Hawaii: Oahu and Kauai

June 19 – July 1, 2025

We thoroughly enjoyed the rest of our time on Oahu. Our good friend Kristin came to visit us from Idaho. Since she grew up here on Oahu we had a blast as she showed us around some of her favorite places on the island. We also met up with Kat and Nate again just before they head off to Italy for Kat’s next duty station. I see a trip to Italy in our future.

Back on the boat, I finished up some boat projects and Shelly provisioned and made some meals for the next leg of our journey. The other boats in our group were doing the same and starting off on their journeys to the Pacific Northwest area. We managed one more Monday night BBQ at the HYC with the crews of Tasi, Ka’Sala, Casita, and Detour.

Once we were ready to leave Oahu, we said goodbye to the folks at the Hawaii Yacht Club who treated us so well and headed off towards the island of Kauai. Along the way our first stop was at the fuel dock where we met the sailing vessel Falken which was also fueling up. They are a large sailing vessel that does sail training trips with the 59 Degree North Sailing school. They were just arriving in Honolulu after sailing up from Tahiti. They are also on their way to Alaska a few weeks after us.

We initially motored after leaving Oahu but soon got into the wind and sailed the rest of the way across the Kauai Channel. Towards the end we encountered some squalls and rough seas. Our first stop in Kauai was at Nawiliwili Small Boat Harbor in Lihue. Entering the harbor we were surrounded by breaking waves coming over the breakwall. After talking to some of the charter boat captains later it turns out it was just an average day in Lihue. We got a slip in the marina along with Ka’Sala and explored the island for a few days We went hiking in Waimea Canyon, drove to the north side of the island, enjoyed a beach day in Hanalei, and checked out every brewery on the island. It was a blast.

Then we were off to Hanalei Bay. We had a fantastic sail around the Northeast side of the island and entered the bay in the afternoon. We met up with Kelea and checked out the town. They left for the PNW the day after we got there with their crew of five, including nine-month old Tripp. We did some final boat prep including diving the boat to clean the bottom and replace the zincs. I figured it was best to do this in the warm, clear waters of Hanalei rather than the cold waters of the PNW. Then it was one last dinner in town before departing. On the afternoon of July 2nd, we pulled the anchor and set off on our voyage to the PNW. Depending on the weather we can expect to make landfall anywhere between Sitka, AK and the Strait of Juan de Fuca in roughly three weeks.

The DLNR-DBOR office at the Nawiliwili Small Boat Harbor in Lihue was very pleasant to work with. We called a few days before leaving Oahu and they said they had room for us. Since we had checked-in in Hilo, they were able to see our paperwork. The only thing they needed was for us to update our insurance addendum for DLNR to include the address for the office in Lihue. I’m not sure why since it is a state-wide department but we’ve heard of this. Once they had all that stuff, they emailed us our slip assignment with a marina map showing our slip. Upon arrival we checked in with the marina and they issued our gate key and mooring permit. The marina has fixed docks, water and power. There was quite a surge in the marina which we were told was normal. We were able to rent a car online and pick it up remotely from a parking lot within walking distance of the marina. There is a small area with restaurants and bars within walking distance of the marina but the downtown is area is quite far to walk. Within the town of Lihue there is a Walmart, Target, Home Depot, Costco and various auto parts stores. As well as good restaurants, laundry, and Kauai Brewing.

We were told at the office we needed an anchoring permit for Hanalei Bay. I’m not sure if you really do to stay for <72 hours but we didn’t argue and got the permit. As it was, no-one ever asked to see it. Hanalei Bay is great anchorage, right off the beach. You can take the dinghy in through a well marked channel into the river and tie/lock it to a palm tree by the canoe clubs and the boat launch. From there it is about a one mile walk into town.