At the beginning of this month, we went to Hawaii on vacation. Specifically Kauai. We left Cheyenne the night before our plane left, because of an impending snow storm. The next day, we got up and headed to DIA where we took a 2 hour flight to Seattle, and then a 6 hour flight from Seattle to Lihu'e, Kauai. Suicidally, we had 2 kids with us(3 if you count my niece). We arrived in Lihu'e at about 10 pm and from there we rented a car and drove about 15-20 minutes to our condo which was in Waipouli/Kappaa. It was, of course very late by the time we checked in and brought all our luggage up. It was about midnight Hawaii time which was 3 am Wyoming time. So we all just fell into bed, exhausted. About 15 minutes after we had gotten into bed, an ambulance went by with sirens blazing (only time that happened on the whole trip!) Soon afterward, a strange sound (well, not so strange if you are from a rural area) began.
COCKADOODLEDOO! Repeatedly. Loudly. Close to our room. Trevor and I got up and went out on the balcony. We discussed that this rooster must be someone's pet and how if you were the neighbor to these people you might have to have a friendly discussion with them or perhaps the rooster might meet an untimely demise. We shut all the doors and windows, and went back to sleep. That morning, after only several hours of rest, the crowing began again! This time we all went out on the balcony to ponder the vicinity of the offender. Low and behold! This rooster was in the parking lot of our hotel. And, he had groupies. 2 chickens who followed him everywhere.
The kids loved him and took pictures of him with their kiddie cameras. They named him "Cocky Caw Caw" and they talked about him incessantly. Turns out, Kauai is full of feral roosters. Apparently, they were displaced by a hurricane and never found their way back to their homes. If you drive along the highway in Kauai, Cocky Caw Caw and his friends are wandering beside the road! They wander on beaches, in parking lots and in people's yards. THEY.ARE.EVERYWHERE.
And Kauai has taken this chance to capitalize on Cocky Caw Caw and his friends. They sell shirts, hats, stickers and anything else you can think of with Kauai's official bird: THE ROOSTER on them. We found this very amusing. Mostly until about four am at which time it ceased to be amusing and became violence inducing to the point where we contemplated showing Cocky Caw Caw the bright side of a big rock. Luckily, we left Kauai a week later with out having murdered their national bird.
