You haven’t been to Kauai, and you haven’t taken a helicopter tour? What in blue blazes are you ready for? This requires to be at the best of everyone’s bucket checklist. No fooling, you merely have to get out to the island, reserve your tour, and take a helicopter vacation all over the most beautiful, enchanting, awe inspiring put on earth. Prevent looking through this and call your vacation agent, now!
Okay, I am a bit biased I truly flew Kauai tours for numerous yrs, and in the interest of whole disclosure, I flew for a organization named Air Kauai. So of training course I have a various standpoint on helicopters, and traveling close to islands in them. I am likely to try to share with you, pricey reader, why it is that you basically have to fall whatever other trip options you may possibly have, get a ticket to Lihue, and hop aboard a tour helicopter. You can go to Orlando, or Branson, or the Catskills up coming year.
This is why you need to do this, what helicopter organization you ought to contemplate, how a great deal it may expense, what to choose alongside, and what time of yr and time of day to go. In addition a handful of extras: what to hope on the helicopter tour, what you may well see, a security overview, and other odds and finishes to make your everyday living-altering experience even a lot more gratifying. Let us get started with acquiring to Kauai, and a bit of the island’s mystique, starting, as they say, at the commencing, the origin of Kauai.
Kauai, or the Garden Island, is the furthest (uncovered) northwest island in the Hawaiian chain. I say exposed for the reason that the Hawaiian Islands are slowly and gradually disappearing. No, this is not a cause to go your journey up a few months, take it easy. Here’s a little bit of Hawaiian trivia that some of your tour mates possible will never know. There are in truth 127 islands in the Hawaiian chain, not just the 7 you see on a map now–Hawaii, Maui, Molokai, Lanai, Oahu, Kauai, and Niihau. The Hawaiian chain stretches throughout the Pacific for one,200 miles, ending in a minimal coral atoll known as Kure, which is, in reality, the incredibly very first Hawaiian Island, relationship back again almost a hundred million several years. As a reference, just one of the Hawaiian Islands is a minor spot called Midway which is located, effectively, mid way throughout the chain, about 600 miles Northwest of Oahu.
All the islands are volcanic in origin. Their supply is a volcanic rift in the ocean flooring known as the Hawaiian Emperor vent, which lies deep less than water seventy miles south and east of Hawaii, the so-known as ‘Big Island’. Around the previous a hundred million many years this volcanic vent has established all 127 islands*. The islands split the surface, develop into a land mass, great adequately to assistance existence varieties, and then, thanks to wind, drinking water and normal corrosive variables, they bit by bit erode away, sinking again under the waves. The islands are also positioned straight on a tectonic plate with a northwesterly drift, which usually takes them off towards Japan and Asia over their lifetimes. Each and every Hawaiian island essentially moves Northwest about 50 % an inch per 12 months. Geologists claim that Kure, for instance, will, in a couple dozen million yrs conclusion up parked near the Kamchatka peninsula.
Kauai itself is about 7 million several years outdated. Its particular origin, the volcano that developed the land mass termed Kauai, is right now called Mount WaiAleAle (Why-Olly-Olly). WaiAleAle sits in the middle of the island. Go to see the helicopters in action and sort that in, and see the place it normally takes you. More about this mountain later, through your tour.
Talking of the tour, let us get on with it. Book your flight into Lihue, the most important city on Kauai. There are immediate flights from the west coastline. Most of the helicopter tour operators fly from Lihue airport. This is a listing of these organizations, and an overview of every:
Blue Hawaiian: Good company, superior safety report, not the most economical, but maybe the greatest, and this is no time to scrimp. ‘Blue’ flies from Lihue calendar year spherical, supplying a comprehensive, professional tour of about an hour. Not nearly adequate time to see it all, but sufficient to drop your jaw to the floor. speak to Blue Hawaiian Helicopters
Safari: Fantastic business with a extended record on Kauai. Good security document, and really professional pilots. Safari gives some benefits other tour providers do not this sort of as a movie of your trip, readily available for a nominal rate. Safari Helicopters Inc.
Island Helicopters: Island is the discount tour, the no frills, hop aboard and see the island helicopter tour. Fantastic but not terrific, and, as I reported, this is no time to scrimp. Contact Island Helicopters.
Jack Harter Helicopters: Jack Harter himself was the unique helicopter tour man on Kauai. Jack is the previous person of helicoptering on island, getting the moment flown Frank Sinatra and other Hollywood styles around a variety of motion picture areas when ‘ol blue eyes was filming on Kauai many moons in the past. Jack Harter Helicopters is the authentic. That said, the organization is fantastic, not terrific, really well-informed, protected, with competitive charges and a superior tour. Harter gives two diverse aircraft based on your interest–the AStar for a conventional, comfortable, tour, and a very little fowl flown without the need of doorways for people who tote costly cameras and are, by God, heading to use them. Jack Harter Helicopters Inc.
There are other businesses to choose from, but people earlier mentioned are the kinds I propose. This is the rest of the tale: what to anticipate, what to get (and not consider), pricing, climate, basic safety, when to go, and various other criteria.
When you get there for your tour you may be specified a protection briefing for every FAA restrictions, just like on the plane. You may master about making use of many safety products, and be specified a short overview of your tour. Then you can expect to have to step on a scale. Sorry, individuals, the airways are authorized to use typical weights, helicopter operators will have to use precise. And of course, some corporations do charge added higher than a selected pounds. It really is for plane working parameters, as a result for your safety and others’. You can have to pay back of system, and the payment construction is dependent on so numerous variables I will never get into information. Suffice to say that a tour will cost everywhere from $one hundred seventy five.00 apiece up to $300,00, as I say, based on booking arrangements, business, special discounts etc. Pay out it, you can never regret it. Soon after the office environment take a look at you can be taken to the helicopter where by you will meet your pilot and ground crew.
At the flight line you will obtain an comprehensive security briefing from the pilot on exiting the aircraft, use of flotation units, intercom method, headsets and many other basic safety and awesome to know items. Relying on the company you decide on, you are going to most likely board the aircraft ‘hot’, that is with the motor in operation, blades turning. Just pay back awareness to your ground crew, and no concerns. Just one be aware of caution–do not go in close proximity to the tail of the helicopter, at any time. Often remain inside of the pilot’s line of vision. The tail rotor is NOT your pal.