Lana'i

Jim and I just returned from an amazing week in Hawaii!  He attended a conference and I got to tag along.  My parents stayed with our 4 children for EIGHT days!  It was incredible!

My Dad drove us to the airport at 4:30 a.m. for our early flight.

We landed in Maui and took a shuttle to the town of Lahaina to catch a ferry to the island of Lana'i. We had just enough time to grab a bite to eat and a tropical drink before we had to board the ferry.

When we arrived at the Four Seasons (one of two hotels on the island) we were blown away by our accommodations!

We had our own little private lanai on which to relax.

We both woke up super early the next day.  Jim went to the fitness center and ran 10 miles on the treadmill.  I could see him from our room - he has a red shirt on in the top, left lighted window.  A little later I enjoyed the sunrise yoga on the beach.

While Jim went to the conference in the mornings, I relaxed by the beach or pool and read my books.  Not a bad view!

After the conference on Sunday, Jim and I rented this sweet Jeep.  Only 30 miles of road on the island are paved, the rest are dirt and very rugged.  So, a 4 wheel drive vehicle is a must.  There are no traffic lights and only one gas station on the island!  We were often completely alone as we explored.

We could see stunning views of the islands Maui and Molokai.

I think Jim would be VERY happy to own a Jeep.

That's Molokai behind Jim.

We visited Shipwreck Beach

I set up the timer on the camera to attempt a picture of the two of us with the shipwreck in the background.  Apparently 10 seconds was not long enough for me to climb across the rocks from the camera to Jim.

From the beach, we followed a trail of cairns to see petroglyphs on the side of some boulders.

This guy makes me laugh!

Next, we visited Lana'i's Garden of the Gods.

After about 60 miles of rugged terrain, we reached Polihua Beach. We did not see anyone else while we were there.

On our way back to the resort, we stopped at the other Four Seasons resort on the island.  It is currently closed for renovations, but they let us look around.  It was completely different from our beach resort.  This one is in "upcountry" and is more of a lodge.

After dinner in town, we came back to our resort.

Our resort had a family pool (seen below) with two hot tubs and an adult pool with a hot tub.

On Monday afternoon we went horseback riding.

That evening we went to a mixology class.  It was pretty lame.  They basically made a drink and gave it to us.  We did enjoy it, though, even though we have no idea how to make it.

Tuesday morning was Jim's 40th birthday.  He wanted to start the day with a run.  Running in Lana'i is not like running at home. You have no choice but to run hills.

The scenery on the run was fantastic!

While Jim was at the conference, I relaxed on the beach and did a little snorkeling.  It was rough - sitting under an umbrella on the beach, jug of ice water by my side, book in hand, and occasionally the staff came by with a skewer of frozen grapes or pineapple.

After the beach, I moved up to the area on the cliffs to read for a bit until the conference was over.

After the conference, Jim and I hiked to see Sweetheart Rock.  Here is a view of the beach and our resort.

Below is Sweetheart Rock.  Legend has it that a warrior from Lana'i captured a beautiful princess from Maui and brought her back to his island to live in a cave by the rock.  One day the weather changed quickly and the princess drowned.  The warrior climbed the rock to bury her in a tomb and then jumped 80 feet to his death.

As we were hiking, we saw 4 young ladies climb down the cliff below to their own private beach.  If you look closely, you can see two of them in the water and two on the shore.

Later that afternoon we went on another hike near the resort.  Fisherman's Trail was rugged with many breathtaking views of the coast.

You can see Sweetheart Rock in the background.

I think I would lose a golf ball, or six, on this course.

We walked across the golf course back to our resort.

We took a cab (there is only one on the island) to Lanai City for dinner.  Happy Birthday, Jim!

Wednesday morning was our final morning on Lana'i.  I woke up early again for the sunrise yoga class.

My view during yoga.

After the conference, we packed to take the ferry back to Maui for the rest of the week.  Unfortunately we could not find Jim's wallet.  We believe it fell out of his pocket and was never turned in.  It was a bummer and we were concerned about Jim boarding the plane home on Saturday without any identification.  Luckily, he was able to without much trouble!