2008-March 2: sunrise, Tunnels, Kee

I  like to try and get up early a couple days to watch the sunrise by our beach at Kauai Beach Villas. That usually isn't too tough the first couple days we're there since there's 4 hours difference in time here from our midwest home. But we do adjust to Hawaii time pretty quickly. We make a point of living by the clock and not by how tired we are. That seems to really help with dealing with jet lag.

 Ken even helped the sun rise.

 Must have been low tide this morning. The rock shelf isn't always this visable.

 We even found out where golf balls come from!

 There's a drainage ditch that runs along the property line of the Kauai Beach Villas to the ocean. Another place to check out the Kauai wildlife. Here are the black swans that must live on the KBV grounds. Usually we see them in the lagoon at our resort. They, or ones just like them, have been there all 9 years we've been going there.

 Since the north shore was so calm most of the first week, we headed to the north shore several of those days to snorkel and watch the sunsets there.
Tunnels was as fabulous as ever!

 Love this view

 Tunnels is usually the clearest place we snorkel around Kauai

 a couple of the many ring tail surgeonfish

 One of the many wrasses we see around Kauai.

 schools of assorted fish

 saddle butterflyfish

  One of the many shells we've seen in the waters of Kauai.

 white bar surgeonfish

  Near one of the drops offs at Tunnels.

 a pair of threadfin butterflyfish

 a convict tang and tear drop butterflyfish

 a pair of endemic blue stripe butterflyfish

 4 spot butterflyfish

 After a couple hours there, we decided to see if we could get a parking spot at Kee.  We did.  So we snorkeled there for awhile---the ocean was like a swimming pool!

 Love the mountains right at the beach

 Looking down the NaPali from the outer reef at Kee.

 one of the urchins here.

 back on the beach, someone had built a fire.  I'm not sure that's allowed, but the fire was pretty to watch.

 It was getting close to sunset, so we sat on the beach and waited.

I love the late day lighting

 A diehard snorkeler.

 Almost sunset.

 Not the more brilliant of sunsets.  The clouds at the horizon were pretty thick.  But it was a beautiful evening to be sitting on a beach watching any kind of sunset!