Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
dergoes two name changes, becoming first Kalanianaole Highway—from the intersection of
Kamehameha Highway (Hwy. 83)—and then Kailua Road as it heads into Kailua town; but
the road remains Highway 61 the whole way. Kailua Road ends at the T-intersection at Kala-
heo Drive, which follows the coast in a northerly and southerly direction. Turn right on South
Kalaheo Drive to get to Kailua Beach Park and Lanikai Beach. No signs point the way, but you
can't miss the beaches.
If you spend a day at the beach here, stick around for sunset, when the sun sinks behind
the Koolau Range and tints the clouds pink and orange. After a hard day at the beach, you'll
work up an appetite, and Kailua has several great, inexpensive restaurants.
If you want to skip the beaches this time, turn left on North Kalaheo Drive, which becomes
Kaneohe Bay Drive as it skirts Kaneohe Bay and leads back to Kamehameha Highway (Hwy.
83), which then passes through Kaneohe. The suburban maze of Kaneohe is one giant strip
mall of retail excess that mars one of the Pacific's most picturesque bays. After clearing this
obstacle, the place begins to look like Hawaii again.
Incredibly scenic Kaneohe Bay is spiked with islets and lined with gold-sand beach parks
like
Kualoa,
a favorite picnic spot. The bay has a barrier reef and four tiny islets, one of which
is known as Moku o loe, or Coconut Island. Don't be surprised if it looks familiar—it appeared
in Gilligan's Island.
At Heeia State Park is
HeeiaFishPond,
which ancient Hawaiians built by enclosing natural
bays with rocks to trap fish on the incoming tide. The 88-acre fishpond, which is made of lava
rock and had four watchtowers to observe fish movement and several sluice gates along the
5,000-foot-long wall, is now being restored.
Stop by
HeeiaPier,
which juts onto Kaneohe Bay. You can take a snorkel cruise here, or sail
out to a sandbar in the middle of the bay for an incredible view of Oahu that most people,
even those who live here, never see. If it's Tuesday or Thursday through Sunday between 7am
and 4pm, stop in at the
DelionHeeiaKeaPier
(
&
808/235-2192
). They have served fishermen,
sailors, and kayakers the beach town's best omelets and plate lunches at reasonable prices
since 1979.
Everyone calls it
Chinaman'sHat,
but the tiny island of the eastern shore of Kualoa Re-
gional Park is really named
Mokolii.
It's a sacred puu honua, or place of refuge, like the re-
stored Puu Honua Honaunau on the Big Island of Hawaii. Excavations have unearthed evid-
ence that this area was the home of ancient alii. Early Hawaiians believed that Mokolii (“fin
of the lizard”) is all that remains of a mo'o, or lizard, slain by Pele's sister, Hi'iaka, and hurled
into the sea. At low tide, you can swim out to the island, but keep an eye on the changing tide,
which can sweep you out to sea. The islet has a small, sandy beach and is a bird preserve, so
don't spook the red-footed boobies.
Little poly-voweled beach towns, such as
Kaaawa, Hauula, Punaluu,
and
Kahaluu,
pop
up along the coast, offering passersby shell shops and art galleries to explore. Famed hula
photographer
KimTaylorReece
lives on this coast; his gallery at 53-866 Kamehameha Hwy.,
near Sacred Falls (
&
808/293-2000
), is open Thursday to Saturday, noon to 6pm. You'll also see
working cattle ranches, fishermen's wharves, and roadside fruit and flower stands vending
ice-cold coconuts (to drink) and tree-ripened mangoes, papayas, and apple bananas.
