Hawaii- Kauai Day 4

 On day four we hiked the Na Pali coast. We got a late start, but we managed to do the whole hike (8 miles) with little rest. This is the start of the trail. They have a sign with one way mileage, and lots of warning signs.

 The Na Pali coast hike starts you hiking up a mountain and then over and through other mountains. It is a steep trail with lots of loose rocks, tree roots and boulders to climb over. But the views are spectacular. 

 Here you are up high and you can see the trail on the next mountain.

 The guys hiking. Pierson got the red dirt all over the back of his shorts, lol.

 We had to cross lots of streams, some of them shallow like this and some deep, but all were very slippery.

 Halfway to the waterfall there is a beautiful little beach.

 They had all these little rocks stacked up like trail markers.

 When you reach the beach, you have to go into the mountain to get to the first waterfall. If you want to do the entire hike, you have to bring camping gear and camp on the mountain because there isn't enough time in one day to hike the whole thing.

 The jungle hiking was the hardest. Pierson and Jen brought Blake, their 5 year old son. He is a trooper, but they didn't make it all the way to the waterfall. Jason and I went the rest of the way and it was worth the hike. It was breathtaking, pictures don't do it justice. 

 This is a waterfall that you can actually swim in. Jason got in first so I could take some pictures of him.

 After taking some pictures, I got in the water. The rocks were slippery so rather than fall and hurt myself, I jumped in. I am a very good swimmer and I have never been scared in the water. But this time, I thought I might die. The water was between 25-30 degrees and my body immediately went into shock. My muscles seized up and I started sinking. On top of that, my lungs felt frozen and it was hard to breathe. Knowing that panicking is the worst thing, I kept a float and made my way to cave behind the waterfall where Jason was. The water was coming down so hard and splashing me in my face and I thought I lost one of my contacts, but the water coming down was warmer than in the pool and I eventually made it over. It was much warmer behind the waterfall and it was neat behind the cave. Jason swam ahead to take some pictures of me with the waterfall and this is what he got, super lame picture Jace. 

Swimming back was no problem, but then it was a long hike back! We got back ate some dinner, watched a movie and went to bed. We were all exhausted.