Kauai 2011 day 15: Last day

Look at that: I've managed to finish posting my pics from last year's trip to Kauai a whole three days before we touch down on the island for this year's vacation. Between being very busy at work, trying to get as much done as I can before I leave, lack of sleep, and the usual pre-travel anxiety, my brain is pretty much in shutdown mode as I sit here trying to string words together. So I'll move right on to the photos.

A couple of the water coming in on the shore:





My promised photos of an adult Java Sparrow, also known to my brain as the mini Puffin:





I really liked how this Egret's breast feathers were backlit in this shot:



In the afternoon, we went over to Shell Beach one last time. The water was barely covering the long stretch of reef between the beach itself and the ocean proper, so I wandered on outto take a photo or two of Bali Hai. On the way, this bit of kaleidoscope-like rippling in the water caught my eye:



Looking back at the mountain directly behind me:



And, of course, Bali Hai. Well, technically it's the mountain that was used to depict Bali Hai in South Pacific. In reality, it's Mount Makana, and marks the beginning of the Na Pali cliffs.:



I thought of a great pun for this image earlier, but it's completely gone from my brain. So ... check it out: it's a bunch of plants that grew in the shape of a heart:



I liked the double wave thing I caught in this photo:



Probably my best shot of a wave rolling over:



On our way back to the car I spotted movement in some of the plants bordering the trail out of the corner of my eye. Further investigation revealed not just one gecko, but a bunch of them—all of them different shapes, sizes, and colors











When we got back to where my folks were staying, what did we encounter but... more geckos. If you look at this first one's lip, you can see what's left of an ant sticking out:



And this is the one in-focus shot I got of this gecko as it scurried away:




One last shot of the beautiful water of the Pacific to close out my Kauai 2011 photos:

Kauai 2011 day 14: Wailua Falls

You'd think that by the end of my vacation I'd have been taking fewer pictures, not more. I may ask my folks to put a shock collar on me this year... At any rate, it was a busy day that resulted in a ton of photos, so once again I'll get right to it.

A couple of sunrise photos:





A Myna stopped by to grab some breakfast:



As did this Red-crested Cardinal, which I was photographing between the legs of the chairs out on the porch:



Love the head tilt:



A cardinal that came almost right up to the sliding-glass door:



On my next-to-last day, we took a trip out to Wailua Falls, one of the most picturesque spots on the island. It's a gorgeous double waterfall, and I was eager to try my hand at photographing it. This first shot is one I took with my camera on its usual setting:



And this is one I took with a much slower shutter speed, producing the silky water effect:



A wider shot of the waterfall and pool:



Again, the same view with the shutter slowed down:



With all the mist produced by the falling water, it's pretty much a guarantee that when the sun is out, you're going to see a rainbow. On this visit, we were lucky enough to see a double rainbow:





On the other side of the pool, someone used a bunch of white rocks to leave a message for visitors:



While we were there, we noticed quite a few White-tailed Tropicbirds flying around. Then we realized that when some of the birds approached the rock face, they disappeared. Turns out they like to nest in cliffs:









We stopped for lunch at Puka Dog, where I ended up getting some of the best bird closeups of my vacation. First up, some Myna pics:



Very pleased with how this one came out:







An early model for Angry Birds, perhaps?



And some shots of a Red-crested Cardinal that came fairly close to grab some of the bread we'd scattered around:







A Zebra Dove taking a dust bath in the parking lot where we were staying:



Finally, some shots I took before and during sunset at Ke'e Beach:

Kauai 2011 day 13: Various and sundry

I've got a fairly large bunch of photos for today's post, taken either around Mom and Dad's place or in the town of Hanalei, so I'll just get right to it.

Another one of my occasional attempts at being intentionally artistic:



A few more photos from the day we fed the birds at Bubba's, starting with a couple of shots of a Zebra Dove:



Taking a load off between snacks:



A close-up of a Red-crested Cardinal that I was particularly pleased with:



Looking out at some taro fields:



I zoomed in as much as I could for this shot:



A pretty well-known Kauai landmark: Wai`oli Hui`ia Church, aka the Little Green Church:



I cropped the above image in to provide a closer look at the stained-glass windows; it was pretty hazy in town, so my close-ups of the windows didn't turn out very well:



A bunch of Myna photos are up next; these next two of a Myna perched on the edge of the roof were both taken as I stood on the porch, giving me a fairly decent angle on them:





Later on, this Myna feasted on tortilla chips. Very messy eater, that one:







A Myna perched on a palm leaf:





That little spot to the right of the Myna's beak is not a glitch in the photo, but a bug hovering the air. From the angle, I have no idea if it was right in front of the Myna, as it appears, or if I just happened to catch the insect at an angle that makes it seem that way:



Another visitor to our porch:





Finally, some ocean shots. In this first one, I liked both the contrast between the greenery and the color of the water and the look of the water's surface:



A few wave photos:









Finally, the combination of textures—the rippled surface of the water, the froth, and the rocks—was what caught my eye in this shot: