April's adventure's (Pali Puka, Sacred Falls, the Flume, Surfing, and SUP)

Well, COVID is still in the air, and honestly, I’m not sure what the future looks like. Everything feels so uncertain. I don’t know when or if life will go back to normal. Church has been canceled, so we’ve been doing a home study with family and friends. Right now, we meet at Sam’s house and do it together, which I actually really enjoy. I’m so glad to be in Hawaii during these crazy times. I can’t imagine being stuck inside somewhere with freezing weather. Governor Ige has made some pretty ridiculous rules that seem to change daily. At the moment, we have to wear masks anytime we’re in public or people won’t serve us—it’s kind of over the top. We’re not even allowed to sit on the sand; we have to either be moving or in the water. No gatherings over five people, and if you go hiking, you're supposed to go alone—because somehow that’s safer? Strange times, I tell you. Luckily, there aren’t any police up in the mountains, so it’s easy to hike in a group without getting in trouble. Honestly, I spend most of my day outside in the sun, and I’m soaking up every minute of it. This month, I’ve gone on so many awesome adventures! I hiked Pali Puka with Sam and some other friends. “Puka” means “hole,” and the trail leads to a hole in the cliff that overlooks the east side of the island. One of Sam’s friends, Michael, tried to scale the side of the mountain, and Sam was not having it he actually got mad, which was a first for me. Later that week, we hiked through a flume to get to a secret waterfall. We had to sprint across the highway to reach the trailhead, but it was totally worth it. With most of the students gone from Laie, it feels like everyone still here has grown a lot closer. Walking through the flume was a first for me it was dark, muddy, and musty... but totally worth it for the waterfall at the end!

My friend Mary and I also hiked to Sacred Falls! It’s technically illegal because back in 1999, a landslide happened there and tragically killed several people. Super sad and honestly pretty scary, so the state closed the trail to the public. If you get caught hiking it, the fine is $1,000... but of course, I had to take the risk. Mary and I rode my moped down to Hauʻula and hid it in some bushes before hopping the fence and running down the dirt road. Since it’s off-limits, we had the entire trail and valley to ourselves. The place is absolutely stunning lush and full of every Hawaiian plant you can imagine. We spent the hike chatting about boys, life, and college, just soaking it all in. When we finally reached the falls, I honestly couldn’t believe how beautiful it was. Now I understand why it’s called Sacred Falls. There’s no way to fully describe the peace and beauty of that place. It took our breath away literally.. when we jumped into the cold water and swam around. We probably took 100 photos because… how could we not?

I also got to spend some time paddling the Haleiwa River and swimming out at the Mokes with Kadee and Kevin. We woke up extra early to catch the sunrise on the east side and stayed out late to watch it set on the west. It was such a full, beautiful day.

I loved paddling the river there were so many cute turtles swimming around, and the whole scene felt peaceful. Kadee and I always get along really well, which made it even more fun. I also attempted to surf again. I didn’t catch many waves, but honestly, I just loved being out on the water, watching the sun reflect off the ocean. The colors were unreal.