Kauai - Hawaii Our Trip Laura and Buddy Huggins
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kauaʻi or Kauai[3] (pron.: /kə.ˈwaɪ.iː/; Hawaiian: [kɔuˈwɐʔi], is geologically the oldest of the main Hawaiian Islands. With an area of 562.3 square miles (1,456.4 km2), it is the fourth largest of the main islands in the Hawaiian archipelago, and the 21st largest island in the United States.[4] Known also as the "Garden Isle", Kauaʻi lies 105 miles (169 km) across the Kauaʻi Channel, northwest of Oʻahu. This island is the site of Waimea Canyon State Park.
The United States Census Bureau defines Kauaʻi as Census Tracts 401 through 409 of Kauaʻi County, Hawaiʻi, which is all of the county except for the islands of Kaʻula, Lehua, and Niʻihau. The 2010 census population of Kauaʻi (the island) was 67,091,[5] with the largest town by population being Kapaʻa.
Etymology and language
Native Hawaiian tradition indicates the name's origin in the legend of Hawaiʻiloa — the Polynesian navigator attributed with discovery of the Hawaiian Islands. The story relates how he named the island of Kauaʻi after a favorite son; therefore a possible translation of Kauaʻi is "place around the neck", meaning how a father would carry a favorite child. Another possible translation is"food season."[6]
Kauaʻi was known for its distinct dialect of the Hawaiian language that is still spoken on the neighboring island of Niʻihau. Whereas the standard language today is based on the dialect of Hawaiʻi island, which has the sound [k] at the beginning of words, the Kauaʻi dialect was known for pronouncing this as [t]. In effect, Kauaʻi dialect retained the old pan-Polynesian /t/, while 'standard' Hawaiʻi dialect has innovated and changed it to the [k]. Therefore, the native name for Kauaʻi was Tauaʻi, and the major settlement of Kapaʻa would have been called Tapaʻa.
In one of Captain Cook's earliest maps of the Kauaʻi put it's name as Atoui, though that was soon abridged to Atooi by many newcoming foreigners, until the Hawaiian language was standardized, and it became Kauai.
Geography
Kauaʻi's origins are volcanic, the island having been formed by the passage of the Pacific plate over the Hawaii hotspot. At approximately six million years old, it is the oldest of the main islands. The highest peak on this mountainous island is Kawaikini at 5,243 feet (1,598 m).[7]
The second highest peak is Mount Waiʻaleʻale near the center of the island, 5,148 feet (1,569 m) above sea level. One of the wettest spots on earth, with an annual average rainfall of 460 inches (1,200 cm), is located on the east side of Mount Waiʻaleʻale. The high annual rainfall has eroded deep valleys in the central mountains, carving out canyons with many scenic waterfalls. On the west side of the island, Waimea town is located at the mouth of the Waimea River, whose flow formed Waimea Canyon, one of the world's most scenic canyons, and which is part of Waimea Canyon State Park. At 3,000 feet (914 m) deep, Waimea Canyon is often referred to as "The Grand Canyon of the Pacific". Kokeo Point lies on the south side of the island. The Na Pali Coast is a center for recreation in a wild setting, including kayaking past the beaches, or hiking on the trail along the coastal cliffs.[8]
History
In 1778, Captain James Cook arrived at Waimea Bay, the first European known to have reached the Hawaiian islands, which he named after his patron the Earl of Sandwich.[9]
During the reign of King Kamehameha, the islands of Kauaʻi and Niʻihau were the last Hawaiian Islands to join his Kingdom of Hawaiʻi. Their ruler, Kaumualiʻi, resisted Kamehameha for years. King Kamehameha twice prepared a huge armada of ships and canoes to take the islands by force, and twice failed; once due to a storm, and once due to an epidemic. In the face of the threat of a further invasion, however, Kaumualiʻi decided to join the kingdom without bloodshed, and became Kamehameha's vassal in 1810, ceding the island to the Kingdom of Hawaiʻi upon his death in 1824.[10]
In 1815-17, Kaumualiʻi led secret negotiations with representatives of the Russian-American Company in an attempt to gain Russia's military support against Kamehameha; however, the negotiations folded and the Russians were forced to abandon all of their presence in Kauaʻi, including Fort Elizabeth, after it was revealed that they did not have the support of Tsar Alexander I.
In 1835, Old Koloa Town opened a sugar mill.[11]
Economy
Tourism is Kauaʻi's largest industry. In 2007, 1,271,000 people visited Kauaʻi. The two largest groups were from the United States (84% of all visitors) and Japan (3%).[12] As of 2003, there were a total of approximately 27,000 jobs on Kauaʻi, of which the largest sector was accommodation/food services (26%, 6,800 jobs) followed by government (15%) and retail (14.5%), with agriculture accounting for just 2.9% (780 jobs) and educational services providing just 0.7% (183 jobs).[13] In terms of income, the various sectors that constitute the visitors industry accounted for one third of Kauai's income.[13] On the other hand, employment is dominated by small businesses, with 87% of all nonfarm businesses having fewer than 20 employees.[13] As of 2003, Kauaʻi's unemployment rate was 3.9%, compared to 3.0% for the entire state and 5.7% for the United States as a whole; and, Kauaʻi's poverty rate was 10.5%, compared to the State's 10.7%.[13]
As of mid-2004, the median price of a single-family home was $528,000, a 40% increase over 2003. As of 2003, Kauaʻi's percentage of home ownership, 48%, was significantly lower than the State's 64%, and vacation homes were a far larger part of the housing stock than the State-wide percentage (Kauaʻi 15%, State 5%).[13]
In the past, sugar plantations were Kauaʻi's most important industry. In 1835 the first sugar plantation was founded on Kauaʻi and for the next century the industry would dominate the economy of Hawaii.[14] Most of that land is now used for ranching.[12] Kauaʻi's sole remaining sugar operation, the 118-year-old Gay & Robinson Plantation plans to transform itself into a manufacturer of sugar-cane ethanol.[12]
Land in Kauaʻi is very fertile and is home to many varieties of fruit and other crops. Guava, coffee, sugarcane, mango, banana, papaya, avocado, star fruit, kava and pineapple are all cultivated.
