Snorkeling Day!

The resort charges a whopping $4 a day for snorkels & masks, and we don't have to return them until 5pm tomorrow, so really for 2 days!  So today we went on the hunt for snorkeling spots.  We drove up to the top of the island based on the recommendation of one of the tour companies, but the surf was definitely too hard to be able to snorkel peacefully.  The views were amazing, so we enjoyed those while we stopped by Anini Beach first, and then on to Hanalei.  We would have liked to have gone further, but the roads are closed because of Hurricane Lane which swept through here almost 2 months ago!  Thankfully, we were able to view the area from the helicopter yesterday (Hanalei and the surrounding area is the 18th picture I posted yesterday).  Like I said, absolutely gorgeous, but too rough for snorkeling today.  While we were up there we found a juice bar and got some freshly juiced carrot juice - Yum!  I went ahead and google searched 'best snorkeling sites in Kauai' (probably should have done that BEFORE we left - lol!) and discovered a place that was only a couple of miles from our resort!  But I'm still glad we drove up to the top of the island.  Anyway, we drove back down and went to Lydgate State Park, and it was perfect!  There was an oasis created by rocks that kept the surf from battering us, and we enjoyed snorkeling all around it for over an hour!  We didn't see as many fish as we did at Hanauma Bay in Oahu, but we enjoyed swimming around with several different varieties of beautiful fish, especially the Blue Tang - they were awesome and pretty big!  As we left there, we noticed a sign for a waterfall, so we drove the 2 miles off the main road for that - it was called Opaeka's Falls and it was spectacluar!  Then it was back to the ranch for a soup and salad lunch and then a nap!  We're getting used to this nap thing!  My mom used to say that when the USA was taking on other cultures as we were forming ours, why didn't we include the siesta??!!  For sure!!  Tonight was home made chicken and rice and watched the movie Christian Mingle - very cute.  Tomorrow, it's ziplining, baby!!  Here are some pictures from today's adventures: