Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
fairly good, albeit often dusty, route that generally takes about 30 minutes from town. To
travel onward to Polihua Beach, though, is another story: depending on when the road
was last graded, the trip could take anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour, as you head
1800ft down to the coast.
Beaches & Sights
Kanepuʻu Preserve
NATURE RESERVE
The 590-acre Kanepuʻu Preserve is the last native dryland forest of its kind across all
Hawaii. Just 5 miles northwest of Lanaʻi City, the forest is home to 49 species of rare
native plants, including the endangered
ʻiliahi
(Hawaiian sandalwood) and
naʻu
(fragrant
Hawaiian gardenia).
Garden Of The Gods
NATURAL FEATURE
The only fertilizer that might work in this garden is cement. Often weirdly shaped vol-
canic rocks are strewn about this seemingly martian landscape. Multihued rocks and
earth, with a palette from amber to rust to sienna, are stunning.
It's utterly silent up here and you can see up to four other islands across the white-
capped waters. The colors change with the light - pastel in the early morning, rich hues
in the late afternoon. Look for rocks oddly perched atop others.
Polihua Beach
BEACH
This broad, 1.5-mile-long white-sand beach at the northwestern tip of the island takes its
name from the green sea turtles that nest here (
polihua
means ʻeggs in the bosom'). Al-
though the beach itself is gorgeous, strong winds kicking up the sand and tiny shells of-
ten make it stingingly unpleasant; water conditions are treacherous.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Kaumalapaʻu Highway
Kaumalapaʻu Hwy (Hwy 440) connects Lanaʻi City to the airport before ending at Kau-
malapaʻu Harbor, the island's deep-water barge dock. The road itself is about as exciting
as a can of pineapple chunks in heavy syrup, but it runs close to Lanaʻi's best archaeolo-
gical site, at Kaunolu. Just off Hwy 440 on the Kaunolu road, look for a large open-air
cat shelter
, run by local volunteers. Feral cats enjoy a life of leisure and a few even wel-
come your visit.
