hour's worth of incredible views.

We figured the best way to get our bearings on the Garden Island would be to tour it from the air, and what a great idea that was! A big chunk of Kauai is not accessible by motor vehicles, but we got to see all of its stunning landscapes from above.

Our knowledgeable, friendly pilot and tour guide was Bruce Coulombe, the owner (with his wife, Ellen) of Wings Over Kauai. He made us feel nice and safe as we climbed into the tiny plane — me in the co-pilot's seat and Aaron right behind me, for even weight distribution.

I got a little nervous once I saw all of the dials and gadgets up close. Those things really work, right?

Luckily, Bruce went through the pre-flight checklist with me, explaining all of the functions of various instruments as we worked through the laminated list. This guy knew what he was doing (which made one of us). Whew!

Wings Over Kauai shares a runway at the Lihue Airport with Hawaiian Airlines, so we waited for this massive airplane to take off before we could begin our taxi.

Then... we were off! I was surprised by how smooth the takeoff felt. In Australia, I rode a rickety little plane over Fraser Island and felt like the whole thing could fall apart at any moment. This plane was a dream in comparison.

Aaron chose to sit in the back so he could have an unobstructed view of the island for photos. You'll see that some of my pictures feature parts of the plane, but that was fine by me. I preferred to be up front, where all the action took place.

Bruce allowed us to swing open the window once we got up to the proper elevation, which gave both of us an even better view. The wind blew pretty viciously into Aaron's face, though, while I was unaffected in the front! Consequently, we only opened the window for certain photo ops.

Our headsets allowed Bruce to tell us all about the island that he has called home for 16 years. Soothing Hawaiian music played softly in the background as he described the various landscapes, beaches, waterfalls and other points of interest, like expansive coffee farms and famous places that have appeared in movies.

Waimea Canyon, known as the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, was particularly impressive from above.

But my favorite sight of all was the breathtaking Na Pali Coast. It has been featured in everything from Jurassic Park to Nicki Minaj's "Starships" video (random!), and it's just stunning in person.

Spoiler alert: Later in our trip, Aaron and I took a boat tour of the Na Pali Coast, but it did not go into the cool cave that this boat is going into. I would like a do-over!

The only scary part of the plane ride was when we flew through some heavy fog and got battered with fat raindrops. It was only for a few minutes, though, and we were rewarded with a magical full rainbow afterward.

Since the previous few days had been particularly rainy, we saw plenty of waterfalls. According to Bruce, these ones aren't always there.

This one is always there — Wailua Falls. Gorgeous.

While it wasn't as action-packed as our ATV tour, I really enjoyed our time with Wings Over Kauai and recommend it as a relatively affordable option ($125/person) for touring Kauai from above.

It felt very safe and peaceful. I even felt sleepy near the end, thanks to the gentle Hawaiian music and the subtle vibrations of the plane!

If Aaron and I had bigger budgets and could do it again, though, we would opt for a helicopter tour. We heard other vacationers raving about their helicopter adventures and we were jealous that they got to land at the same waterfall that's shown at the beginning of Jurassic Park! Some helicopters even fly sans doors for the benefit of avid photographers.

That said, not everyone can afford a plane tour, and I'm grateful we could and did. We'll just have to add a helicopter ride to our bucket list. : )

###

New here?

• Here's the lowdown on My Story
• You can add Answering Oliver to your feed reader
• Feel free to subscribe to Answering Oliver by email
  
• Liking Answering Oliver on Facebook is also a valid option
• Perhaps you'd like to follow my stream of randomness on Twitter
• Or just hang out. That's cool, too.

###

8 Places to Stuff Your Face on Kauai

Before Aaron and I went to Kauai, I received a ridiculously long and amazingly informative email from Brandon, whose family has vacationed on Kauai every year for the last 10 years (lucky!).

In it, he listed his top recommendations for activities, his favorite beaches and — of course — the best places to eat. Aaron and I took him up on a lot of his advice, and now I'm here to share with you, in no particular order, the eight highlights from the food-and-drink portion of our vacation.

1. The Kalaheo Café & Coffee Company

This bright, sun-drenched café was just two minutes away from our jungle studio, so of course we ate breakfast there three times!

Twice, I opted for my favorite breakfast of all time — Eggs Benedict — which is the café's house specialty and served on toasted bagel halves instead of English muffins. My other breakfast was the daily special, which was a California scramble with hash browns and a toasted corn muffin. I really just wanted the corn muffin so I could slather it with melted butter, but the scramble was incredible, too.

Aaron's mission, apparently, was to leave no carb behind, so he enjoyed pancakes, waffles and a cinnamon roll. He normally sticks to the Paleo diet and doesn't eat conventional carbs, so he was in vacation heaven. I stole bites of everything and can attest to the deliciousness.

2. Brick Oven Pizza

Brandon recommended this pizza place, which is right across the street from The Kalaheo Café (there is also a location in Kapaa). We ordered a pizza with half pepperoni and pineapple and half BBQ chicken, and both sides were fantastic.

