Hawaii - Jeff Campbell [124]
Some of the most easily recognized Lost filming locations are at Kualoa Ranch (above), which offers guided tours. You can roam the beach where the main Lost survivors set up camp for free – it’s Mokule′ia Beach (Click here), on the North Shore, out toward Ka′ena Point. On the Windward Coast, Byōdo-In (Click here) represented Korea during some scenes with Jin and Sun.
On the other side of the island east of Hanauma Bay, the sculpted rocks of the Lana′i Lookout (Click here) are unmistakable during some of the backstory scenes about ‘The Others,’ while aerial cliffside views from the lighthouse at Makapu′u Point (Click here) were shared by Hurley, Locke and Sawyer. Many jungle scenes were shot along hiking trails around Honolulu’s Mt Tantalus (Click here). Finally, just outside Waikiki, the Hawaii Convention Center (Map) has stood in for Sydney’s airport, where the Lost survivors boarded doomed Oceanic Airlines Flight 815.
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The Crouching Lion is a rock formation just north of the 27-mile marker. The Hawaiian version of the legend goes like so: a demigod from Tahiti was cemented to the mountain during a jealous struggle between the volcano goddess Pele and her sister Hi′iaka. When he tried to free himself by crouching, he was turned to stone. To find him, stand at the restaurant sign with your back to the ocean and look straight up to the left of the coconut tree at the cliff above.
Sharing real estate with the famous landmark, the recently renovated Crouching Lion Inn (237-8511; 51-666 Kamehameha Hwy; mains $11-24; 11am-10pm) has country roosters parading around the parking lot. During the day, busloads of day-trippers stop in for a light lunch of predictable salads and sandwiches. In the evening, tiki torches are lit for surf-and-turf dinners on a sunset-view lanai.
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KAHANA VALLEY
In ancient Hawaii, all of the islands were divided into ahupua′a – pie-shaped land divisions that ran from the mountains to the sea – providing everything Hawaiians needed for subsistence. Modern subdivisions and town boundaries have erased this traditional organization everywhere except here, O′ahu’s last publicly owned ahupua′a.
Before Westerners arrived, the Kahana Valley was planted with wetland taro, which thrived in the rainy valley. Archaeologists have identified the remnants of more than 130 agricultural terraces and irrigation canals, as well as the remains of a heiau, fishing shrines and numerous hale (house) sites.
In the early 20th century the lower valley was planted with sugarcane, which was hauled north to Kahuku via a small railroad. During WWII the upper valley was taken over by the US military and used to train soldiers in jungle warfare. It remains undeveloped today, used mostly by locals who come to hunt feral pigs on weekends.
Kahana Bay Beach Park
While many archaeological sites are hidden inaccessibly deep in the valley, Kahana’s most impressive site, Huilua Fishpond, is readily visible from the main road and can be visited simply by walking down to the beach. This county park is a locals’ hangout that offers mostly safe swimming with a gently sloping sandy bottom. Watch out for the riptide near the reef break at the south end of the beach. The park has rest rooms, showers, drinking water and picnic tables. Roadside campsites don’t offer much privacy, and are mostly used by island families; for camping permits, Click here.
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WHOSE VALLEY IS IT ANYWAY?
When the state bought the Kahana Valley in 1969 in order to preserve it from development, it also acquired tenants, many of whom had lived in the valley for a long time. Rather than evict a struggling rural population, the state agreed to let some of the residents stay on the land, hoping to eventually incorporate the families into a ‘living park,’ with residents acting as interpretive guides.