Tag: OrangeDoor

Makauwahi Cave Reserve Tortoises

Had we not gone on the tour, we might have missed the tortoises. Thankfully our tour guide clued us in that the tortoises are used to clear land so native plants can survive. They take the place of a bird that became extinct. And we got to see them!

There were about 20 of them and each one had its own pen. They were very pretty.

I loved the plating on their legs.

We walked past many of the pens.

There was also this beauty.

And we saw two different kinds of lizards. This one had a red throat.

And this blurry picture shows how well this one blended into its surroundings.

Makauwahi Cave Reserve Hike

Our route to the cave reserve took us through the Tree Tunnel, which was a grand gateway, as cited by this website.

We had a short walk from where we parked to the view of the ocean.

And then we took an interpretive hike to get to the Makauwahi Cave. There were many informative signs about the flora.

Our first sighting of Makauwahi Cave came from above. As you can see, it ‘s not as much of a cave as it once was.

We had to crawl through a tunnel (for about four feet) to get on the inside.

Once in, we wandered right into a tour that was just starting and learned that the cave roof collapsed 7000 years ago and formed a lake. From the fossil record in what was the lake comes information about what species were on the island prior to contact.

There’s a bit of cave left and we got to see the patterns the limestone made.

There were also a lot of great spiders hanging out on the native plants, including this one who was going to eat well soon.

Immaculate Conception Cemetery

Having eaten, we still had time to kill before we could check in, so we found a cemetery nearby and drove out for a look.

I love cemeteries in general and my last trip to a Hawaiian cemetery on Lanai had many interesting things to take in. This was was no different.

Flowers and garlands.

Tidy and not-tidy gravestones

And excellent offerings.

There was also this cacti. I wouldn’t wish the vandalism, but it’s interesting how it scars.

Poor Man’s First Class and Our First Hawaiian Meal

We won the airplane seat lottery and had an empty middle seat all the way to Kauai. I recently heard this described as “poor man’s first class” and a truer phrase has never been spoken. When we left Portland, it was in the 30s and I got cold and was cold for the whole flight, hence my jacket blanket.

Once we arrived in Hawaii, we got to bypass the long line because we had bracelets (a thing we almost didn’t have because I never saw any notification, nor discovered any information about bracelets in my pre-trip research) and I was starving. So we found a place and I ordered a Loco Moco, which was a hamburger patty, on top of rice and topped with a fried egg and a lot of gravy.

Given that it was my only meal of the day, it hit the spot. Matt got fried shrimp.

Our Pandemic Treat

When the pandemic started and no one was doing anything or going anywhere, Matt and I decided that on Saturday we would have our date night and our date night would involve buying a frozen pizza at Fred Meyer. This would better distinguish the date night from the other nights we also were at home.

In addition to a frozen pizza, we also picked up a pint of this delicious ice cream. This isn’t our preferred flavor (that one has Belgian chocolate in it) but it still has the Magnum magic: a hard shell around the outside of the ice cream and drizzles of chocolate throughout the pint.

The directions say to let it sit out for 10 minutes, then crack the sides with your hands (this breaks the shell) and then dig in. It’s incredibly delicious.

Sadly, it doesn’t seem to have taken the rest of the country (or our area of the country) by storm and it’s shelf space has been diminishing. I fear it might soon be gone forever.

But it was damn good while it lasted.

Pink Squirrel Nest

I’ve bene wondering where the bits of fiberglass insulation have been coming from. They’ve been appearing with regularity on our sidewalk.

On the way home from the library, I took a closer look at our flowering plum tree from across the street and suddenly got it.

Some intrepid squirrels were using the materials they had. I don’t think hanging out in the insulation was very good for their health, but it was probably warm.

I had a worry that it was coming from our house, but I think it came from the motel being open to the elements after the fire.

Trying out Induction Cooking

As I’ve finally realized that putting a gas stove in my house isn’t ideal, I have also discovered an inexpensive way to try my hand at an induction cooktop. It’s also a bonus because that burner doesn’t really work anyway.

So far, I’m impressed at how much faster it heats water, and am on a learning curve about scrambling eggs.