Hike 22: Kuli’Ou’Ou Ridge, Oahu.

At the Peak--Looking south . . (click picture for better perspective)

Months of practising our smiles and look at the result--failure

Stairway before peak--nice touch

Hello Again,

We had no idea what to expect. Do we ever! We are usually most excited not to get lost, especially in new places. Funnily enough, most places are new to us—perhaps one of the great advantages of hike-about. It sometimes gives new meaning to 'waking up in a strange bed' on a regular basis. The ridge hike culminating in reaching the high peak was a splendid experience, one we could do repeatedly if we lived in the area. More about that later. We remember Nate Levy and the shul hike he arranged in La Jolla some years ago. We think today’s activity would meld perfectly with the membership. Note the name of the hike. Double OU (Orthodox Union). Does it get more kosher than that?

Tipping the peak at the peak. Nonsense, it's windy

Sometimes it can be liberating to express one’s memories of embarrassments suffered. A catharsis, if you like. We’ll try this idea with you of a recent embarrassment we endured. We reserved a condo on the Garden Isle of Kauai for two weeks. Our editor, perhaps as a test to determine whether we had been paying attention, sent us to the store to load up with groceries for the period. Off we went but forgot to take the important shopping list. We bought some bread, a dozen diet Cokes, bagels, a dozen diet Cokes, some veggie burgers, another dozen diet Cokes and salad ingredients. Then we were stuck. Do we need more drinks we wondered? One should never take chances so we purchased another or maybe it was two dozen Cokes. We are not going into details about our reception when we returned to the condo. Some things are better left behind closed doors.

Who you calling Koko Head? Oh! behind me

This error did not embarrass us although we felt a little inadequate. The problem was that by the time we closed the condo and said ‘goodbye’ to Kauai, we still had seven cans of Coke left in the ‘fridge. Now that’s embarrassing. Is this an emerging trend, we wonder? Are we losing ‘it’?

The ridge hike had every component that we enjoy. The trail was strenuous but dry, apparently they charge extra for mud, beautiful flora and trees, an uphill climb for just under 2,000 feet, narrow cliff ledges and spectacular views. It is a dream outing which doubles as a first class exercise session. We ventured out with dark clouds looming and hit the peak in bright sunshine. There is a 360 degrees view at the top as well high winds on the windward side, as one would expect.

An elevator? I'll go check.

It was a wonderful day followed by a trip to the financial district where we had to conduct a little business with our brokerage house. (We missed you, Sean). Arriving like a pair of hicks caused a few heads to turn, we suppose. It’s one thing having parking meters but where does one hitch one’s horse. Singing a favorite of ours, ‘Rhinestone Cowboy’, probably didn’t help.

Cowboy rides into town for a bit of horse trading

Diamond Head again

It was unusual to see teenagers on the trail. We suppose the school vacation plays a part. It was disappointing to see them abusing the wonderful trails. It’s lucky for them that we did not feel like being a ‘Great White Hunter’ else their ‘goose would have been cooked’ in our pot.

Foilage and growth, as we approach the peak

Serene above, busy bottom..um at the bottom

Finally, the last Shabbos in May was our first anniversary of hike-about. One could say so much about it but as you have heard enough already, we’ll just offer our gratitude.

The end of a beautiful day

So long,

Jenni and Jeffrey