Wow...this is Waimea Canyon and one of my favorites (hold on, you are going to see a few). We saved this trip as our treat for Christmas Day. This is the first time I've been away from my family at Christmas. The morning was spent on the phone talking to the kids and grandkids. We were even able to watch Kialaia and Brad open their gifts from us when Paul put a streaming video of it on their blogspot. That really helped to ease the missingness of it all...he did a great job! So, we spent an awesome day at the Canyon and the beach with lots of pictures to share. I took alot of the Canyon from different points along the way. It was like driving up to Bogus Basin and we were a bit queasy by the time we got up there...11 miles up to the canyon and another 5 up to the Na Pali Coast lookouts. The temperature drops into the upper 60's and it's very breezy so clouds are moving continuously and the light changes which makes the colors change too. We hope you enjoy the pics. It was truly a miraculous day in nature! 
Straight across from the lookout...point of reference is the waterfall in the upper left of photo...you'll see it in several pictures
far end of canyon where it meets the valley and the ocean
close up of the falls
across the canyon from the main lookout
straight into the canyon at the river below
Looking down through the canyon
Happy us at the main Waimea lookout
See the waterfall a little left of center...we are moving aroung the canyon...loved the colors in this one!
Enjoying my favorite fruit! Fresh cut pineapple...mmmmmmmmmm
Yes, this would be a Hawaiian Santa at one of the lookouts! Too funny...he was handing out chocolate kisses to everyone.
This is Kalalau lookout...stunning really...pictures can't capture it! We are in the mist
Same lookout just a few moments later. That's the saying here...if you don't like the weather wait a minute and it will change. The play of mist and sun changes the look of everything! We are over 4,000 ft. The top of the volcanoe, Mt Wai'ale'ale, is at 5148 and is the "Wettest spot on Earth" and is rarely even seen because it's always in the clouds.
This is Pu'u Kila Lookout and the furthest most point you can drive to on the NW side of the island...it looks down one of the fingers of the Na Pali Coast an did the one before. All the rest are accessed by hiking or helicopter.
One brave kite surfer on this windy day...he's having to work it really hard
This is a great picture blown up...you can actually see the look on his face! He was getting a good ride for a bit and then he was slammed down hard and he came in...a bit much in this surf
Had to go for the long shot so you could see his kite!
Surf's Up! This is what they have been waiting for...7-10 ft swells! There is a surf advisory for the next few days due to some storm out there somewhere. This guy makes it look easy...however, most of them were being tossed around. It was challenging getting a good picture because the wind was blowing hard straight at us. It was fascinating watching this surf come in so fast and at different angles! We're going back today.
Can you see how the waves are churning rather than nice long rolls?
Gorgeous surf and the color, oh my! There's a couple of guys in here somewhere.
We watched for quite a while...these dudes were relentless in their determination...
Enjoying my favorite fruit! Fresh cut pineapple...mmmmmmmmmm
Yes, this would be a Hawaiian Santa at one of the lookouts! Too funny...he was handing out chocolate kisses to everyone.
This is Kalalau lookout...stunning really...pictures can't capture it! We are in the mist
Same lookout just a few moments later. That's the saying here...if you don't like the weather wait a minute and it will change. The play of mist and sun changes the look of everything! We are over 4,000 ft. The top of the volcanoe, Mt Wai'ale'ale, is at 5148 and is the "Wettest spot on Earth" and is rarely even seen because it's always in the clouds.
This is Pu'u Kila Lookout and the furthest most point you can drive to on the NW side of the island...it looks down one of the fingers of the Na Pali Coast an did the one before. All the rest are accessed by hiking or helicopter.
One brave kite surfer on this windy day...he's having to work it really hard
This is a great picture blown up...you can actually see the look on his face! He was getting a good ride for a bit and then he was slammed down hard and he came in...a bit much in this surf
Had to go for the long shot so you could see his kite!
Surf's Up! This is what they have been waiting for...7-10 ft swells! There is a surf advisory for the next few days due to some storm out there somewhere. This guy makes it look easy...however, most of them were being tossed around. It was challenging getting a good picture because the wind was blowing hard straight at us. It was fascinating watching this surf come in so fast and at different angles! We're going back today.
Can you see how the waves are churning rather than nice long rolls?
Gorgeous surf and the color, oh my! There's a couple of guys in here somewhere.
We watched for quite a while...these dudes were relentless in their determination...both the waves and the surfers...
The waves are rougher than they look...coming in very fast. No sooner would they get up and they would be thrown back down...and this is what they have been looking forward to...go figure
Up long enough to snap a picture ;-) They are a breed unto their own
Christmas Dinner...a little blurry but it's all we have so I'm posting it anyway. We ate at the Polynesian Cafe...mine was baked Ono with Mango, Pineapple & Ginger salsa and Richard (interesting looking isn't it?) had the wild Boar. All was very good with Mai Tai chasers and a great end to our day. We hope you all had a very Mele Kilikimaka.
The waves are rougher than they look...coming in very fast. No sooner would they get up and they would be thrown back down...and this is what they have been looking forward to...go figure
Up long enough to snap a picture ;-) They are a breed unto their own
Christmas Dinner...a little blurry but it's all we have so I'm posting it anyway. We ate at the Polynesian Cafe...mine was baked Ono with Mango, Pineapple & Ginger salsa and Richard (interesting looking isn't it?) had the wild Boar. All was very good with Mai Tai chasers and a great end to our day. We hope you all had a very Mele Kilikimaka.
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