Today we were signed up for the 5 hour hiking photo tour with Kauai Photo Tours. Their office is located in Kapaa and we... well in truth "I" wanted to arrive early so I could get input on what I should purchase for filters and such.
We head out and once we have located the photo tour shop we circle back and grab amazing coffee and food at Java Kai. Great atmosphere, nice service and goodness the food is outstanding! We had plenty of time to sit and enjoy our breakfast and it still left time to arrive at the tour a little early. We packed up a couple extra items to have during our hike and back at the house.
On to Kauai Photo Tour. I had learned about them via tripadvisor and am so glad I did. The staff is amazing and so very helpful. Way back when I first reserved my spot they only had a walking tour booked and the hike tour was what I had hoped to do. Kahea was kind enough to keep an eye out for me and ultimately got us a spot on a hiking tour. We were greeted by sweet Michelle, I think we would be friends if we lived in the same place... and I have a feeling a lot of folks come away with that impression. Good person... just so kind. The shop is well fitted with lots of wonderful items that help in getting great pictures on island. I'm sure they are open for business whether you are taking a tour or not. I picked up a ND filter, a rain cover, and a new stap. They have a great assortment of polarizing filters and even though I had purchased one before the trip, Michelle took the time to show me how to best use it - yep nice person.
The Tour - Matt was our guide and he was fantastic! Answered any question we had - reguardless of topic - photo setting questions - island history - dinner recommendations. He had great energy and made for a really fun day. We had been warned that it could be a muddy mess and everyone was prepared for that. Waterfalls and rainbows.... come from rain... as does mud... it's Kauai... there you go. I wish I had made a better list of where we went. That is my tip to myself for next time! And I would do this tour again... there was a gentleman on our tour and it was his third. I think that speaks very highly of the experience... it's awesome. I will also add that there were folks with big fancy cameras, supporting spouses that carried camera bogs, folks with iphones or similar and point and shoots. You do not have to aspire to be a national geographic contributor to enjoy this tour. One couple had walking sticks, for anyone who wanted one Matt graciously cut ones out of jungle. 7 people on the tour, nice van with beverages and treats. I felt we had plenty of time at each location and never felt rushed and never felt like we were standing around waiting on the group. Nice flow to the day. You hop out of the van and follow Matt down paths that I would have looked at on my own and questioned whether or not you were supposed to "be" there. Then you can always go back... provided you take better notes than I did!
Here's some of what I got....
Back at the shop, decided to pick up a new strap and Michelle fit it to me and my camera... not make a quick sale and the end of the day and send you on your way.... nope...she helped me set it up perfectly. I took a bucket load of pictures and my husband took a few and we both enjoyed the short hikes.
That was the extent of our "plan" for the day... so peek at the list and realize this would be an awesome time to take in the two waterfalls in the area. We first head up to Opakea Falls and then up to Wailua Falls.
From here we went back over to Costco to pick up a couple things. Mr. H wanted the shrimp for a snack and it simply ended up being dinner on our ride back to the house.
Great Island... Great Day!
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