ourpacificadventures
Adam & Charlotte's Honeymoon 馃彎馃挄
Our adventures around the Pacific USA and Canada!
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The views from the top were really beautiful, and it was a lovely clear day so we could see for miles around.
There was even a tiny bit of snow still at the summit and a waterfall formed from the melt water.
We headed back down to the main chalet to find the disc golf course - disc golf is really similar to Frisbee and you have to throw the disc into a series of goals.
The problem was that the course takes you down the side of the mountain, so by the time you reach the end, you have to either climb back up or head on down. We decided to take one of the walking trails down as it was pretty warm, and we figured it would be easier than hiking back up. Spoiler: it was not easier..
We realised quite quickly that this was a challenging trail for experienced hikers (we are definitely not) and it's intended to be climbed up, not down 馃ぃ馃ぃ
There was also a 2km diversion on the route because of logging, so it took us 2.5 hours of carefully scrambling down loose shingle slopes and steep drops covered by tree roots before we finally reached the base of the mountain 馃檲
After our exhausting albeit exciting experience, we treated ourselves to a breakfast for our last dinner at a local diner - it was really yummy and very much appreciated!
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For our last day on Friday, we decided to make the trip over to Grouse Mountain, a mountain just on the North side of Vancouver. It can be reached by bus and there's a cable car which carries you up the mountain - or you can hike the "Grouse Grind", a 2000+ stair trail up the side of the mountain 馃槼
There are gorgeous views going up in the car, and the whole journey takes about 5 minutes.
Once we got up to the peak, we were just in time to see the birds of prey show, and we were in for a real treat!
The first bird to swoop in was this gorgeous bald Eagle, called 'bald' after the old English word for 'white' (not because he's bald!).
Next up was this red-tailed hawk, who was very chatty and protective of the ""rabbit"" (lure) he caught!
Our personal favourite was Lord Dread, this turkey vulture who was surprisingly endearing and walked like a dinosaur 馃槅
This sweet horned owl was beautiful and a quieter addition to the show, but capable of catching even a small racoon by herself 馃樀
The fastest bird on the planet, a peregrine falcon (this one was a cross with another falcon breed, hence the different plumage)
Last of was this Hawk who is similar to the Harris Hawks we get in the UK, but a little smaller and less leggy! 馃
We also caught the lumberjack show (they climbed these huge poles!) before taking the chair lift up to the very top of the mountain.
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We had a more laid-back day Thursday after our whale expedition the day before, and headed over to the Museum of Vancouver in Kitsilano for the morning.
It's a really lovely and pretty area of the city, and we found this fantastic mural as we got off our bus! 馃惁
The museum entrance has this fantastic crab sculpture to great you as you arrive 馃
The first exhibition you see when you enter the museum is about the Musqueam nation, the First Nation people who the land the city of Vancouver is built on belongs to. It was really enlightening to read about their culture and language, and how the city came to take over the land. The museum did a really good job of explaining how the city must acknowledge and honor these people.
One of Charlotte's favourite pieces was this seagull sculpture, a modern take on First Nation carvings and painting.
The exhibit also detailed how Vancouver came to be a huge centre for logging, and how this industry drew in lots of workers for across the world along with First Nation peoples. This giant saw was used in one of the sawmills;
There was a whole area dedicated to Vancouvers history since the early 1900s and discussing the different cultures and ethnic groups who have come to live in the city.
We particularly liked the 50s section, complete with a retro diner and car!
After a tasty Italian lunch, we headed down to the beach to relax in the sunshine and read - not quite as warm as Hawaii but still a very pretty spot!
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Our whale watching tour was with Wild Whales Vancouver, who are based on Granville Island a short distance from Downtown Vancouver. We got suited up in our *slightly* large gear to keep us cosy and dry on the sea...馃槄
We chose to take the Zodiac boat, which is an open 8-person speedboat that gives you a thrilling high-speed ride across the waves 馃洢
It wasn't long before we were able to spot two males hunting out in the bay- they usually stick with their mother for most of their life but these 2 had gone off on their own. They had massive dorsal fins, one at 6ft tall 馃槼 the shape and notches or curves can be used to identify which whale is which.
