O'ahu - Hawaii - page 210

The waves that created this giant stone amphitheater receded long ago. Now the highway
sits between the ocean and this cave, about 2 miles north of Keaʻau Beach. Kahuna
(priests) once performed rituals inside the cave's inner chamber, which was the legendary
abode of a vicious shark-man, a shapeshifter who lured human victims into the cave be-
fore devouring them.
Some Hawaiians consider it a sacred place and won't enter the cave for fear that it's
haunted by the spirits of deceased chiefs. Judging by the collection of broken beer bottles
and graffiti beyond the barricades at the cave entrance, not everyone shares their senti-
ments.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Kaʻena Point State Park
You don't have to believe in Hawaiian legends to feel something mystical occur at this
dramatic convergence of land and sea. At the far northwestern tip of the island, powerful
ocean currents altered by Oʻahu's landmass have been battling against each other for mil-
lennia. Waves crash onto long lava-bed fingers, sending frothy explosions skyward. All
along this untamed coast, nature is at its most furiously beautiful.
Running along both sides of Oʻahu's westernmost point, Kaʻena Point State Park
( www.hawaiistateparks.org ; end of Farrington Hwy [Hwy 930]; sunrise-sunset) is a
totally undeveloped coastal strip. Until 1947 the Oʻahu Railway ran up here from
Honolulu and continued around the point, carrying passengers to Haleʻiwa on the North
Shore. Today the US Air Force operates a satellite tracking station high on the ridges
above Kaʻena Point. Originally built in the 1950s for satellite reconnaissance, those giant
white golf balls perched on the hillsides now support weather, early warning, navigation
and communications systems.
Don't leave anything valuable in your car. Telltale mounds of shattered windshield
glass litter the road's-end parking areas. Locals advise parking close to the lifeguard
tower. To decrease the odds of having your car damaged by a break-in, consider leaving
the doors unlocked and the windows rolled down.
Beaches
Yokohama Bay BEACH
( www.hawaiistateparks.org ; Farrington Hwy [Hwy 930]; sunrise-sunset) Some say this is
Oʻahu's best sunset spot, with a blissful mile-long sandy beach that faces west. Winter