Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
land's stunning and impenetrable north coast, you'll explore a near-pristine rainforest
that is home to more than 250 native plants (more than 200 endemic) and some of
Hawaii's rarest birds. Although you can't quite reach the island's highest point, Kamakou
Peak (4961ft), you'll still get your head in the clouds.
Orientation
The turnoff for the Kamakou Area is between mile markers 3 and 4 on Hwy 460, imme-
diately south of the Manawainui Bridge. The paved turnoff is marked with a sign for the
Homelani Cemetery. The pavement quickly ends and the road deteriorates into 4WD-
only conditions.
About 5.5 miles from Hwy 460 and well past the cemetery, you'll cross into the Mo-
lokaʻi Forest Reserve. After a further 1.5 miles, there's an old water tank and reservoir
off to the left. Another 2 miles brings you to the Sandalwood Pit, and 1 mile past that to
Waikolu Lookout and the boundary of the Kamakou Preserve.
Molokaʻi Forest Reserve
As you climb and enter the Molokaʻi Forest Reserve, the landscape starts off shrubby and
dusty but then becomes filled with dark, fragrant woods of tall eucalyptus, with patches
of cypress and Norfolk pines. Don't bother heading down the roads branching off Maun-
ahui Rd, as the scenery will be exactly the same. Although there's no evidence of it from
the road, the Kalamaula area (an old name for this general area) was once heavily settled.
It was here that Kamehameha the Great (Kamehameha I) knocked out his two front teeth
in grieving the death of a female high chief whom he had come to visit. Local lore says
that women once traveled up here to bury their afterbirth in order to ensure that their off-
spring reached great heights.
Sights
Lua Na Moku ʻIliahi
HISTORICAL SITE
A grassy depression on the left side of the road marks the centuries-old Lua Na Moku
ʻIliahi (Sandalwood Pit). In the early 19th century, shortly after the lucrative sandalwood
trade began, the pit was hand-dug to the exact measurements of a 100ft-long, 40ft-wide
and 7ft-deep ship's hold, and filled with fragrant sandalwood logs cleared from the
nearby forest.