1st Hike

Happy July 4th, everyone!

Solar went on his very first hiking trip at the Mariner's Ridge today. This is a quick snap at the beginning stages into the trail. See Nathan and his dad in the background.


Alexander preferring to have his sleeves rolled up as usual. He looked stiff because he was still learning to hold his balance on the loose dirt and the uneven ground.


Later on, we finally caught up with the main group which were about 20 minutes ahead of us. Da Da brought out something simple but filling. Solar enjoyed his banana while sitting or squatting on a piece of shallow rock.

All rubbish went to da da, new rule on eating out on the mountain ridge. Behind him was little Isaac spotting the lady bugs rummaging on the ground.


A quick group pic of all the kiddies. As usual, Solar was hidden somewhere in the background.
Weather was mild but a bit dusty at that spot where we took our break. Everyone was trying to squeeze their eyes shut to stop the dusts from entering. Isaac had his goggles on and continued to enjoy the snack, unlike everyone else.



With the horizon and some valley (probably Hawaii Kai) as background, Solar and dad had a photo op. Solar was still chewing his banana. Da Da carried the peels and rubbish in one of the pockets somewhere.


We finally reached a spot of return. Going any further would be too unpleasant since the terrains up are not suitable for kids. This was a group shot of everyone, da da was holding the camera.

Some credits...

Real Ironman and IronWoman
阿嫂 (lady in fluorescent pink Micky Mouse shirt carrying Aliana) and Jacky (gentleman on the leftmost with monk-cut hairstyle carrying a sunglasses-donning Isaac). They carried each of their kids all the way up and then all the way down. You don't see it here, but I think 阿嫂 was indeed carrying the backpack as well in the beginning ascend of the trail.

Almighty Shepherd
See the young man with his arm up holding a camera (ok, there is no way you can tell from the pic)? That's our 興哥 da Shepherd leading us all the way from the assembly point in Moilili to here. He printed extra maps for us so that we wouldn't get lost. As far as I know, everyone was accounted for. Right? BTW, Winnie and Johnny were the young 先峰隊 guiding us from the very front. They actually took the time to pre-screen the trail for us last Saturday. Big mahalo!

Hiking 信心之父
On the pic, the gentleman wearing a navy shirt with his hair unusually fluffed (due to outdoor mountainous conditions) is our own Spencer 執事 da Abe (Abraham). Despite the back-breaking experiences from last year's hike (we weren't there, but rumors had it that Spencer carried Michelle pretty much all the way on that more treacherous hike), Spencer came back to assure us that faith is indeed strong.

包抄隊長
Our cool-looking Stone sporting real jeans tailed us (Boy Boy and Da Da) all the way throughout the entire hike. He was so nice to watch over us like an angel just to make sure we were safe. Indeed, we finished the trip without a scratch. God Always Blesses the Lau's family through the so many angels among us. Amen!


All in all, Alexander had a great time. Da Da intended to let Alexander hike on his own as much as possible and Boy Boy performed quite admirably. Though Alex never declined to be carried, he stayed on his own feet all the time when Da Da asked him to walk. At most, Alexander was carried for a total of no more than 2 minutes with less than 20 seconds on each carry. He did slip a dozen times or so, but he was never injured. Alexander and Da Da were always the slowest tailing everyone (well, with uncle angel Stone behind us, of course), but as a first hiking experience for an almost 4-years young, it was quite impressive.

Before the start of the trip, we prayed together and asked God to watch over us. HE DID, indeed. Amen!