napali coast, Hawaii

Hawaii's Dazzling Wrinkles


Kalalau Valley
One of the iconic settings of the Napali Coast.
shallow flight
Helicopter flies over a Waymea Canyon canyon.
intense erosion
Sharp, verdant edges of the Napali Coast's steep slope.
The Garden Island of Hawaii
An aerial view from one end of the Napali Coast reveals why Kauai is considered the greenest of the Hawaiian Islands.
Kauai Multicolor Shed
Most colorful section of the Napali Coast, next to Waymea Canyon.
Precipitated Water
Long waterfall plummets to the edge of Waymea Canyon.
Soggy canyons
Lush inland meanders of Kauai's northern slopes.
towards the pacific
Stream runs along a vertex of the Napali Coast Mountains.
Jardim island beach
Sand in the extension of a semi-wild, rural corner of northern Kauai.
Great Waymea Canyon
A panoramic view of the wide Waymea Canyon, much drier than the Napali Coast which retains most of the moisture coming from the Pacific.
Green water
One of the many waterfalls that irrigate the Napali Coast.
Hawaiian shirt, Hawaiian scenery
Visitor admires the excavated immensity of Waymea Canyon.
gentle slope
Verdant meadow on a gentle slope in the interior of the Napali Coast
dream abodes
Humanized coastline of the North Shore of Kauai.
Hawaiian pasture
Cows graze in a verdant meadow in northern Kauai.
Kauai is the greenest and rainiest island in the Hawaiian archipelago. It is also the oldest. As we explore its Napalo Coast by land, sea and air, we are amazed to see how the passage of millennia has only favored it.

There is no urban phenomenon on Kauai that resembles the Hawaiian capital Honolulu in the slightest.

The atmosphere of this ancient island is bucolic and its inhabitants are spread over quiet villages with less than 10.000 inhabitants. They are all residents of old homes or homes with a historic aspect, by law, always shorter than a coconut tree.

We chose Lihue, the main and largest of the villages, as a base for exploration. We enter a nice motel-restaurant, operated by an extended Japanese-Hawaiian family that during lunchtime serves traditional Polynesian food. They change the decor completely for dinners, a meal in which the restaurant becomes a true Japanese.

On the opposite side of the street, several houses have political posters that advise Carvalho for Mayor.

The 13.000 Portuguese emigrants quickly multiplied. formed a current community of more than 60.000 Portuguese descendants. Among so many and long-established, several entered the Hawaiian political sphere with great acceptance.

The Geological Splendor of Kauai, Hawaii's Greenest Island

On Kauai, the secret to success is, by the way, simple. As a rule, it is enough to grant outsiders the best conditions to be enchanted by the island's panoramas and to spend honestly and efficiently the money they leave there, like those that the federal government grants.

Unlike what happens in Oahu, the Hawaiian Island of Encounter and Hawaii's most cosmopolitan, Kauai's greatest attractions are 100% natural.

Urbanized Coast, Napali Coast and Waimea Canyon, Kauai, Hawaii Wrinkles

Humanized coastline of the North Shore of Kauai, seen from the air.

We traverse the island from east to west to reach the first, the Waimea furtive canyon, a dramatic setting comparable to the North American Grand Canyon in terms of shapes, textures and tones.

Canyon of Waimea. Grand Canyon in the Fashion of Hawaii

Waimea hides in the depths of the island. It is reachable via the Koke'e and Waimea Canyon Drive roads that crisscross it until it reaches its western limit. It was excavated over the ages by the slow passage of the homonymous river and its tributaries. But also by seismic and volcanic activity, just like the gigantic counterpart in Arizona.

If it is true that the dimension of the Waimea canyon is far below that of the continental model, the impressive configuration of the canyons and their color palette are almost confused.

Waimea Canyon, Kauai, Hawaii Wrinkles

A panoramic view of the wide Waymea Canyon, much drier than the Napali Coast which retains most of the moisture coming from the Pacific.

We are amazed by the subtle variations in tones each time the path takes us to a new vantage point and reveals different perspectives and, as the clouds and rain dissipate, different luminosities.

