Oahu June 2024

Saturday June 1 2024 - Saturday June 8 2024

Monkeypod Kitchen - Waikiki

The first dinner of the trip was had at the beautiful Monkeypod. The restaurant sits adjacent to the Waikiki beach inside the Outrigger hotel. The menu was primarily American cuisine with Asian/island influences. Standouts were the gyoza with hot mustard dipping sauce, the Mai-Tai with lilikoi foam, and the steak with wasabi mashed potatoes. The meal was an excellent start to the trip.

Aoki Teppanyaki

Owned by world-famous DJ Steve Aoki and his family, Aoki Teppanyaki is Steve’s take, rebrand, and celebration of his father’s restaurant Benihana.

Don Quijote

This market’s brand and mascot is themed around a penguin-like character. The market sells everything you could think of, from toys, groceries, home goods, and more.

Kiki

Delicious lunch spot in Waikiki specializing in fried-to-order tempura served with rice and sides. A unique dining experience as parts of your order are brought out in different times based on when they are finished frying, maximizing crunchiness.

Kona Coffee

Koko Crater Hike

A humbling hike straight up 1,000+ stairs. After an hour of hiking up high elevation with many, many breaks, you’re rewarded with stunning 360 views of the island.

Nu’uanu Pali Lookout

A windy, historical site

Adela’s Country Eatery

A small hole in the wall that has gained notoriety with over 1,000 yelp reviews boasting the great food and friendly service. We called our order ahead of time, and it still took about 45 minutes. The restaurant has unique pastas and desserts.

Ono Seafood

One of the top Poke spots on Oahu, especially after a long hike up Koko head.

Hanauma Bay Nature Preserve

One of the more unique and memorable activities on this trip was snorkeling at the beautiful Hanauma Bay. This beach is picturesque, with a long history that visitors are educated on in the mandatory short video and talk. There is active efforts in preserving the bay and it’s marine life and coral reefs. Reservations are only available 2 days prior, often selling out within minutes.

The Crouching Lion

Pit stop on the way to North Shore

Waiahole Poi Factory

Lanikai Juice

Acai bowls

Kona Brewing

Jenny’s Shrimp

Often mentioned alongside Giovanni’s as people’s choice for top Shrimp trucks on the island. The verdict was that Giovanni’s shrimp topped Jenny’s, with it’s more garlicy and flavorful shrimp.

Rainbow Drive-in

Off The Hook

Poke spot in Manoa. Ranks equal to Ono Seafood for me.

Paalaa Kai Bakery

Known for their snowpuffs, a flakey dessert akin to an eclair-croissant hybrid.

Haleiwa Bowls

Excellent, vibrant acai bowls in North Shore.

Olympic National Park 2023 | Day 3

This is a continuation of our trip to Olympic National Park. Day 3 began with an early 6am drive to Hurricane Ridge. Because of recent wild fires and infrastructure damage, the Hurricane Ridge area of the park has limited access to the first 350 vehicles. By the time we arrived to the trailhead parking lot at 7am, the upper lot was already full. Luckily we snagged the last parking spot in the area.

Hurricane Hill

Possibly one of my most favorite hikes to date, hiking Hurricane hill via Hurricane Ridge filled me with joy. The trail starts surrounded by Christmas tree like flora (Pine trees). The trail quickly opens up to expansive views of snow capped mountain tops covered with massive pine trees. Pictures do not do justice to the scale of these mountains, and the number of trees covering them.

The hike quickly ramps up with steep ramps that climb to the mountain top. The trail is fully paved, making the ascent bearable. At the top of the mountain, you get 360 degree views of the park, as well as views to Canada.

Animals seen included tiny chipmunks, rabbits, various birds, and marmots.

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/washington/hurricane-hill-via-hurricane-ridge

Mount Storm King

Hiking Mt Storm King was a humbling experience. This popular trail ascends in elevation with a 2,000 ft gain. Most of the hike is climbing steep switchbacks that tests your endurance and willpower.

