Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Getting There & Around
From Honolulu's Ala Moana Center, TheBus 52 passes through Wahiawa once or twice
hourly; the one-way ride takes 1¼ hours. Buses continue north to the Dole Plantation (15
minutes) and Haleʻiwa (25 minutes).
LEEWARD OʻAHU & WAIʻANAE COAST
Oʻahu's lost coast is full of contradictions. There is a collective feeling of the forgotten
here, with the wealthier citizens of Honolulu sweeping what they don't want in their
backyard under the leeward rug. You'll find the garbage dump, power plant and US mil-
itary personnel and the economically disadvantaged living here. Sounds depressing? Sur-
prisingly, it's not really.
In some ways the Waiʻanae Coast is the heart and soul of Oʻahu. You'll find more Nat-
ive Hawaiians here than anyplace else on the island, and cultural pride is alive. The land
may look parched, with mountains that almost push you into the sea, but the beaches are
wide, and relatively untouched by development.
Beyond Ko Olina's luxury resorts, the stop-and-go Farrington Hwy (Hwy 93) runs the
length of the Waiʻanae Coast, rolling past working-class neighborhoods and strip malls
on one side and gorgeous white-sand beaches on the other. Human habitation eventually
gives way to velvet-tufted mountains and rocky coastal ledges near Kaʻena Point.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Waipahu
Waipahu was one of Oʻahu's last plantation towns. The smokestack of its rusty sugar
mill, which operated for almost a century until shutting down in 1995, is still visible on a
knoll.
TASTY TIDBITS
» In 1901 James Dole planted Oʻahu's first pineapple patch in Wahiawa.
» Today, each acre of a pineapple field can support around 30,000 plants.
» The commercial variety of pineapple grown in Hawaii is smooth cayenne.
» It takes nearly two years for a pineapple plant to reach maturity.
 
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