Finally, Koke'e Road comes to an end and close to the entrance to Napali Coast State Park.

The Impossible Vision of the Crest of Kalalau

It leaves us stunned in front of Kalalau, a jagged and exuberant valley, accessible only by its foothills adjacent to the Pacific Ocean or by a demanding trail so busy that the authorities have to control, day after day, the number of hikers that it. run through.

Napali Coast and Waimea Canyon, Kauai, Hawaii Wrinkles

One of the iconic settings of the Napali Coast.

Until the XNUMXth century, many native Hawaiians lived in this lush and colorful setting where they planted taro in terraces conquered from the vegetation. These days, the park's statute prohibits any building.

Viewed on the map, the Napali Coast appears just a few kilometers north of Waimea Canyon. The absence of a road connecting the two would, in itself, be a good reason to explore it only the next day.

Grooves, Napali Coast and Waimea Canyon, Kauai, Hawaii Wrinkles

Sharp, verdant edges of the Napali Coast's steep slope, helicopter perspective, from the air.

We had, however, another unavoidable reason. We were going to do it from the air.

A Panoramic Flight As Eccentric as Kauai

We return to Lihue in the middle of the afternoon, with just time to get into a panoramic helicopter. Kurt, a half-crazed employee who insists on treating us and other customers by “kids”, takes us between the company office and the city airport.

In turn, Michael, the pilot, assures passengers that they will embark on one of the most solemn experiences of their lives. Then he takes his shoes off to the side of the pedals and makes the helicopter soar into the sky.

In a flash, we left Lihue and civilization behind. We return to the Waimea canyon which, seen from the air, proves fascinating to double.

Heli Flight, Napali Coast and Waimea Canyon, Kauai, Hawaii Wrinkles

Helicopter flies over a Waymea Canyon canyon.

Michael turns up the volume on Beethoven's 5th Symphony that he's chosen as the soundtrack for the flight. Makes the aircraft penetrate a blanket of clouds trapped against the mountain. Out of the fog, the pilot accentuates the pomp of the voiceover and announces the high point of the course, the Napali Coast.

The Napali Coast and the (Even More) Lush North of Kauai, Seen from the Air

Before us, the Pacific Ocean and the entire northwest coast of Kauai unveiled, sculpted by the intense rain and wind that have always punished the volcanic mountains.

More than approaching, the pilot arrests and scares passengers with filmic incursions in canyons and deep valleys. It accompanies long waterfalls and cliffs covered with moss and verdant vegetation that contrast with the reds and browns of the rocky walls to which they cling.

Great Waterfall, Napali Coast and Waimea Canyon, Kauai, Hawaii Wrinkles

One of the many waterfalls that irrigate the Napali Coast, seen from the air.

Above, dominates the pivotal summit of Mount Wai'ale'ale (1570 m) which retains moisture from the North Pacific and is one of the wettest spots on the planet with an average annual rainfall exceeding 1160mm.

Nothing is heard on board apart from classical music and the follow-up to the pilot's voiceover. Michael talks about the geological antiquity of the place. Take the opportunity to list some of his most recent prodigies in the 7th art.

Napali Coast and Waimea Canyon, Kauai, Hawaii Wrinkles

Most colorful section of the Napali Coast, next to Waymea Canyon.

Sublime like few others, Kauai and, in particular, the Napali Coast amaze whoever discovers them. The list includes countless Hollywood directors and producers.

His scenarios were used in mega-successes such as “Jurassic Park”, “King Kong” the musical “South Pacific”, “Raiders of the Lost Ark”, the TV series “Fantasy Island” and “Hawaiian Spell” that launched Elvis Presley to prolific stardom, among others.

Aerial view of Napali Coast and Waimea Canyon, Kauai, Hawaii Wrinkles

An aerial view from one end of the Napali Coast reveals why Kauai is considered the greenest of the Hawaiian Islands.

This regular presence on screen has long been the most media-friendly proof of how time has only favored Kauai.

