Web Exclusive: Hawaii's National Parks

Rich in history and natural beauty, the Hawaiian Islands have numerous sites under the administration of the National Park Service.

Big Island

The three parks on the west coast of the Big Island — all within a long day’s drive — illuminate many key elements of Hawaiian history and culture.

Pu’ukohola Heiau National Historic Site is located just south of Kawaihae Harbor. The forbidding stone temple (heiau) that sits atop a rise overlooking the sea resulted from a prophesy. This foretold that the temple’s construction would enable Kamehameha, the Big Island chief, to unite the islands. Building lasted from 1790 to 1791 and entailed a human chain that transported the water-worn lava rocks from a site 20 miles away. Kamehameha duly consolidated his rule of the islands in 1810. Beyond the main heiau stands the homestead of John Young, a British sailor stranded on the Big Island in 1790, who became a military adviser to Kamehameha and later governor of the Big Island.

Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park meticulously preserves the coastal areas of two traditional land divisions, or ahupua’a, where Hawaiians farmed and fished. Impressive lava walls, stacked without mortar, separate the Kaloka Fishpond from the sea. The ingenious ‘Ai’opio Fishtrap was engineered in such a way that fish could enter the pool at high tide and be stranded at low tide for easy harvesting. A coastal trail provides fine hiking and memorable sea vistas.

Pu’uhonua O Honaunau, commonly known as the Place of Refuge, is a 420-acre site comprising a royal compound and walled sanctuary for those who violated the sacred laws, or kapu, as well as for defeated warriors. Strolling through the royal compound, you will find the placid Keone’ele Cove reserved for the royal canoe, a spring- and saltwater-fed royal pond for holding fish, and a papamu, a flat rock with a surface carved to cradle black and white stones used to play konane, a traditional game. The Hale o Keawe, a reconstructed temple, once held the bones of 23 ali’i (noble chiefs). Several tall ki’i (tikis) stand next to it, creating an honor guard.

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is deservedly one of the state’s most popular destinations. Over millions of years, the Pacific Plate has moved northwest at 4 inches a year, passing over a hot spot on the ocean floor where magma from the earth’s core bubbles up. The process continues: the Kilauea Volcano, the most active in the world, spills 250,000-650,000 cubic yards of lava onto the land and into the ocean every day. Erupting continuously since 1983, it has added more than 500 acres to the area of the Big Island. One can easily spend a day or more exploring the park’s attractions. We saved the most extraordinary sight until last. Pele, the Hawaiian goddess of fire, is said to reside in a crater in the caldera of Kilauea, the Halemaumau. As the sun set, we gathered with others at the Jaggar Museum at the northwest rim of Kilauea for the best view. Like the crowds at Times Square waiting for the New Year’s countdown, we peered at the caldera in anticipation of the moment when the gathering dusk would enable Pele to be revealed. A tenuous glow was soon followed by fierce bursts of fiery red.

Maui

Haleakala National Park offers one of the most dramatic transitional drives in the world. In just 38 miles of hairpin switchbacks, you ascend from sea level to 10,023 feet, leaving a lush tropical landscape for a moon-like world. We broke through the cloud layer on the journey up and espied the peaks of Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa on the Big Island. In the crater of the old volcano, the landscape is awash in a painter’s palette of colors resulting from the minerals that erosion has brought to the surface. The park’s Kipahulu District is accessible from Hana on Maui’s east coast. Although lacking the drama of the main crater, this region will reward you with the sight of the 400-foot Waimoku Falls, reached along a fairly easy two-mile hike through lovely bamboo groves.