BEACHES - LUMAHAI BEACH, KAUAI

Lumahai Beach, just a couple of miles past the wonderful little town of Hanalei Bay along the north shore of Kauai, is one of the most beautiful and refreshing beaches in the Hawaiian Islands.

Generally uncrowded (unlike Ke'e Beach at the end of the highway, several miles further), Lumahai is seemingly designed for escaping reality amidst an almost stereotypically tropical beach setting.

(Does James Coleman know about this place?)

At the opposite end of the island from yesterday's Poipu Beach, Lumahai is very much a world away.

BEACHES - POIPU BEACH, KAUAI

The ocean is one of my favorite places. All this week we'll be visiting some of my favorite coastlines.

Today it's Poipu Beach, where I honeymooned some 30+ years ago. We revisited a couple of years ago.

The buildings across the street have changed but the beach is as enchanting as ever.

POIPU BEACH, KAUAI, HAWAII - MEMORIES GROWN UP

Three decades ago my wife and I honeymooned on Poipu Beach, southeastern corner of the island of Kauai. Not long after hurricane Iniki had devastated the area. It was a beautiful and somewhat remote area of the Hawaiian Islands. In many ways it still is.

We returned a few years ago to find that Poipu, like so many wonderful and 

remote areas of the world, has grown up.

KE'E BEACH, KAUAI - END OF THE ROAD

As with most islands, if you drive far enough you're likely to find the end of the road. Kauai's Na Pali Coast is far too rugged (and beautiful) to permit a road completing the circumnavigation of the island.

This is where the northern road comes to an end: Ke'e Beach.

It's a spectacular place, and a beautiful beach. Hiking trails take you up into the shear cliffs of the Na Pali.

Now...if you can only find a parking place. 

(Sorry, that's a joke only the people who have been to Ke'e will understand. You drive for miles through what seems to be a very isolated road, ending up in a parking area packed - i mean packed - with cars. The trick is to get there very, very early.)

OFF THE COAST OF KAUAI - THE DAZE BEFORE SELFIES

Once upon a time, not too long ago, we used to ask other people to take our pictures.

No selfie-stick required, and you got to meet someone along the way.

It's true. I was there.

After a day out on the Na Pali Coast, snorkeling and seeing the sights, our boat headed back to shore, but not without resting a few moments as the sun set into the Pacific in a truly spectacular sunset. This couple, like others on this trip, were our short-term traveling companions on an adventure.

And their honeymoon, if memory serves.

PRINCEVILLE, HAWAII - THERE'S A KNOCK AT THE DOOR

Another stylized October Country image.

The story begins as "There's a knock at the door..."

THE HAPPY PLACE

I'm back. 

When things are difficult we're often told to "find a happy place".

Times get difficult for everyone, and in my opinion Travelers have more "Happy Places" to work with. My happiest places always seem to involve an ocean.

One of my go-tos: North Shore of Kauai, Hawaii.

It's a serene, almost empty series of beaches between several far more active areas. You're alone, but not too far from the fun.

What's your favorite "Happy Place"?

SUNRISE, SUNSET

“There's always a story. It's all stories, really. The sun coming up every day is a story. Everything's got a story in it. Change the story, change the world.” 
                  
                                                               ― Terry Pratchett, A Hat Full of Sky

It seems appropriate that I am writing this entry in the pre-dawn hours, tucked tightly into a cocoon of darkness. In just a little over an hour, as I write this, the sun will rise and a new day will begin.

Sunrise, Long Beach, CA

Sunrise is a magical time for many of us -- though I'll laughingly admit there's a large group of Americans who only theorize about sunrise, having never actually witnessed one for themselves. But the slow ascent of day, the gradual brightening of the sky to the East, with the sounds of birds as an accompanying orchestra, is one which when you pause to observe is a wonderful thing.

Sunset, Dana Point, CA

Likewise, at the end of every day the mirror of the dawn occurs: dusk. When the sun retreats back into the night and we all pack up our lives for a short time and rest to await the next day. Well, many of us rest...and that kind of depends upon which day of the week it is.

Both dawn and dusk are favorites for photographers. The lighting is dramatic and intense, giving us both inspiration and opportunity. Either directly shooting the sun as it rises or descends, or using the light from it as it falls upon some other target of our attentions.

Sunrise, Mt Haleakala, Maui, HI

I have been fortunate to have seen some truly spectacular sunrises and sunsets -- including a few of them which qualify as "Life Events". Seeing the sun rise from the top of Mount Haleakala in Hawaii was a truly inspirational moment, which I've described here, with the beauty and intensity of the sunrise over the massive volcanic crater, accompanied by the beautiful voice of a Hawaiian singer greeting the new day with a song.

Sunset from Mallory Pier, Key West, FL

Party time...

The carnival atmosphere of a sunset in Florida's Key West as seen from Mallory Pier is a fun and festive event as hundreds of people gather to watch a flotilla of sailboats dance across the horizon as they're silhouetted by the retreating sun.

Bodies of water seem to be appropriate canvases for the breaking of day or setting of the sun. The reflective nature enhances and frames the sun in a way that is remarkably profound and -- thankfully -- quite photogenic. And it oftentimes is an event which we will remember long after the sun has set and we've returned to our regular activities. It's a moment of pause, of -- pardon the pun -- reflection.

Sunrise on the tundra

As a photographer I have been to and seen many different spots in this world, but inevitably some of the most impactful moments have been in the very early morning hours when I walk, usually alone, around a place as it slowly wakes up. To see the sun as it comes up over the ocean, or a mountain, or the flat expanse of the Canadian tundra. Sunrises are mostly solitary events.

Sunsets are communal, shared, and more celebratory in a way. It's not the end of the day for many people, just the ending of daylight. As such, watching the sun go down is a group effort, while the sunrise is not. There may be one or two other souls who have similarly gotten up early, grabbed a cup of coffee and wandered out to see the morning's light. I described one such sunrise here.

These are some of my favorite places to see the sun awaken and also fall to sleep.

Sunset, Grand Canyon, AZ

Last vestige of light over Joshua Tree NP, CA

Sunset aboard the MSY Wind Surf - Adriatic Sea

Sunset, Hanalei Bay, Kauai, HI

Sunrise, Monument Valley, AZ/UT

Just before sunrise, Waikiki Beach, Honolulu, HI

Sunset, Washington, DC

Sunset, Nice, France

Sunrise, Port Douglas, Queensland, Australia

Sunrise, Sedona, AZ

Sunset, Santa Fe, NM

Sunset, Las Vegas

Sunrise off the coast of Mexico

Sunrise, Cayman Islands

Sunrise just off the coast of Panama

Sunset, Cartagena, Colombia

Sunset, Kona, Big Island, HI