Day 8 was our catamaran trip around the Na Pali coast. We decided to be adventurous and stand at the front of the catamaran for the journey to our snorkeling destination. That ended up being a very wet decision. We were soaked as we had been pounded by the oncoming waves, but we did have the best view in the house for viewing dolphins and flying fish (we must have saw dozens of each).

Our surroundings were beautiful, as expected, and we enjoyed the snorkeling, though out of every place we have snorkeled this place proved to have the cloudiest water. We didn’t get to see any turtles while in the water, but did spot one behind the catamaran as we enjoyed lunch.

The ride back was quite bumpy because the winds had picked up and turned the sea very choppy. The captain had to stop the catamaran multiple times on our return to prevent us from flipping as we flew through the water. We were surprised that not a single person tossed their cookies, because if anyone were to do so it would have been on that trip. On the way back is also when we spotted another pack of dolphins with multiple baby dolphins. We did our best to take a picture as they jumped out of the water and followed us back for a bit. Click on the picture for a closer view of the baby dolphin.

After the catamaran we drove to Waimea Canyon, known as the “Grand Canyon of the Pacific” and stopped at the lookout point. It didn’t fail to impress! The second picture includes a helicopter flying through the canyon, see if you can spot it and it will give you a great idea of the scale of the area.

For dinner we stopped by Puka Dog and enjoyed hotdogs tucked into a warm roll. It came with their signature garlic mayo and Joey added the pineapple relish for a special touch.

This morning we checked out of the hotel as late as possible (since our flight doesn’t depart until 9:40pm) and traveled on over to Kauai Mini Golf, which doubles as a mini golf course and botanical garden. Megan won, but that was expected (editor’s note: Megan wrote this, of course). We are still exploring the island as we write this and wait to check-in at the airport. We really had a great time in Hawaii!