I woke up unusually early, wore black, and headed to Lihue. Google said 39 minutes, but I think it took longer than that because of the traffic.
I arrived early enough at the tour office. When I checked in, I was asked to step on a mat, which probably hid scales under it to weigh us. Eventually, there were twelve of us and I wondered how big the helicopter was. A man named Jesse was our coordinator and he gave us safety instructions and what to expect. Then he grouped us into the "red group" and the "yellow group" and assigned us seats. I was with the red group, seat #1.
Then we boarded a van and we headed to the airport. The helicopter section of the airport had several helicopter landing spots and several helicopters there. We sat on the benches under an awning for the ones that belonged to Safari Helicopters.
One arrived first fully loaded with tourists. Jesse helped them get off the helicopter and instructed them to stand at the edge of the platform. After everyone had gotten off, he sent them to stand next to the helicopter door then took their pictures. Then he instructed then to go to the waiting area and give their flotation packs to the yellow team. The second helicopter arrived and Jesse went through the same process with the passengers of the second helicopter while a fuel truck refilled the first one.
Then after the yellow team had put those packs around their waists, Jesse led them to the edge of the platform for the first helicopter and made them stand in line in reverse seating order. (The fuel truck was refilling the second helicopter by this time.) Then starting with seats #5 and #6, he got them loaded into the helicopter.
When he did the same for our team, he told us to wave at the pilot after he inspected our flotation packs. When it was my turn, both Jesse and the pilot buckled me up with straps over both shoulders like a baby car seat. Then Jesse helped the last man sit to my right. And up we went.
Our pilot Paul was very entertaining and friendly. He flew us over mountains and ridges and canyons and pointed out the numerous waterfalls. He told us the story of how the Robinson family owned much of the land in Kaua'i and kept it naturally pristine. The same family owns the entire Ni'ihau island.
Paul told us stories about the trees (including the one from Taiwan which had layered branches that made the area look like it was prehistoric) and a personal anecdote about a trick his friends played on him involving the kukui nut. (At the time, he didn't know it's a laxative.) He also told a story when he found a couple completely naked at a remote area of the mountains and he said that, if they hiked that far on that terrain, they deserved to go naked if they wanted to. He also talked a bit about the movies that were filmed on Kaua'i, including Jurassic Park. I think he said a hundred movies were filmed there. Paul skillfully got us very close to ridges; it felt as though we were only a few yards away.
On our way back, we saw the waves roll into the beaches from the air. And we saw the towns in the north side where some famous people live. Nearing the airport, Paul played Iz's famous Somewhere Over the Rainbow while he communicated with the tower. And because it was his last flight of the day, he asked that we wait until he turned off the rotors.
After we got off, Jesse took extra time with us to take pictures. He was confused by my 360 camera though when it was time to take my picture next to the helicopter, because he had never seen one before. In hindsight, I should have asked him to use my phone instead.
Among the red team was a group of three that included the man who sat next to me in front. It was a couple from Chile and the man who sat next to me was the father of the wife. He lives in Oregon but grew up in the Bay Area. The husband had graciously helped me out of the van both times, and he asked me about my 360 camera after the tour before we hopped back into the van. I couldn't remember the brand and model number, but I gave his wife my Flickr account so they can view my recording of the tour after I upload it. Later, I realized that the app on my phone had the name of the camera, so I gave it to the husband before I left.
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I loved the fabrics, especially the ones printed with plumeria. They seemed to be the "most Hawaiian" print. But the design of the dress made me look frumpy and the dresses were expensive, so I gave up on dresses. Instead, I got some macadamia nuts and cookies to share in the office, and a bag of dried pineapple for myself.
I thought of going west to Waimea, but Google said it would take 2.5 hours for only 26 miles, so I decided against it. I didn't want to waste my vacation time on traffic. Besides, it started raining as I was paying for my purchases at Hilo Hattie's, so I headed back and decided to pass by the Coconut Marketplace again to use their bathrooms.
I ended up buying a couple of sarongs that were on sale. Then I stood in line at Jojo's Shaved Ice for a "dakine" cup of shaved ice (with coconut-macadamia ice cream in the bottom), which I ate on a bench under an awning next to the line of stores, while the rain fell. The shaved ice, especially the ice cream, was very yummy.
Twice I got a warning on my phone about flooded streets. The young lady at Jojo's said that it's common for the streets to be flooded and you can still drive on them but slowly.
After I finished my shaved ice and ice cream, I headed back and got caught in the downpour. The fastest speed of the windshield wipers couldn't keep up with the buckets of rain. Thankfully, I was following (and was followed) by a long line of cars, so I just had to follow the taillights to see where I'm going. Passing by the beach, I could see the tall waves with so much foam crashing by the shore. By the time I got back to the condo, the rain had downgraded to a drizzle. By the time it poured again, I was indoors doing laundry and reading a book.
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