Aaron has high standards for pizza, and this was an absolute winner with plentiful toppings, gooey cheese and thick, flavorful tomato sauce. The crust was crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside — perfection. Be sure to ask them to brush it with garlic butter!


3. The Feral Pig

We scrambled over here for dinner after a tour guide recommended the not-on-the-menu Feral Burger, which comprises a half grass-fed beef/half pork patty, two strips of thick pork-belly bacon, grilled onions, cheddar cheese, spicy house-made aioli and a toasted taro bun.

It was outrageous — the best burger either of us had ever eaten. We enjoyed it twice during our trip!

Run, don't walk, to The Feral Pig.

4. Brennecke's Beach Broiler

Located right across from Poipu Beach — a popular, family-friendly stretch of sand to set up shop on a sunny day — Brennecke's offers everything you could want to reenergize after splashing around a bit, plus super-fresh seafood.

I always crave fish in Hawaii, so I went with a pupu platter of ceviche, ahi sashimi, smoked fish, shrimp and king crab one time, and fish tacos another. Aaron really loved his fish 'n chips — the breading wasn't too thick or greasy, and the fish was moist.

Brennecke's is a great place to people-watch, since it looks right out to the beach, and I imagine it's an ideal spot to grab a drink and watch the sunset, too.

5. Roy's Poipu Bar & Grill

When we went to Oahu last year, Roy's in Waikiki was our fancy, romantic date-night restaurant. We decided to hit it again on Kauai because we each received a coupon on our flight for $10 off an entree! We needed no further excuses.

The coupons were valid for the three-course prix fixe menu, so we both went for it. The first course included a BBQ rib, a spring roll and a shrimp skewer. Aaron had eaten to-die-for short ribs at the other Roy's, so we both chose it for our entrees (still amazing) along with heavenly, cheesy potatoes au gratin and roasted veggies. Last, but not least, the dessert I can never resist if it's on a menu: Chocolate-raspberry lava cake. I felt like I was going to burst afterward.

Not only was the food fantastic, but our server was incredible. He was energetic, knowledgeable, fast and friendly. We couldn't have asked for more from the experience! I hope to keep Roy's a tradition for years to come.

6. Hukilau Lanai

Clearly I was a bit sunburned for this dinner at Hukilau Lanai, which is located at the Kauai Coast Resort and looks out onto the beautiful hotel grounds, but that didn't stop me from enjoying the best steak of my life.

This was our fancy-schmancy, romantic meal of the trip (Aaron surprised me with the reservation), and we started with red wine, salad with really tasty papaya-seed dressing and tortilla soup. Aaron sprang for the filet mignon, and I went with surf 'n turf (above).

Somehow, some way, my tenderloin just blew Aaron's filet out of the water. Some sort of black magic was used to sear the most incredible flavor into the outside of the meat, and the inside was perfectly medium-rare. The creamy gravy was divine. The fish was great, too, but the steak made me nearly die of happiness. Aaron's filet was great by any other standard, but in comparison... poor him. Don't worry — we shared bites. : )


7. Tortilla Republic

A Facebook friend of mine recommended Tortilla Republic for great Mexican food and inventive margaritas. Aaron didn't expect much and I just wanted to eat some guacamole, but we were both blown away by what we ate.

First of all, bring a group of guacamole-loving friends and order the Guacamole Tableside. The restaurant's guac specialist will roll a cart full of ingredients to your table and proceed to make you a massive bowl of fresh guac, just the way you like it. Aaron isn't an avocado fan, so I couldn't justify the $16 custom-made guac for myself, but I ordered a regular side of guac and chips and happily polished off the entire thing. I had an octopus appetizer as my entree, which was super tasty.

My cucumber-lavender margarita was incredibly refreshing (and boozy), and I would happily go back just to sample more of the margaritas.

Aaron had something (carne asada, maybe?) that was unexpectedly tender and flavorful — I was jealous. It also came with the rice and jalapeno mashed potatoes in the photo above.

And who can resist crispy-but-soft, melt-in-your-mouth churros with chocolate and caramel dipping sauces? Certainly not I.

8. Lappert's Hawaii

If you're got room for ice cream, Lappert's is the way to go on Kauai. We hit the Koloa location quite a few times, but you can also find it in Hanapepe, Kapaa and Princeville.

This was another recommendation from Brandon that hit the mark. You can really taste the difference between mass-manufactured, store-bought ice cream and ice cream that's made in small batches with the best ingredients. I especially loved Lappert's cookie dough flavor, which was just as good as any I've ever had — and I've had a lot.


Bonus! A place to drink: Duke's Kauai

I don't have much to say about the food at Duke's Barefoot Bar — the nachos and fish tacos were just meh for me — but it does have yummy drinks, a great location right on Kalapaki Beach and a fun atmosphere. It was the first place we went to grab a bite when we got off the plane from Seattle, and the last place we hit up to pass the time as we waited for our flight out.

I really enjoyed the pineapple mojito; Aaron liked the frozen mai tai. Drink up!

