Aloha to Kauai - Kilauea Lighthouse, Hanalei Valley, and the North Shore

 

For our final day in Kauai, we ventured to the North Shore and its historic icon, the Kilauea Lighthouse.

 

From Go Hawaii (at this link),

Perched at the northernmost tip of Kauai, the 52-foot Kilauea Lighthouse was built in 1913 as a beacon for traveling ships. Although its light was turned off in the 1970s and has been replaced by an automatic beacon, it still serves as one of the island's most frequented attractions.

This is also the location of the Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge, a sanctuary for seabirds. During December through May, you may even catch a glimpse of humpback whales. This scenic peninsula, 200-feet above sea level, is a must-see on your visit to the North Shore.

 

Traveling west, we pulled into the Hanalei Valley Lookout.  From Kauai-Hawaii (at this link),

Hanalei Valley Lookout offers one of the most famous views on Kauai. The valley is one mile wide and six miles long. Most of the taro grown in Hawaii is grown here. On the valley floor is a one-way truss bridge built in 1912. The bridge was damaged by a tsunami in 1957, and subsequently reinforced. Legend has it that the rainbow came to Hawaiian Islands from the bluffs just beyond the valley when a piece of brightly colored kapa cloth was thrown into a pool below Namolokama Falls, and its colors arched up in the mist.

 

We spotted this group of cows waiting to be photographed!

 

We noticed how the low lying roads can easily flood with the rains rolling off the Pacific.

 

We stopped by the Manini-holo Dry Cave.  From Hawaii Beautiful (at this link),

On Kauai you have the opportunity to visit both wet and dry caves. The dry cave, Manini-holo Dry, sits among a grotto of ferns just across from Haena Beach Park on Highway 56. This cave feels deep and dry here. The cave is about 300 yards deep. It was much larger but the tsunami of 1957 filled part of it with sand.

Legend has it that Manini-holo, the Menehune (little people) who where chief fishermen dug the cave in search of the supernatural beast, akua, who had been stealing their fish. In reality, the ocean used to be much higher than it is now and the caves were formed when the ocean waves beat against the lava and etched away the rock.

Driving back to Po'ipu, we detoured to the Wailua Falls.  From Kauai Hawaii (at this link),

These dramatic 80-foot waterfalls can be seen from Highway 583 or Maalo Road and were used in the opening of the television series Fantasy Island. The cliff over the pool once served as a diving platform for the ali`i.

We chose not to embrace the ali'i spirit.   How about you - would you jump over the falls to swim in the gorgeous pool of water?  One randomly selected commenter from this week's blogs will win a book choice from my convention stash.   This giveaway is open to all readers.  Comments are open through Saturday, March 31, 10 pm in Hawaii.   I'll post the winner on Sunday, April 1.

Mahalo,

Kim in Hawaii

March Madness continues here at SOS Aloha! All commenters in March will be entered into a special drawing for prizes from RT in Chicago. 3 US, 3 Canadian, and 3 international readers will win a package with books and goodies. Comments can be made at:

- SOS Aloha, sosaloha.blogspot.com
- Aloha On My Mind, alohaonmymind.blogspot.com
- My guest posts at the Reading Reviewer (Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday) at marygramlich.blogspot.com

I'll post the winners of March Madness on Monday, April 2.