Green sea turtles on the reef - Honu work the shallow reef directly in front of us and haul out on the sand at the north end. The rough water that keeps swimmers out is the reason they are so consistently here.

Whales from the coastal path - Between December and April the paved path north of us passes several headlands with clear sightlines. No boat required and no ticket.

Monk seals at Kealia - Seals regularly haul out on the northern beaches to rest, and volunteers rope them off. Keep to the far side of the rope and let them sleep.

Sleeping Giant ridge - The Nounou ridge behind Kapaa genuinely does look like a man lying down, and the trail up it starts nine minutes from here.

Opaekaa Falls - A roadside falls above the Wailua valley, visible from a guarded overlook with no hike required, and best in the hour after rain.

Roosters, everywhere - Kauai's feral chickens are descended from birds released by hurricanes in 1982 and 1992 and they are now a permanent feature. They start at four in the morning. Consider it local colour and pack earplugs.

Ke Ala Hele Makalae - Eight paved miles of coastal path along old cane-haul routes, running north from Lydgate past our front lawn toward Ahihi Point. Walk it, run it, or rent a bike in Kapaa and ride the whole thing.

Nounou East Trail - Up the Sleeping Giant from the Haleilio Road trailhead, about two miles to a picnic shelter and an exposed rock at the top with the whole east coast underneath. Steep, red and slippery when wet.

Kuilau Ridge Trail - Inland past Wailua, a gentler forest ridge walk with views toward Waialeale on the rare days it is not in cloud. Muddy almost always.

Tubing the plantation ditches - Operators float you through the irrigation tunnels of a former sugar plantation above Lihue. It is odd, it is genuinely fun, and it is a good rainy-day answer.

Biking north to Kealia - From the path in front of the property it is a flat, ocean-side ride to Kealia Beach and a coffee, and back before it gets hot.

Ziplines above Lihue - Several courses run over the old plantation land twenty minutes south, which is the closest thing to a theme park this island permits itself.

Smith's Tropical Paradise - Ten minutes south on the Wailua River, thirty acres of gardens run by the same family for generations, with a long-standing luau and an imu ceremony that is a real one rather than a staged one.

The Wailua heiau complex - The river mouth was the seat of Kauai's ruling chiefs, and a chain of heiau and the royal birthstones still stand along the road above it. Sacred ground. Read the signs and stay outside the walls.

Kapaa's old town - A few blocks of wooden plantation-era storefronts with false fronts and tin roofs, now holding galleries, coffee and shave ice. It is one of the last intact main streets in the state.

Kauai Museum in Lihue - Fifteen minutes south, a two-building museum covering the island's geology, the Hawaiian period, the plantations and the migrations that built the population. The best hour of context available on Kauai.

Grove Farm Homestead - A preserved sugar plantation estate in Lihue, shown by guided tour only on set days, with the house and offices left much as the family had them.

The cane-haul routes under your feet - The coastal path you walk from our lawn follows the beds of the railway that moved cane to the mills. The whole east side is built on that industry and its ending.

The bar on property - There is a small bar by the pool in the middle of the grounds, open in the afternoons and evenings. It is not a restaurant and it does not pretend to be, but it saves a drive.

Pono Market - In Kapaa, a counter doing poke, plate lunches, fried chicken and mac salad to a standard that keeps locals queueing. Takeaway. Eat it on the lawn.

Hukilau Lanai - Indoor and outdoor seating, Kauai-sourced cooking and a wine list built around twenty bottles in the twenty-dollar range. The closest thing to a special occasion restaurant on this stretch.

Java Kai - Roasts its own coffee and bakes its own pastries in Kapaa, and now has a second shop up at Kilauea. Get there before the path fills up with cyclists.

Kountry Kitchen - A Kuhio Highway breakfast institution in Kapaa. Large portions, no ceremony, and a wait on weekends.

Coconut Marketplace Farmers Market - Tuesdays and Thursdays next door, with produce, flowers, baked goods and fresh juice. It is about a hundred steps from our lawn, which makes it the easiest good decision of your week.

Coconut Marketplace - Directly next door, an open-air center of small shops, food and a cinema, with the farmers market twice a week. Having it at walking distance is one of the real practical advantages of this address.

Kapaa town - Five minutes north, the old storefronts hold surf shops, bookshops, jewelers and galleries showing Kauai artists. It is genuinely browsable rather than a souvenir strip.

Waipouli's shopping centers - Full grocery stores, a pharmacy and the everyday errands are all within a few minutes, which matters more than it sounds like it should on an island this rural.

Roadside fruit stands - Between Kapaa and Anahola, tables of papaya, apple bananas, rambutan and whatever is in. Cash, small bills, and take what looks best rather than what you planned to buy.

Kauai-made rather than Hawaii-made - Several shops in Kapaa carry work actually produced on this island, from koa bowls to salt from Hanapepe. Ask where a thing was made and you will get a straight answer.

Anaina Hou market in Kilauea - Thirty minutes north, a weekly community market at a park that also has a botanical mini golf course. Worth combining with a north shore day.