Key West, USA

The Tropical Wild West of the USA

We've come to the end of the Overseas Highway and the ultimate stronghold of propagandism Florida Keys. The continental United States here they surrender to a dazzling turquoise emerald marine vastness. And to a southern reverie fueled by a kind of Caribbean spell.
Maui, Hawaii

Maui: The Divine Hawaii That Succumbed to Fire

Maui is a former chief and hero of Hawaiian religious and traditional imagery. In the mythology of this archipelago, the demigod lassos the sun, raises the sky and performs a series of other feats on behalf of humans. Its namesake island, which the natives believe they created in the North Pacific, is itself prodigious.
Big Island, Hawaii

Searching for Rivers of Lava

There are five volcanoes that make the big island of Hawaii grow day by day. Kilauea, the most active on Earth, is constantly releasing lava. Despite this, we live a kind of epic to envision it.
Mauna Kea, Hawaii

Mauna Kea: the Volcano with an Eye out in Space

The roof of Hawaii was off-limits to natives because it housed benevolent deities. But since 1968, several nations sacrificed the peace of the gods and built the greatest astronomical station on the face of the Earth.
pearl harbor, Hawaii

The Day Japan Went Too Far

On December 7, 1941, Japan attacked the Pearl Harbor military base. Today, parts of Hawaii look like Japanese colonies but the US will never forget the outrage.
Waikiki, OahuHawaii

The Japanese Invasion of Hawaii

Decades after the attack on Pearl Harbor and from the capitulation in World War II, the Japanese returned to Hawaii armed with millions of dollars. Waikiki, his favorite target, insists on surrendering.
Believers greet each other in the Bukhara region.
City
Bukhara, Uzbequistan

Among the Minarets of Old Turkestan

Situated on the ancient Silk Road, Bukhara has developed for at least two thousand years as an essential commercial, cultural and religious hub in Central Asia. It was Buddhist and then Muslim. It was part of the great Arab empire and that of Genghis Khan, the Turko-Mongol kingdoms and the Soviet Union, until it settled in the still young and peculiar Uzbekistan.
Host Wezi points out something in the distance
Beaches
Cobue; Nkwichi Lodge, Mozambique

The Hidden Mozambique of the Creaking Sands

During a tour from the bottom to the top of Lake Malawi, we find ourselves on the island of Likoma, an hour by boat from Nkwichi Lodge, the solitary base of this inland coast of Mozambique. On the Mozambican side, the lake is known as Niassa. Whatever its name, there we discover some of the most stunning and unspoilt scenery in south-east Africa.
Serengeti, Great Savannah Migration, Tanzania, wildebeest on river
safari
Serengeti NP, Tanzania

The Great Migration of the Endless Savanna

In these prairies that the Masai people say syringet (run forever), millions of wildebeests and other herbivores chase the rains. For predators, their arrival and that of the monsoon are the same salvation.
Faithful in front of the gompa The gompa Kag Chode Thupten Samphel Ling.
Annapurna (circuit)
Annapurna Circuit 15th - Kagbeni, Nepal

At the Gates of the Former Kingdom of Upper Mustang

Before the 1992th century, Kagbeni was already a crossroads of trade routes at the confluence of two rivers and two mountain ranges, where medieval kings collected taxes. Today, it is part of the famous Annapurna Circuit. When hikers arrive, they know that, higher up, there is a domain that, until XNUMX, prohibited entry to outsiders.
by the shadow
Architecture & Design
Miami, USA

A Masterpiece of Urban Rehabilitation

At the turn of the 25st century, the Wynwood neighbourhood remained filled with abandoned factories and warehouses and graffiti. Tony Goldman, a shrewd real estate investor, bought more than XNUMX properties and founded a mural park. Much more than honoring graffiti there, Goldman founded the Wynwood Arts District, the great bastion of creativity in Miami.
Boats on ice, Hailuoto Island, Finland.
Aventura
Hailuoto, Finland

A Refuge in the Gulf of Bothnia

During winter, the island of Hailuoto is connected to the rest of Finland by the country's longest ice road. Most of its 986 inhabitants esteem, above all, the distance that the island grants them.
Big Freedia and bouncer, Fried Chicken Festival, New Orleans
Ceremonies and Festivities
New Orleans, Louisiana, United States

