Chestnut mannikin

Woke up at the Ha'ena campsite, opened the flap of the tent and was immediately approached by a mother chook with two extremely cute baby chooks marching behind her. I really couldn't refuse them some breakfast.

We headed out to Ke'e beach to attempt the Kalalau trail. It was really busy, with a lot of kitted up hikers like us with walking boots, but also with folk wearing flip-flops. The trail isn't for the lighthearted, though I was perhaps far too woosie. The track was slithery with a light film of slippy mud over rock, and I wasn't confident with my grip. We had fantastic views over the beach and turquoise sea, but we turned back before we reached the waterfall. F says he will go back one day to do the whole trail. I won't! At one point (a point we didn't reach), the trail is the width of a car's dashboard, with a steep cliff up and a steep drop down into the ocean. At the end of the 8-mile trek is a beautiful beach and you experience the Na Pali coast, which cannot be seen be car, only on foot or by air or sea.

Disappointed, we drove to Hanalei for breakfast, picking up a hitchhiker on the way who told us about the dashboard width of the trail (and, yes, he had walked it). He recommended a good place to eat, and the French toast was delicious. The chestnut mannikin was pulling on grass at the roadside.

We pitched up our tent at Anini beach and went for a paddle in the sea. The beach has a reef along its whole length (the longest reef in Hawaii), which makes the ocean between the reef and the beach the safest and most protective water in Kaua'i for swimming. It was so calm.