Kauai - Hawaii with Kids - page 373

Spouting Horn All ages. This natural phenomenon is second only to Yel-
lowstone's Old Faithful. It's quite a sight—big waves hit Kauai's south shore with
enough force to send a spout of funneled saltwater 10 feet or more up in the air;
in winter, the water can get as high as six stories. Plan about a half-hour here;
the kids will be thrilled every time the spout blows.
Spouting Horn is different from other blowholes in Hawaii, in that it has an
additional hole that blows air that sounds like a loud moaning. According to
Hawaiian legend, this coastline was once guarded by a giant female lizard
(Mo'o); she would gobble up any intruders. One day, along came Liko, who
wanted to fish in this area. Mo'o rushed out to eat Liko. Quickly, Liko threw a
spear right into the giant lizard's mouth. Mo'o then chased Liko into a lava tube.
Liko escaped, but legend says Mo'o is still in the tube, and the moaning sound
at Spouting Horn is her cry for help.
At Kukuiula Bay, beyond Prince Kuhio Park (see above).
WESTERN KAUAI
WAIMEA TOWN
If you'd like to take a self-guided tour of this historic town, stop at the Waimea
Library, at mile marker 23 on Highway 50, to pick up a map and guide to the
sites.
Kiki a Ola (Menehune Ditch) All ages. Hawaiians were expert rock
builders, able to construct elaborate edifices without using mortar. They formed
long lines and passed stones hand over hand, and lifted rocks weighing tons with
ropes made from native plants. Their feats gave rise to fantastic tales of mene-
hune, elflike people hired by Hawaiian kings to create massive stoneworks in a
single night—reputedly for the payment of a single shrimp. (See “The Leg-
endary Little People,” above.) It'll just take a couple of minutes to examine the
remaining 2-foot-high portion of the wall; the rest of the marvelous stonework
is buried under the roadbed.
From Hwy. 50, go inland on Menehune Rd.; a plaque marks the spot about 1 1 ⁄ 2 miles up.
Russian Fort Elizabeth State Historical Park All ages. To the list of those
who tried to conquer Hawaii, add the Russians. In 1815, a German doctor tried
to claim Kauai for Russia. He even supervised the construction of a fort in
Waimea, but he and his handful of Russian companions were expelled by Kame-
hameha I a couple of years later. Now a state historic landmark, the ruins of
Russian Fort Elizabeth (named for the wife of Russia's Czar Alexander I) is on
the eastern headlands overlooking the harbor, across from Lucy Kapahu Aukai
Wright Beach Park. You can take a free, half-hour, self-guided tour of the site,
which affords a keen view of the west bank of the Waimea River, where Captain
Cook landed, and of the island of Niihau across the channel.
Hwy. 50 (on the ocean side, just after mile marker 22), east of Waimea.
THE GRAND CANYON OF THE PACIFIC:
WAIMEA CANYON
The great gaping gulch known as Waimea Canyon is quite a sight. This valley,
known for its reddish lava beds, reminds everyone who sees it of the Grand
Canyon. Kauai's version is bursting with ever-changing color, just like its name-
sake, but it's smaller—only a mile wide, 3,567 feet deep, and 12 miles long. A
massive earthquake sent all the streams flowing into a single river that ultimately
carved this picturesque canyon. Today, the Waimea River—a silver thread of water
in the gorge that's sometimes a trickle, often a torrent, but always there—keeps