Adventure Day #6: Onomea Bay, Akaha Falls, Honomu, The Gultches and Waipio Valley

We begin today early. There is so much to see today and we have a long drive ahead of us. We are going to the Northern Coast of the Big Island to enjoy one of the most beautiful beaches on the Island, located in the spectacular and haunted Waipio (why-pee-oh) Valley. Pack up your SPF 30+, beach towel, sneakers, camera and sunglasses. There will be plenty of dining opportunities along the way to have lunch.

Our journey takes us back through Pahoa and into Hilo. You should be used to this highway by now. Once in Hilo you will join highway HI-19 and continue going north. The terrain is lush with greenery. As we leave Hilo Bay we venture along the Hamakua (ha-ma-koo-ah) Coast. This area was once the home to sugar cane plantations, but the sugar industry died in Hawaii and new agricultural development; ginger, papaya, tropical trees and flowers, are taking route. You will see remnants of the sugar industry including sugar cane and abandoned sugar mills.

As we drive along the coast we come to the Onomea (oh-no-may-ah) Scenic Route. Look for the blue sign announcing it and turn right onto the scenic highway. This road will reconnect with HI-19 after four miles. The Onomea Scenic Route travels through dense rain forest and over picturesque one lane bridges. Turn off the road by the one lane bridge that has the parking pullout. Make your way to the bridge and look for where the water comes from. You will see that the water rushes out of an ancient lava tube. Continuing on you will come to the Hawaiian Tropical Botanical Gardens where you can tour 40 acres of ocean front paradise for a $15.00 admission fee. Tropical plants, bamboo, ginger, bromeliads, banana tress, waterfalls, flamingos and parrots are the attractions of this well kept privately funded garden.

Continue on to HI-19 and down to the exit for Akaka (ah-ka-ka) Falls. Turn left off of the highway onto Akaka Falls Rd (hwy 220) and travel through the village of Honomu (hoe-no-moo) up the road 3 miles to the State Park. Mauna Kea towers above you as you drive up to the falls. In winter it will be covered with snow.

{mosimage}Park in the small parking lot and take go to the trail. This easy but sloping one-mile trail loops around for views of two spectacular waterfalls. Take the trail to the right, the Kahuna (ka-who-na) Fall’s trail and walk down the gentle slope, over a foot bridge and to the lookout to the falls. You will hear the falls before you arrive. The trail loops back on the other side of the stream, gently ascending a small hill, passing giant banyan trees and dense tropical foliage before sloping down to the overlook at Akaka Falls. Akaka falls drops 440 ft into a pool below, making it one of the largest waterfall on the Island that is easily accessible. It is truly breathtaking and the sound of the water rushing over the cliff and hitting the pond below is thunderous. Continue on the trail passing by a tiny but pretty waterfall and back up to the parking lot.

Backtrack down the hill to the village of Honomu (hoe-no-moo). This is a great place to stop and have an ice cream or baked goods at the old bakery. Honomu is a quaint little town with a general store, souvenir shops, art galleries and a shop that sells Hawaiian Nostalgia that comes complete with a giant statue of Elvis. The small village is well kept up and the locals are extremely friendly and helpful.

Continue back to HI-19 and turn left, going north. Our next stop is beautiful Laupahoehoe (lau-pah-hoe-hoe) Beach Park. There is no beach here but the park and bay are pretty, with a pier and restrooms. The tsunami of 1946 swamped this bay killing 20 teachers and four students. There is a monument in their memory here.

Continue North of HI-19 to Honokaa (hoe-no-ka-ah). We are going to make a doughnut stop, Hawaiian style, at Tex’s Drive-In. The Portugese settlers brought with them the delicious recipe for malasadas, sugary doughnut balls. They are a wonderful treat and a must have when visiting the North Coast. Exit onto Mamane (mah-mah-ahn-eh) Street Hwy 240. You will find some unique shopping places here that don’t sell run-of-the-mill souvenirs.

Honokaa is the gateway to go to the Waipio Valley. The Waipio Valley is one of Hawaii’s most sacred valleys. King Kamehameha the Great established his reign over the Islands from this valley, believing it held “earthly and spiritual power”. Battles, human sacrifices and agriculture played a role in the Valley’s history. When Captain Cook arrived in Hawaii the population of Waipio Valley was over 4,000 people. A century later only 600 native Hawaiinan remained. In the early 1900’s Chinese and Japanese immigrants came to the valley to cultivate rice and taro. In 1946 a tsunami swept most of the homes and crops in the Valley away, leaving it devastated and virtually deserted. Today only a few people live here. The Valley is home to wild horses, taro fields, five waterfalls including 1,400 ft Hi’ilawe (he-ee-law-vey) Falls and a long rocky black stone beach.

The Valley is difficult to ascend in to. In early Hawaiian times it was accessible only by a footpath. Today there is an extremely steep one-mile, one lane, road down into the valley that is only accessible by 4-wheel drive vehicles. Most car rental companies make you sign an agreement that you will not travel down this road into the valley. If you do decide to take your 4-wheel drive Jeep down the road and meet up with another car coming up the road, remember that the car descending the hill must back up to the top to let the other one by.

Access in to the valley can be by foot or by a narrated 1 1/2 hour mule-drawn wagon tour into and out of the Valley (Mon-Sat at 9:00am, 11:00am, 1:00pm and 3:00pm). You can catch the tour at the Waipio Valley Art Works located just before the Lookout. 808-775-9518. The cost is $45.00 per person and reservations are recommended. The beach below is beautiful and good for body surfing in the summer months when the surf is not too rough. Since this beach is very secluded, relaxing on it au natural is okay, but be respectful of people whom might wander upon you.

This is the place of the ancient legend of Nanaue (na-na-au-ay), the shark-man, half shark and half man, who was one of the cannibals that terrorized ancient Hawaiians. Born the son of Kamohoalii (ka-moe-hoe-ah-lee-ee), the king of the sharks and Kalei (ka-lay) a mortal woman, he had a mouth on his back that could tear people apart. After a bloody battle, Nanaue was killed. His ghost is said to now roam the Valley and the surf off of Waipio.

It’s time to return to base camp. You may consider stopping once again in Hilo for more souvenir shopping or for dinner. The Hilo Hattie’s, in the Sears parking lot has a good selection of mass-marketed Hawaiian shirts and souvenirs.

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