Fall for the Nature of Hawaii
New Land is Born, Old Tales are Told in Hawaii’s National Parks

Fall is the perfect time for a Hawaii park adventure. The days are cooler and the
trails less crowded than the busy summer family vacation months. Did you know that Hawaii is home to eight national parks?

The best advice for a fall visit to the Hawaiian Islands? Park it!

Not sit on the beach and watch the waves “park it.” Not a wander the great green gardens kind of “park it.” This kind of “park it” is an invitation to visit the eight, count them - eight - national parks in the State of Hawaii.

Hawaii’s national parks, trails and preserves celebrate the temples, cities and fishponds of ancient peoples. They are adorned with the earliest recorded Pacific history, petroglyphs. They top a 10,000-foot mountain with a crater large enough to hold Manhattan. They honor the human history and inhuman treatment of a people suffering a dreaded disease and celebrate the brave
warriors who protected America.

Big Island
Three major parks are located on the Kona side of the Big Island. Puuhonua O Hönaunau National Historical Park, a place of refuge, is protected by the “great wall” 1,000 feet long, 10 feet high and 17 feet thick, constructed entirely without mortar.

Kaloko-Honokohau National Historic Park is the site of Hawaiian settlements. The park’s massive fishponds, built before the arrival of European explorers, are an amazing example of successful aquaculture. Petroglyphs at this site include a carving of Captain Cook’s ship.

The Puukohola Heiau National Historic Site is a sacred stone heiau (place of worship) known as the Temple of the Hill of the Whale, built over 200 years ago by Kamehameha the Great. The sacred temple measures 224 feet long by 100 feet wide. It is 16 to 20 feet high on the landward side.

The Big Island’s Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail is a 175-mile preservation corridor filled with cultural significance, including hundreds of early Hawaiian settlement sites.

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park has America’s only active, continuously erupting, volcano. The park features ancient petroglyphs, tree-fern forests, miles of hiking trails and extraordinary museums.

Maui
No rumbling can be felt on the island of Maui, but it was a short two centuries ago that the volcano that formed East Maui erupted. At 10,000 feet, Haleakalä National Park, the House of the Sun, is the entire top of a dormant volcano. Some life forms here are among the rarest on earth, including the strange silversword plant that grows for 20 years, shoots up a 9-foot high bloom and dies.

Molokai
The Kalaupapa National Historical Park on the island of Molokai contains the site of the Hansen’s Disease settlement where Father Damien de Veuster dedicated his life, ministering to the sufferers of leprosy.

Oahu
The USS Arizona Memorial, built by private contributions, is owned by the U.S. Navy and administered by the National Park Service. Visitors can tour the museum, view a 20-minute documentary on the Pearl Harbor attack and board a Navy shuttle out to the Memorial. Inside, a solemn roster of names carved in marble stretches skyward.

Kauai
Kauai, known as the Garden Isle and the most verdant of the islands, offers three National Wildlife Refuge experiences unlike anywhere else in the world. Two of these lush open spaces have rivers running through them, which offer the only kayaking adventures in Hawaii on navigable rivers.

Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge, encircled by Hanalei Valley’s dramatic waterfall-draped mountains, is a 917-acre refuge on the north shore established to provide habitat for endangered Hawaiian waterbirds. Outdoor enthusiasts can take a leisurely kayak journey down the beautiful Hanalei River, one of 14 nationally recognized American Heritage Designated Rivers by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, which offers impressive views of the islands flora, fauna, and natural landscape, including famous Bali Hai (Makana Peak).

On the southeast side of the island, kayak expeditions on the Huleia River take adventurers through the Huleia National Wildlife Refuge located next to the ancient Menehune Fish Pond, a registered National Historic Landmark. The refuge is approximately 241 acres and was established to provide open, productive wetlands for endangered Hawaiian waterbirds. Thirty-one species of birds, including the endangered aeo (Hawaiian stilt), alae keokeo (Hawaiian coot), alae ula (Hawaiian mud hen), and koloa maoli (Hawaiian duck) can be found here.

The Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge is open to the public and known as one of the best bird watching destination in Hawaii spanning 203 acres. Located on northernmost tip of the island, migratory birds such as the Pacific golden plover, Laysan albatross, and the nene goose (Hawaii’s state bird) are some of the wildlife that call this refuge home. The Kilauea Lighthouse, found on the refuge, was built in 1913 as a navigational aid for commercial shipping between Hawaii and the Orient. For 62 years, it guided ships and boats safely along Kauai’s north shore. Humpback whales, Hawaiian monk seals, and spinner dolphins can also be observed here.

For information on park visits, camping, days and hours of operations, and park regulations, visit the National Park Service website at NPS.gov/Hawaii.

Information about Hawaii’s National Wildlife Refuges, visit the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service website at FWS.gov/Pacific.

Source: HVCB Press Release 7/28/06