Hawaii - Jeff Campbell [116]
* * *
By the side of the highway, this strip of soft white sand has little puppy waves that are excellent for swimming. The park has a shady patch of ironwood trees and views of Manana Island and Makapu′u Point to the south. This is an in-town roadside county park with a grassy picnic area, playground, lifeguards, rest rooms and showers. Camping is allowed in an open area near the road, but it’s pretty uninviting.
WAIMANALO BAY BEACH PARK
A mile north of Waimanalo Beach Park, Waimanalo Bay’s biggest waves break onshore here, drawing dedicated board surfers and bodysurfers. Through a wide forest of ironwoods, you’ll find a thick mane of blond sand for long walks and ocean ogling. There are lifeguards, a picnic area with barbecue grills, rest rooms, showers and fewer than a dozen just-OK campsites.
BELLOWS FIELD BEACH PARK
Fronting Bellows Air Force Station, this is a long beach with fine sand and a natural setting backed by ironwood trees. The small shorebreak waves are good for beginner bodysurfers and board surfers. The beach is open to civilians only on national holidays and weekends, usually from noon Friday until 8am Monday. There are lifeguards, showers, rest rooms, drinking water and 60 attractive campsites nestled among trees and by the beach. Buses stop in front of the park entrance road, just north of Waimanalo Bay Beach Park; from the bus stop, it’s a 1.5 mile walk to the beach.
HIKING
To reach a small pooling waterfall alongside a muddy, mosquito-infested stream, the 2.5-mile round-trip Maunawili Falls Trail is a family-friendly trail. It’s also the most popular segment of the panoramic 10-mile hiking and mountain-biking Maunawili Trail System (Map), which gently contours around a series of pali lookouts through the Ko′olau Range from the west off the Pali Hwy to the east near Waimanalo town. To reach the main falls trailhead, drive the Pali Hwy from Honolulu toward the coast, then take the second right-hand exit onto A′uloa Rd. At the first fork veer left onto Maunawili Rd, which ends in a residential subdivision; look for a gated trailhead access road on your left.
GOLF
With the dramatic backdrop of the Ko′olau Range, 18-hole/par-72 Olomana Golf Links (259-7926; 41-1801 Kalaniana′ole Hwy; green fees incl cart rental from $80, club rental $35) is where LPGA star Michelle Wie got her start. The two challenging nine-hole courses are played together as a regulation 18-hole course. Facilities include a driving range and Sakura restaurant serving beer and local grinds.
Sleeping & Eating
All three of Waimanalo’s beach parks allow camping; for information on obtaining advance permits, Click here. Just north of Waimanalo Beach Park, Keneke’s (259-9811; 41-857 Kalaniana′ole Hwy; mains $4-8; 9:30am-5:30pm) drive-in cooks up island-style barbecue, plate lunches (try the mochiko chicken), pineapple smoothies and rainbow-colored shave ice.
Shopping
* * *
THE BATTLE OF NU′UANU
O′ahu was the final island conquered by Kamehameha the Great in his campaign to unite all of the Hawaiian Islands under his rule. On the pastoral beaches of Waikiki, Kamehameha landed his fleet of canoes to battle Kalanikupule, the mo′i (king) of O′ahu.
Heavy fighting started around Puowaina (Punchbowl), and continued up Nu′uanu Valley. But O′ahu’s spear-and-stone warriors were no match for Kamehameha’s troops, which included a handful of Western sharpshooters. The defenders made their last stand at the narrow ledge along the current-day Nu′uanu Pali Lookout. Hundreds were driven over the top to their deaths. A century later, during the construction of the Old Pali Hwy, more than 500 skulls were found at the base of the cliffs.
Some O′ahu warriors, including their king, escaped into upland forests. But when