We were out on the waves for a number of hours which gave us plenty of time to watch for the whales as they came up for air between 5-6 minute dives.
We were lucky enough to get to see 2 different pods of orcas during our tour, and one of the whales was very bold and came up really close to our boat!
It was a fantastic trip and we never imagined we'd be able to see these amazing animals up close like this.
On our way back into the port we also saw some sea lions lounging by a docked ship - they were very feisty and kept trying to push each other off! 馃槅
We also spotted this cute sea lion pup who had found a very creative way of keeping out of the water...
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On Wednesday morning we headed across to BC Place which is the home of the Vancouver Whitecaps football team along with a museum showcasing the city's myriad of sports over the years.
The museum was full of fantastic displays and it was so cool to see all the sports we don't have back home, like bobsledding and snowboarding!
There were even interactive areas like this spot where you could try your hand at ice hockey..
And racing a Formula 1 car - much more difficult than it looks!
We also got to look out over the pitch from a viewing platform inside the exhibit space.
And even met a mascot from the women's world cup on our way out 馃ぃ
After a good couple of hours exploring the museum, we headed off towards Granville Island to get ready for our whale watching tour, stopping off to see the Gastown steam clock on our way - a clock entirely driven by a steam mechanism!
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Unfortunately we were a bit too late arriving to see the sea otters as they'd already gone back indoors for the night - but we got to enjoy meeting the adorable mascot! 馃Ν
The impressive orca sculpture which stands just outside the museum.
Charlotte couldn't resist picking up this cute squid friend from the gift shop 馃
There's an old derelict exhibit space near the aquarium- we weren't sure what used to live there, but it looked like it could be an old penguin or polar bear enclosure.
Despite the clouds, it was a lovely walk along the sea wall at the edge of Stanley Park where the aquarium is located.
We also visited the famous Stanley Park totem poles, each with their own story behind the carvings.
Heading back to catch our bus, we also spotted the Girl in Wetsuit sculpture and figurehead of the historic SS Empress of Japan which brought many of the first workers across from Japan to the city.
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We arrived safely in Vancouver at around 7am on Wednesday morning, feeling very tired from the time difference and not getting much sleep on the flight 馃槾 but after a 3 hour nap, we ventured out to find lunch at this cute local Chinese restaurant!
In the afternoon we decided to head over to the vancouver aquarium, which is very highly recommended.mended and has a big variety of aquatic animals and fish from across the globe.
They have a marine rescue area where they rehabilitate and care for injured wildlife, including these seals.
They also have some real characters living at the aquarium, notably this skate who was snoozing on the glass...
And this octopus who was entertaining guests by roaming around the front of the tank and blocking the view of the fish 馃ぃ
We also particularly liked seeing the tropical section of the aquarium, which included birds, monkeys and bats!
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We spent our last Hawaiian morning relaxing on Waikiki Beach and soaking up a last bit of sunshine before heading over to Canada!
In the afternoon, we headed across to the Bishop Museum which has really detailed exhibits on Hawaiian history and culture, as well as natural science and a planetarium.
The wooden carvings of ancient deities were really impressive, and stone carvings recovered in more recent years by excavations.
There was also a gallery dedicated to contemporary Hawaiian artists who are working to preserve traditional crafts today.
We finished up with a stop at the Cheesecake Factory for some amazing desserts 馃槏 before heading off to the airport for our flight!
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On Sunday we had a lazy start after the busy day before, and spent the morning snorkelling around Queens Beach, which has a super-shallow offshore reef 馃悹
We saw some gorgeous tropical fish along with really interesting coral formations!
This fish was extremely well camouflaged!
In the afternoon, we braved the hike up to Diamond Head state monument- this was once a cone-shaped volcano which erupted and became extinct around 300,000 years ago 馃寢 today its a fairly short but steep hiking trail with fantastic views up at the top.