***

Whew! Now I'm hungry for all of the great things I ate on Kauai. We'll probably have to go back someday.

Until then, I'll be dreaming of that Feral Burger...

###

New here?

• Here's the lowdown on My Story
• You can add Answering Oliver to your feed reader
• Feel free to subscribe to Answering Oliver by email
  
• Liking Answering Oliver on Facebook is also a valid option
• Perhaps you'd like to follow my stream of randomness on Twitter
• Or just hang out. That's cool, too.

###

Getting Dirty with Kauai ATV

First of all, I can't believe someone let me be in charge of this machine.

But I'm sure glad they did!

Of all the activities Aaron and I planned for our visit to Kauai, we were most excited about doing a muddy ATV tour with Kauai ATV. It ended up being our most fun activity by far, and one of the most awesome things either of us had ever done!

We were up bright and early for our 7 a.m. waterfall tour. After checking in at the Kauai ATV office in Koloa, we drove three minutes down the road to the actual site with all the vehicles and gear.

Our guides, Cole and Josh, got us set up with shorts and tees that could get dirty. We had worn our bathing suits under our clothes, so after a quick change, we were ready to go.

Aaron and I were the only two people in our tour group who had signed up for single-rider ATVs. Other couples had chosen two-seater MudBugs, while families opted for Ohana Bugs, which accommodate three or four people.

We're both too adventurous and adrenaline-seeking to take turns driving a shared vehicle. If I could do it again, I would still choose my own ATV! They just seemed more badass... and we got to wear cooler helmets.

Cole explained all the safety rules and basic hand signals to our group, had us sign paperwork that swore we wouldn't drive dangerously (I gave Aaron some serious side-eye during this part — he likes to push limits) and got us acquainted with our vehicles. I started to get a little nervous.

We began the tour with a lap around a dirt track just to get a feel for our vehicles. My main fear was that I would get going too fast and lose control of the ATV, but I realized it was pretty easy to drive and had great brakes. I was ready to head out on the real trail.

Here's where taking the 7 a.m. tour worked to our advantage: The trail was plenty wet from overnight and early-morning rain, so we had plenty of mud puddles to zoom through. It also helped that it poured torrential rain twice throughout our tour — so much fun!

I drove slowly at first, especially when making turns, but I went faster as I became more confident. We rode in a single-file line, and I was second — right behind the lead guide, Cole — so I felt like I needed to keep up and not slow down the whole group. It was good motivation for me to drive more adventurously.

Aaron, who was right behind me, can attest to the fact that I rode a little too adventurously at times. I might have nearly veered into the bushes a few times, and at one point got momentarily stuck in a really muddy patch. It was nothing I couldn't handle, though. : )

Cole stopped us at a few interesting points during the tour and did a great job of giving us some background info about the land. He told us all about the Wilcox Tunnel, for example, and how it served as a shortcut for trucks to transport sugar cane back when Grove Farm was an operational sugar plantation.

And it was really cool to drive through the half-mile-long tunnel.

Halfway through the tour, we stopped to swim at a pretty waterfall and have lunch. We could even jump off the waterfall, but Cole advised us not to go head first.

Did I mention that Aaron likes to push limits? This was mid-flip; he didn't actually land head first! He nearly gave me a heart attack, though.

I meant to do a cannonball, but it somehow turned into this lame jump. Heh.

It was so nice to rinse off and relax. We enjoyed PB&J sandwiches, chips, cookies, juice and water before heading back out on the trail for more muddy fun.

I felt way more confident during the second portion of the tour and really shredded my ATV. It was just awesome and I never wanted it to be over!

We stopped to take in the most beautiful scene near the end of the tour. Recognize this view from Jurassic Park?

I put this picture on Facebook and people commented that the background looks fake. It looked surreal in person, too! So gorgeous.

I was reluctant to say goodbye to this view, but it was time to head through the Wilcox Tunnel again and back to Kauai ATV. I made sure to hit every puddle on the way for good measure.

The only downside to driving an ATV versus a MudBug or Ohana Bug, if you're looking to get really dirty, is that only your legs and shoes really get muddy; the ATV's fenders protect you from most of the splashing. Everyone else on our tour was soaked and mud-spattered from head to toe.

I was happy to stay a little more clean. : )

We had a fantastic time on our tour with Kauai ATV and highly recommend it if you're looking for an adventurous and scenic activity on Kauai.

Aaron and I now have ATV fever and might even try to ride ATVs wherever we travel. My friend Joel Runyon recently rode an ATV in a desert in Jordan — a very different experience, but equally awesome, I'm sure.

I can't wait to ride again.

Disclaimer: We enjoyed a discounted tour with Kauai ATV. This is an honest review and all opinions are my own.

###

New here?

• Here's the lowdown on My Story
• You can add Answering Oliver to your feed reader
• Feel free to subscribe to Answering Oliver by email
  
• Liking Answering Oliver on Facebook is also a valid option
• Perhaps you'd like to follow my stream of randomness on Twitter
• Or just hang out. That's cool, too.

###