Indulge Inspire Imbibe: North Shore

We spent five days in Kauai's North Shore paradise. There is a lot to do in this part of the Island when you combine the powers of laid back surf town Hanalei and the pristine resort community of Princeville.

Princeville is set on a cliff high above Hanalei Bay with bluffs reaching further out over the Pacific Ocean. We stayed in a prime location here, lucking out with another fantastic Airbnb condo. Teddy's Place was within walking distance to The St. Regis Resort, to beaches hidden below the cliffs, and to the famous lava field coast of Queen's Bath. There is limited parking located at these spots so to be able to back up our lunch, a couple beers, our snorkels and walk - no doubt down a steep slippery mud path to the beach - was awesome! One of my biggest recommendations for Kauai: Teva or some type of solid Velcro sandals are a must. Because it rains so much on this island (every day) we inevitably always found ourselves on a slippery trail and caked in mud.

Hiking and caked in mud again?! What a relaxing, romantic honeymoon we have planned for ourselves ;)

Queens Bath is remarkable. I honestly thought it would be one ingenious rock filled cove - walk down, marvel at it for a few minutes and that's that! It is an entire coastline of lava rock baths filled with rapid fire dangerous waves to calmer tide pools were travelers can swim safely. There is one spot that appears still too dangerous but local kids back-flip in without a second thought and swim about these lava outcroppings, understanding the ways of the strong current. A couple of sea turtle even joined them, which was really cool to see. The whole place was mesmerizing and impressive. We spent a good half day taking it all in.

We stocked up at Foodland for breakfasts at the condo and lunches on the go. But one afternoon we made time for the Hanalei food trucks. From Fresh Bite we had Purple Potato Fries and an Aloha Wrap: organic chicken, Waipa Farms kale massaged with honey mustard dressing, local pineapples, basil, feta cheese, roasted macadamia and a balsamic reduction. And from my bucket list/must eat item - Wishing Well Shave Ice. It lives up to the hype! Ok, so maybe it was just my own hype, but I truly believe Hawaiian Shave Ice takes life to a new level. I had the Rainbow and Bob had the Pina Colada.

PSA: Roosters and Chickens roam free in Kauai. A Kauai roundup would not be complete without the random chicken and baby chicks photos. You'll see them everywhere you go and especially at the food trucks.

Our favorite beaches: PALI KE KUA and SECRET BEACH.

They are both sort of secret to be honest (but easy enough to find at the same time.) Most of the beach photos in this post are Pali Ke Kua - one side is all lava tide pools and the other side is pristine sand and terrific snorkeling. Bob swam with a huge Sea Turtle here.

Secret Beach (not pictured, but you can find it in my insta-story highlights) is outstanding and I hope you take the time to find it if you visit the North Shore. We were lucky our Airbnb host shared his local knowledge. Shacka - 5 stars!

I should mention, due to the devastating April floods roads past Hanalei Bay were still local traffic only. This meant famed beaches like Tunnels and Ke'e were off limits. Same goes for taking a hike on the Kalalau Trail.