Chickens, geckos and sharks ... oh my!

One of my favorite things about traveling is checking out the different wildlife. Heck, even traveling between Western Washington and Eastern Washington you'll find some big differences.

The first Kauai wildlife we spotted were some little redheaded birds that are called Brazilian cardinals. They were everywhere on the island.



Then there were the geckos, which are apparently nocturnal. When we'd turn the lights on outside, we'd see them crawling around the deck. Little brother's reaction: They're so cu-ute.



Kauai is known for its infestation of chickens. They were EVERYWHERE. In the mornings I'd stand outside and watch the sun rise while listening to the chickens. Then there are the moments they go all Jurassic Park on you ... but that's a tale for a later post.



This cutie-pie toad was hopping around the front yard of the house we were staying in. My brother kissed it -- and two days later he married a princess! Must've worked. (Kidding.)



The following isn't my picture, but we did see turtles floating in the surf behind my brother and his now-wife as they were married. Can't wait to return and spend more time and actually see some turtles on the beach!



I didn't see it, but some of the others were on a walk along the beach to the fishing dock in Waimea and encountered a fisherman with a hammerhead shark he'd caught, now dead and laying on the dock. Apparently the ocean that we enjoyed watching the sun set over each night is teeming with hammerhead sharks. So if the rough surf on the west side didn't keep us out of the water (heard a tale from a woman about how years ago she was standing in the surf with her 3-year-old and a wave ripped him out of her hands, and luckily the next wave returned him) -- well, even if the waves were safer, and the shore not so steep ... the hammerhead sharks would definitely keep me to the beach.

I also didn't see any wild boars. But as we drove up the Waimea Canyon, we did see many locals wandering about dressed in camouflage and carrying their bows. We tried to ponder what they could be hunting, and I completely forgot about the wild boars ... until someone brought it up later. I had wondered why they were that dressed up if they were hunting birds ...