Big Freedia: in Bounce Mode

New Orleans is the birthplace of jazz and jazz sounds and resonates in its streets. As expected, in such a creative city, new styles and irreverent acts emerge. Visiting the Big Easy, we ventured out to discover Bounce hip hop.
Table Mountain view from Waterfront, Cape Town, South Africa.
Cities
Table Mountain, South Africa

At the Adamastor Monster Table

From the earliest times of the Discoveries to the present, Table Mountain has always stood out above the South African immensity South African and the surrounding ocean. The centuries passed and Cape Town expanded at his feet. The Capetonians and the visiting outsiders got used to contemplating, ascending and venerating this imposing and mythical plateau.
Fogón de Lola, great food, Costa Rica, Guápiles
Lunch time
Fogón de Lola Costa Rica

The Costa Rica Flavour of El Fogón de Lola

As the name suggests, the Fogón de Lola de Guapiles serves dishes prepared on the stove and in the oven, according to Costa Rican family tradition. In particular, Tia Lola's.
Culture
Markets

A Market Economy

The law of supply and demand dictates their proliferation. Generic or specific, covered or open air, these spaces dedicated to buying, selling and exchanging are expressions of life and financial health.
Swimming, Western Australia, Aussie Style, Sun rising in the eyes
Sport
Busselton, Australia

2000 meters in Aussie Style

In 1853, Busselton was equipped with one of the longest pontoons in the world. World. When the structure collapsed, the residents decided to turn the problem around. Since 1996 they have been doing it every year. Swimming.
New South Wales Australia, Beach walk
Traveling
Batemans Bay to Jervis Bay, Australia

New South Wales, from Bay to Bay

With Sydney behind us, we indulged in the Australian “South Coast”. Along 150km, in the company of pelicans, kangaroos and other peculiar creatures aussie, we let ourselves get lost on a coastline cut between stunning beaches and endless eucalyptus groves.
Bathers in the middle of the End of the World-Cenote de Cuzamá, Mérida, Mexico
Ethnic
Yucatan, Mexico

The End of the End of the World

The announced day passed but the End of the World insisted on not arriving. In Central America, today's Mayans watched and put up with incredulity all the hysteria surrounding their calendar.
View of Fa Island, Tonga, Last Polynesian Monarchy
Got2Globe Photo Portfolio
Got2Globe Portfolio

Exotic Signs of Life

Kronstadt Russia Autumn, owner of the Bouquet
History
Kronstadt, Russia

The Autumn of the Russian Island-City of All Crossroads

Founded by Peter the Great, it became the port and naval base protecting Saint Petersburg and northern Greater Russia. In March 1921, it rebelled against the Bolsheviks it had supported during the October Revolution. In this October we're going through, Kronstadt is once again covered by the same exuberant yellow of uncertainty.
Cargo Cabo Santa Maria, Boa Vista Island, Cape Verde, Sal, Evoking the Sahara
Islands
Boa Vista Island, Cape Verde

Boa Vista Island: Atlantic waves, Dunas do Sara

Boa Vista is not only the Cape Verdean island closest to the African coast and its vast desert. After a few hours of discovery, it convinces us that it is a piece of the Sahara adrift in the North Atlantic.
Maksim, Sami people, Inari, Finland-2
Winter White
Inari, Finland

The Guardians of Boreal Europe

Long discriminated against by Scandinavian, Finnish and Russian settlers, the Sami people regain their autonomy and pride themselves on their nationality.
Baie d'Oro, Île des Pins, New Caledonia
Literature
Île-des-Pins, New Caledonia

The Island that Leaned against Paradise

In 1964, Katsura Morimura delighted the Japan with a turquoise novel set in Ouvéa. But the neighboring Île-des-Pins has taken over the title "The Nearest Island to Paradise" and thrills its visitors.
Nature
Jok​ülsárlón Lagoon, Iceland

