The blanket of night clouds were still lifting when we first arrived in Hanalei. Through the open door at the back of the fish taco joint I glimpsed an impossibly high shimmer of water descending down a mountain side from the a top that vanished into hanging mist. This is how I remember it, though the actual mountain is much broader. (Also, this fits better on my little piece of watercolor paper.)

There are many beautiful legends surrounding this sacred mountain including a local story of the birth of the first rainbow from the pool at the bottom of the falls. The name of the massive mountain, Nāmolokama, means ‘untwisted bundles’ in Hawaiian and refers to the many waterfall strands that appear on the mountain side after a good rain.

While an iPad is a great travel sketching tool, it was fun to work with actual paint and brush while on a getaway. Much more sensual and of course, no convenient back tracking. This size is about 8” x 10”.