Wow!! I did the Waterfall Landing Helicopter Tour!

Aloha!

I did the waterfall landing inter-island air helicpter tour today and all I can say is that it was incredible!

I was nervous, having never been in a helicopter before plus it had no doors! I thought to myself ';what am I getting myself into';?. I also somehow thought that the helicopters would be bigger too, somehow bigger in my mind would be safer.

Once I was in the helicopter, (I was in the front beside the pilot) and we were underway I was totally and completely fine. There was not one time that I felt scared. I don%26#39;t like heights, in fact I usually have to have someone help me put up christmas lights every year because I can%26#39;t take being on the ladder, but I was totally fine in a helicopter with no doors!

It was exhilirating.. and the views, fantastic! If I find a way to load up some pics to a website I will post a link.

After flying through the canyon, along the Napali Coast and north shore we landed beside this waterfall. I felt like we were in a movie, landing in a helicopter in the middle of nowhere. The water was a bit murky because it had rained, and then it started raining while we were there too. None of us went into the water, but we took some pictures and then ate our lunch in the helicopter as it was raining quite a bit... that was fine though! Just being there was so cool!

We then strapped ourselves back in and took off toward Wailele...we were so close to the edge. I should have been scared but I wasn%26#39;t. It was so un-frickin-believable!

Our pilot, Floyd, had been in the army for 10 years (got out in 2006) and had done two tours of Iraq, one in Afghanistan, and then worked for a private security company in Baghdad when he got out for about a year (I didn%26#39;t ask.. but was thinking ';Blackwater';). So, I felt like I was in good hands.

I highly recommend it! It was worth every penny of the $355... an experience of a lifetime!

Thanks for the recommendation.. it was amazing!!

Wow!! I did the Waterfall Landing Helicopter Tour!

You say you trusted you pilot and I don%26#39;t doubt his skills, but FAA safety regulations mandate that tours stay 500 feet above the terrain (200 when passing above a ';knife-edge'; ridge). It sounds like you were closer than that.

Also, as exhilarating and beautiful as it may be, please realize that flying close to a mountain and landing a helicopter in remote areas have a very high impact on local flora and fauna. That%26#39;s why the county regulates helicopter landings, and to my knowledge Inter-Island does not have a county permit to land at that location.

Wow!! I did the Waterfall Landing Helicopter Tour!

Another Wow then... I didn%26#39;t know that about the regulations. I am not a good judge of distance, but 200 feet would be 20 stories high, and we were not that high above the ridge on a couple of points.

Also.. I didn%26#39;t know they didn%26#39;t have permits, etc. to land... and I suppose it is my ignorance about endangering the environment.

I had assumed it was all legal, etc. I do know I felt in good hands... not that I would know what bad hands were like, but...

I did have a good experience though, I can%26#39;t deny that!

katie,

Also very pleased that you had such a wonderful experience, and overcame those doubts that you had about being able to fly in a helo.

Not sure about the regs, but kauai hiker is pretty much up on what limitations and regulations are required.

My concern, and not picking on you in any way, but in just reading your report, my concern would be the visibility situation, with the clouds and rain.

Frankly, that is a serious safety situation, but I do not know the FAA minimums for VFR flight for helos, in controled as well as uncontrolled airspace.

Flying around mountains, and in valleys in limited visibility would definitely have me concerned, and perhaps it was not that bad, as there could have been rain, and high clouds, and the rain just passing light showers.

Regardless, you all had a marvelous time, but just wanted to express my concern for others who are on any type of circle island flight, helo or fixed wing, to be aware of flying into IMC...)Instrument conditions) in the vicinity of mountains.

That is a very dangerous situation. None of us were there, so perhaps that was not what was occuring.

Again, pleased that you were so excited about your waterfall and island tour.

Denny

katie....so glad you had a great flight.

We too have gone up with Inter Island on the waterfall tour. The area where they land is private property that is owned by a friend of the owner of Inter Island and they do have authority to land there.

I can say that one time when we went up we could not go into certain parts of the canyon because of the cloud cover but other places were clear enough to go in and explore. I don%26#39;t remember ever being closer than 500 feet to any part of the canyon.

Are they not still part of the Kauai Search and Rescue Team? If so, I can bet they follow the required guidelines.

Katie, sounds fantastic! Thanks for the post. We will be there tomorrow. I can%26#39;t wait.

Aloha everyone,

I also flew with Floyd in July.....an interesting adventure and would fly with him again. I do not know the rules and regulations about distances a pilot should keep from waterfalls, knife edge mountain ridges, or walls of volcanoes but i was certainly impressed with floyd%26#39;s flying abilities

and his keen eyes. I highly recommend him....I learned alot about the island from him.

Aloha,

Richie

We had reservations for our 25th anniversary...they called us 2 hours before our flight to say the helicopters were going in for maintenance. My question is...why schedule on that day if you know it is for maintenance...these reservations were made two months in advance!!! Now that I am hearing they may not be authorized to land and could be hurting the environment I am glad we didn%26#39;t go. If we ever get another chance it will not be with those guys.

But did go on Capt. Andy%26#39;s cruise and it was fantastic. I am still happy that you had an amazing trip.

Also used Inter Island, and they do have rights to land on the private property on their waterfall tours. To suggest otherwise makes it sound like they are doing an illegal activity, and they are not. They still do the search and rescue for the island of Kauai.

I had better jump back in the discussion here.

First of all, I don%26#39;t want to discourage people from taking helicopter tours and enjoying them. I do want the helitour industry on Kauai to change some of it%26#39;s practices so they have less impact on the environment and community.

Commercial activity such as a helitour landing on private property is regulated by county and state zoning and subject to certain permits. Having a paid contract to do search and rescue for the county does not confer any commercial rights or zoning permits to the company.

I have privately emailed someone more knowledgeable about this specific case, and will report back what I find. Perhaps KauaiPilot who began posting on the forum recently can fill us in as well.

In addition to the landings, Inter-Island also seems to have the most ';gung-ho'; pilots, at least from what I read on this forum. That said, I%26#39;m sure they%26#39;re great people, that they fly safely, and I%26#39;m grateful for the search and rescue work they do, because they have helped many stranded hikers.

BUT, there are certain regulations already established for safety and the good of the community, and I think it serves everyone better when they are followed.

cartridge