Part of the hike includes this very narrow and low tunnel, but luckily it doesn't go on very far 馃槅
It was very very hot, but the landscape made it worth the struggle!
There's also a derelict bunker from WWII up at the top:
We made it all the way up here! 猬囷笍
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On Saturday we spent the day at the Polynesian Cultural Center, an amazing place with 6 different polynesian islands represented in different areas of the park. In each area you can see the architecture, cuisine, traditional dress and different shows and presentations on that polynesian nation's history and culture.
We saw the Moai on Easter Island 馃椏
Pictured above - Tonga is the only island which is still a kingdom today - all others have become republics.
Below - We especially enjoyed learning to weave fish using palm leaves in Samoa.
And the fantastic drumming and musical performances in Fiji and Hawaii.
We finished off the day with an amazing Luau dinner with entertainment - there was even a whole roast pig!!
The performers were incredible and the food was delicious 馃構
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After our amazing morning of snorkelling, we visited the Honolulu city library - it was a beautiful building and so well organised!
We then crossed the road for our tour of Iolani Palace - this was where the Hawaiian Royal family once lived during the time that Hawaii was a kingdom.
The inside of the palace was very ornately decorated, and reminded us of a British stately home in a lot of ways - the King Kamehameha who built the palace had strong relationships with European and global leaders.
Some of the dresses belonging to the last Queen of Hawaii, Lili'uokalani, who was imprisoned for 9 months in the palace after her family were removed from power.
The tour gave us a strong idea of the fondness a lot of Hawaiians still have for the Royal family and the lasting anger and emotion around the loss of the Hawaiian kingdom and its incorporation as a US state.
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Unfortunately tumblr won't let me share photos from Fridays turtle snorkelling excursion, so here's another video of the amazing creatures we saw! 馃悽
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One of the beautiful turtles we saw! 馃悽 seeing them so close was a dream, they're so graceful and relaxing to watch.
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It was super warm (around 31C) at the zoo, but lots of animals were still out and about having lunch, like this gibbon.
The African savannah's animals (hooded vulture, wild dog and Bongo) seemed to cope best with the temperatures.
The cheetahs however did not seem impressed 馃槅
We caught this sweet moment between a mother giraffe and her little one-the baby is definitely pretending not to enjoy it 馃ぃ
On our way out, we got to see some of the beautiful birds living on Hawaii - there are so many even just living in the city which we've never seen before! 馃馃ぉ
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In the afternoon we headed across to Honolulu Zoo, and got there just in time to catch the sloths being fed 馃Ε
We met the King of Vultures (literally a King Vulture 馃槅)
They had some really cool and unusual animals, like the very rare and endangered black rhinos who had just had a baby! 馃
She was very elusive as you can see her making a quick getaway above.
We also saw these amazing hippos, which we had never realised were quite so huge - the size of a small car 馃
Charlotte was overjoyed to finally see a toucan after years of missing them in various zoos we've visited 馃檲 this bird was very patient and kindly posed for us for a while!
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Our first morning in Oahu was spent enjoying the idyllic Waikiki Beach - walking onto the sand for the first time is like walking into paradise 馃尨馃尯
The water is a very comfortable 24 degrees and stays pretty warm all year round!
The beach is full of activity and we had to watch out for landing catamaran boats!
It was around 30 degrees on the beach despite the breeze and light showers, so we tried out the famous Island Vintage shaved ice for a lunch treat - it was so good 馃槏
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On Wednesday 14th we made the trip across the Pacific to Honolulu, Oahu Island! 馃尨馃尯 its about a 5-hour journey and you spend the whole flight over the water 馃洨
The view from our lovely Airbnb, over a neighbouring canal and looking towards the ocean.
We spent the afternoon settling in and picking up groceries for the week ahead - but stopped in a nearby shopping mall to admire this amazing tree growing in the centre! 馃ぉ
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