The hike starts at the base of Lake Crescent, and goes all the way to the top of the mountain where you get a birds eye view of the massive Lake.

The last portion of the hike gets dicey, with signs warning that the top of the trail is not maintained. This portion is steep, very close to the edge of the mountain, and is dangerous. Ropes are anchored to trees and are the only mode of balance and transportation up and down the tip of the mountain.

We made it through 3 parts of rope trail, but were unable to reach the very top where the height got to us. Many hikers turn around at this part of the hike.

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/washington/mount-storm-king

Lake Crescent Lodge

After the long and arduous hike up Mt Storm King, we were excited to relax at Lake Crescent. This is a popular area for families to hang out by the lake. Lodging is provided at the Lake Crescent Lodge.

Lake Crescent

Swimming and enjoying the summer energy at Lake Crescent was the best way to end our trip to Olympic National Park.

Olympic National Park 2023 | Day 1 & 2

Wednesday August 2nd, 2023 - Sunday August 6th, 2023

Our recent trip to Olympic National Park marks the 6th national park visited, and the 2nd out of 3 visited in the state of Washington. Our previous visit to Seattle and Mt. Rainier National Park was at the end of May in 2022, when the weather was still gloomy and mountains still covered with snow. Visiting the pacific northwest in August is the optimal time for the best weather.

Olympic National Park is known for it’s diverse ecosystems, including glacier covered mountain ridges, rocky pacific coast beaches, and old-growth temperate rain forests. We were able to visit all of these ecosystems in a short 2.5 days thanks to a tight itinerary with early morning starts.

The diversity in what we were able to experience at Olympic National Park puts it high on my list of favorite parks.

This blog post covers Day 1 and Day 2 of the trip.

Itinerary:

Day 1:

• Fly out to Seattle, Drive to Forks, Washington (fun fact: The Twilight films were shot here)

• Visit Rialto Beach during sunset, stay overnight in Forks, Washington.

Day 2:

• Early morning drive to the Hoh Rainforest

  • Hike Hall of Moss

  • Hike 5-mile Hoh River Trail

• Drive to Sol Duc Falls, hike

• Drive to Port Angeles where we stayed the night

Day 3:

• Early morning drive to Hurricane Ridge

  • Hike Hurricane Hill

• Drive to Lake Crescent

  • Hike Mt. Storm King

  • Hang out at Lake Crescent

• Drive back to Seattle

Rialto Beach

Rialto Beach is unlike any beach I’ve seen in the Bay Area, California. The beach is filled with giant fallen driftwood, and scattered with small and large smooth rocks. Massive sea stacks (giant land mass/rocks in the ocean) make up the iconic landscape of the beach, mirrored by the forest of spruce trees on land.

A popular hike or walk along the beach to do here is towards ‘Hole in the Wall’, a huge section of the middle of a cliff eroded, creating a hole in the wall. Spending time during low-tide checking out the tide-pools filled with starfish, crabs, fish, and more aquatic life is a common activity here.

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/washington/hole-in-the-wall-trail

Hoh Rainforest

The Hoh Rainforest is one of the largest temperate rain forests in the United States. The lush forest is filled with moss covered spruce trees and big leaf maple trees. A single road leads to the park’s entrance to the Hoh Rainforest. A helpful tip is to go as early as you can, as traffic through the entrance can span hours if bad enough.

Hall of Moss

The Hall of Mosses trail is a popular short hike that is kid friendly. It gives you an easy access to old giant trees covered with Moss.

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/washington/hoh-rain-forest-hall-of-moss

5-Mile Hoh River Trail

The 5-mile hike takes you deep into the Hoh Rainforest. Peeks of the glacier blue Hoh river can be seen through some parts of the hike. As you reach the 5 mile mark, the trail opens up to reveal a large flowing river.

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/washington/hoh-river-trail

Sol Duc Falls

This short quick hike takes you through a wooded trail towards Sol Duc Falls.

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/washington/sol-duc-falls-nature-trail

This concludes Day 1 and Day 2 of the trip. Day 3 can be found in a separate blog post.