The Chant and the Ice

Created by water from the Arctic Ocean and the melting of Europe's largest glacier, Jokülsárlón forms a frigid and imposing domain. Icelanders revere her and pay her surprising tributes.
Sheki, Autumn in the Caucasus, Azerbaijan, Autumn Homes
Autumn
Sheki, Azerbaijan

autumn in the caucasus

Lost among the snowy mountains that separate Europe from Asia, Sheki is one of Azerbaijan's most iconic towns. Its largely silky history includes periods of great harshness. When we visited it, autumn pastels added color to a peculiar post-Soviet and Muslim life.
Walvis Bay, Namibia, bay, dunes
Natural Parks
Walvis Bay, Namíbia

The Outstanding Shoreline of Walvis Bay

From Namibia's largest coastal city to the edge of the Namib Desert of Sandwich Harbour, there is an unrivaled domain of ocean, dunes, fog and wildlife. Since 1790, the fruitful Walvis Bay has been its gateway.
Gray roofs, Lijiang, Yunnan, China
UNESCO World Heritage
Lijiang, China

A Gray City but Little

Seen from afar, its vast houses are dreary, but Lijiang's centuries-old sidewalks and canals are more folkloric than ever. This city once shone as the grandiose capital of the Naxi people. Today, floods of Chinese visitors who fight for the quasi-theme park it have become take it by storm.
Zorro's mask on display at a dinner at the Pousada Hacienda del Hidalgo, El Fuerte, Sinaloa, Mexico
Characters
El Fuerte, Sinaloa, Mexico

Zorro's Cradle

El Fuerte is a colonial city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa. In its history, the birth of Don Diego de La Vega will be recorded, it is said that in a mansion in the town. In his fight against the injustices of the Spanish yoke, Don Diego transformed himself into an elusive masked man. In El Fuerte, the legendary “El Zorro” will always take place.
Bather, The Baths, Devil's Bay (The Baths) National Park, Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands
Beaches
Virgin Gorda, British Virgin Islands

Virgin Gorda's Divine “Caribbaths”

Discovering the Virgin Islands, we disembark on a tropical and seductive seaside dotted with huge granite boulders. The Baths seem straight out of the Seychelles but they are one of the most exuberant marine scenery in the Caribbean.
Easter in Helsinki, Finland, iKids in Seurassari
Religion
Helsinki, Finland

The Pagan Passover of Seurasaari

In Helsinki, Holy Saturday is also celebrated in a Gentile way. Hundreds of families gather on an offshore island, around lit fires to chase away evil spirits, witches and trolls
Train Fianarantsoa to Manakara, Malagasy TGV, locomotive
On Rails
Fianarantsoa-Manakara, Madagascar

On board the Malagasy TGV

We depart Fianarantsoa at 7a.m. It wasn't until 3am the following morning that we completed the 170km to Manakara. The natives call this almost secular train Train Great Vibrations. During the long journey, we felt, very strongly, those of the heart of Madagascar.
Buffaloes, Marajo Island, Brazil, Soure police buffaloes
Society
Marajó Island, Brazil

The Buffalo Island

A vessel that transported buffaloes from the India it will have sunk at the mouth of the Amazon River. Today, the island of Marajó that hosted them has one of the largest herds in the world and Brazil is no longer without these bovine animals.
Busy intersection of Tokyo, Japan
Daily life
Tokyo, Japan

The Endless Night of the Rising Sun Capital

Say that Tokyo do not sleep is an understatement. In one of the largest and most sophisticated cities on the face of the Earth, twilight marks only the renewal of the frenetic daily life. And there are millions of souls that either find no place in the sun, or make more sense in the “dark” and obscure turns that follow.
savuti, botswana, elephant-eating lions
Wildlife
Savuti, Botswana

Savuti's Elephant-Eating Lions

A patch of the Kalahari Desert dries up or is irrigated depending on the region's tectonic whims. In Savuti, lions have become used to depending on themselves and prey on the largest animals in the savannah.
The Sounds, Fiordland National Park, New Zealand
Scenic Flights
Fiordland, New Zealand

The Fjords of the Antipodes

A geological quirk made the Fiordland region the rawest and most imposing in New Zealand. Year after year, many thousands of visitors worship the sub-domain slashed between Te Anau and Milford Sound.