We are officially the first (and as of right now the ONLY) people to have stand up paddled all the way from Koror to Peleliu. We paddled nearly 30 miles on Friday, May 22. (Our route is shown in white on the map below.)

This is something we've thought and talked about since we arrived here 7 months ago. We knew it would be quite the challenge and quite crazy to many, but that hasn't stopped us before. The weather conditions had not been just right until Thursday of last week. Part of our daily routine on this tiny island nation, is to check the weather, the tide schedule and the ocean conditions. On Thursday we saw the numbers and words we'd almost given up on ever seeing. Wind from the Northeast at 5-10 knots, seas at 3-4 feet, partly cloudy with isolated showers. And the tide times . . . high tide at 5 a.m., low at noon and then high again at 6 p.m. Everything was right, so we knew we just had to give it a try.

This is the most unbelievable place ever. I know - you think I'm going to talk about the ocean life, the corals, the amazingly clear blue warm waters, the perfect stand up paddling conditions, and the totally unique picturesque Rock Islands. But NOOOOOOOO. That's not it at all.

For a few days about a month ago we were teaching Fuanes' wife Lani to drive. We've donated a chunk  of our boards, paddles and other gear to them to start their own business here: Stand Up Paddle Tours. When we leave, we plan to give them our car as well, so they can pick up their paddling guests. For that to be useful, Lanie needed to become a licensed driver, something she's never really needed to do.

 Back on December 20, 2008, I started the Great Basil Experiment of 2008. We bought a little planter box and followed the directions on the seed packet perfectly. I figured with the HOT, humid weather of Palau, that the basil would stand a better chance if kept inside. I got all excited when my first basil shoots erupted from the soil. I had visions of pesto in my head as I watched them grow bigger each day.

On January 1st the basil began to wilt. By January 4^th all the little basil shoots were lying face down in the dirt. It was time to order little teeny basil-sized caskets. It was evident that my basil plants would be leaving this earth for a far, far better place.

My dad came for a visit last week. He's not much of a water guy so we didn't do any stand up paddling or snorkeling, but we did do stuff. Here are just some of the highlights.

First we got a boat ride  from Koror, through the Rock Islands to Peleliu. Godwin, of Dophin Bay, is a great driver, guide, and all around good guy. We dropped us off at Giant Clam Beach while he took the rest of the folks on board over to Jelly Fish Lake for a swim.

Last week we arranged for a boat to take us and our buddy Fuanes out to the Rock Islands for a bit of paddling. Shauna and I hadn't ever been to the Western Lagoon so that's where we headed first.

We paddled around Soft Coral Arch and Natural Arch. The winds weren't as kind as we had hoped. They were kicking up the water a bit.

We went from being pretty great bloggers (a post everyday or every couple of days) to those sucky sort of bloggers who have nothing new to read. Sorry about the lull in the action. It's not that we've left Palau, and it's CERTAINLY not that there's nothing new to post.

We've actually had quite a bit happening. We've taught a few people to stand up paddle.

Fuanes said it was love at first sight. It was probably more like "love at first stroke," but you get the idea. He's a native Palauan who has been a tour guide here for 17 years. We met him during our visit here last May. We did some kayaking together back then. Fuanes and his dog, and faithful paddling buddy, Sally, took right to stand up paddling. They both loved it so much, we've decided to leave all the boards and equipment with Fuanes. He's going to be the stand up paddle guy here in Palau. He's starting his own company Stand Up Paddle Tours (www.standup-paddle-tour.coms should be up in a couple of weeks)!!! Yippeee!!!!

 We were talking with our friend Ron Leidich about stand up paddling a few days ago. Ron is "the man" when it comes to paddling the waters of Palau. Though he doesn't stand up paddle, he does kayak and runs the best kayak tours and expeditions in Palau through Paddling Palau and under Sam's Tours. When I say he's "the man" I merely mean that he knows the best places to paddle, the hidden gems and places to explore, and is an expert on the flora and fauna.  He takes his kayak groups to the best places to paddle and snorkel, so when he gives Shauna and I insider tips, we really listen.

We were talking with Ron about Nikko Bay and the things we've seen there while paddling lately. He mentioned that sometimes he does lunch from the pillbox at Pillbox Channel and gets an amazing view of sharks and turtles from up there.

Guess where we headed on our next day of paddling at Nikko? You guessed it - Pillbox Channel. First of all, we had seen the concrete and limestone pillbox, a leftover from the Japanese occupation here during WWII, perched atop the island as we paddled by in the past. It's about 20-30 feet above the water, all nestled into the foliage, and you have to really look to see it. We didn't know you could  actually get up there.

Ahhhh, the weather is back to "normal." How can I even say what's "normal" though? We've been here all of 7 weeks. Even if I combine that with the month we spent here in May, I don't think I'm really qualified to say what "normal" weather is here in Palau. Nonetheless, the weather is back to what we saw the most of when we arrived, AKA "normal."

The sun is out, we've got some high clouds, and occasional rain showers. It's been great for paddling so we've been out exploring the further reaches of Nikko Bay. We were out on the water for a good 4 ½ hours yesterday and we paddled to some great caves, out to a beach that is at the opening to Nikko Bay, said our hellos to passing sea turtles, and snorkeled in our favorite spot - a place where we've seen black tip reef sharks, turtles, Moorish Idols, wrasses, and a ton of colorful fish. I think I even saw a small cuttlefish there yesterday.

One of my favorite moments yesterday happened when a thick, powerful band of rain passed through.

Today we are on a Rainy-Day-Schedule. Since we couldn't go paddling today, and we had already played several rounds of Heads Up, 7-Up, Simon Says, and Duck, Duck Goose, we decided this was a good day to take care of some other business. Little did we know what adventures awaited us.

On the walk home from our workout, we saw there was a normal looking (aka: western looking) hair salon that opened at 11. We decided, against, our friend, Erin's advice , to go  and get our haircuts done here today instead of going all the way out to PPR. After lunch we headed out. Interesting experience.

First, the lady seemed hesitant to really cut Shauna's hair. Shauna had to keep telling her to take a little bit more off. That was until the lady pulled out a straight-edge razor. She used it to cut above Shauna's ears. Shauna wasn't going to dare ask her to tidy up the back side - not with that thing in her hand. We're still not sure what the baby powder spread over Shauna's ears as a finishing touch was all about.  In the end, Shauna's hair looked pretty decent so I deemed the hairstylist safe. My bad!

She asked what I wanted. I said I wanted my same hair cut, just shorter.

We're still in the middle of a bunch of less than perfect paddling weather, but we just couldn't take it anymore. We took our chances and headed out to explore the far end of Nikko Bay on a couple of cloudy, wet days.

The first day, Christmas Eve, was all about  . . .

exploring caves - some so small we had to paddle on our bellies,