Island facts
Hawaii Standard Time is observed on Kauaʻi year-round. During DST, for example, the time on Kauaʻi is three hours behind the West Coast of the United States and six hours behind the East Coast.[15]
The city of Līhuʻe, on the island's southeast coast, is the seat of Kauaʻi County and the second largest city on the island. Kapaʻa, on the "Coconut Coast" (site of an old coconut plantation) about 6 miles (9.7 km) north of Līhuʻe, has a population of nearly 10,000, or about 50% greater than Līhuʻe. Waimea, once the capital of Kauaʻi on the island's southwest side, was the first place in Hawaiʻi visited by British explorer Captain James Cook in 1778.
Kauaʻi is home to thousands of wild chickens, who have few natural predators. Kauaʻi's chickens originated from the original Polynesiansettlers, who brought them as a food source. They have since bred with European chickens that have gotten free from farms and cock-fighting breeders.
Kauaʻi is home to the U.S. Navy's "Barking Sands" Pacific Missile Range Facility, on the sunny and dry western shore.
HF ("shortwave") radio station WWVH, sister station to WWV and WWVB in Ft. Collins, Colorado, is located on the west coast of Kauai about 5 km south of Barking Sands. WWVH, WWV and WWVB are operated by the US National Institute of Standards and Technology, broadcasting standard time and frequency information to the public.
The Kauaʻi Heritage Center of Hawaiian Culture and the Arts was founded in 1998. Their mission is to nurture a greater sense of appreciation and respect for the Hawaiian culture. They offer classes in Hawaiian language, hula, lei and cordage making, the lunar calendar and chanting, plus trips to cultural sites.
Important towns and cities
Cities and towns on Kauaʻi range in population from the roughly 9,500 people in Kapaʻa to tiny hamlets. The list below lists the larger or more notable of those from the northernmost end of Hawaii Route 560 to the western terminus of Hawaii Route 50
- Kilauea
- Anahola
- Kapaʻa (Largest town by population on Kauai)
- Wailua
- Hanamāʻulu
- Līhuʻe (Second largest by population)
- Poʻipū
- Kōloa
- Lāwaʻi
- Kalāheo
- ʻEleʻele
- Hanapēpe
- Kaumakani
- Waimea
- Kekaha
Kolohe Kai
Island Reggae group Kolohe Kai originated from Pakala, Kauai. Kolohe Kai belongs to GoAlohaEntertainment, which is the label in which they released both full length albums, "This is the Life"(2009), and "Love Town"(2011). Kolohe mentions Kauai and Pakala in many songs, but the most obvious one is "Pakala Waters".
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| My Sister Darlene |
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| Mike and Darlene |
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Our Trip To Opaekaa Falls Kauai - Hawaii
ʻŌpaekaʻa Falls is a waterfall located on the Wailua River in Wailua River State Park on the eastern side of the Hawaiian island ofKauai. It is a 151–foot waterfall that flows over basalt from volcanic eruptions millions of years ago. Below the ridge down into the ravinethrough which the water falls can be seen the vertical dikes of basalt that cut through the horizontal Koloa lava flows.[1] The name "ʻŌpaekaʻa" means rolling shrimp, "ʻopae" being Hawaiian for "shrimp," and "kaʻa" for "rolling". The name dates back to days when the native freshwater shrimp Atyoida bisulcata were plentiful in the stream and were seen rolling and tumbling down the falls and into the churning waters at the fall's base.
Visually, this is a spectacular waterfall and is one of the island's few waterfalls that can be seen from the road. It flows year round and therefore is not seasonal. Most of the time it falls in a double cascade but the two sides may become one after a heavy rain. There is a highway overlook which provides a panoramic view of the 40-foot (12 m) wide falls and the valley below. The best time of day to see the falls is in full sunlight when the water sparkles the most. If the day is cloudy the view is less spectacular.
Directions
Once on island, the falls can be accessed by Route 580. At the milepost 6, 580 heads inland for three miles (5 km). Route 580 is called Kuamoʻo Road at this point and it is 1.5 miles (2.4 km) to the ʻŌpaekaʻa Falls parking lot and overlook. Route 580 goes through a notch in the ridge that the Wailua River has eroded. There are no state-maintained trails to either the top or the bottom of the waterfall from the Kuamoʻo Road overlook.
I Love This Video, It ROCKS! Way Cool!
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