Hawaii - Jeff Campbell [387]
Make Horse Beach
To the south, Make Horse Beach supposedly takes its name from days past, when wild horses were run off the tall, dark cliff on its northern end; make (mah-kay) means ‘dead.’ This pretty, tiny white-sand cove is a local favorite, and more secluded than Kepuhi to the south. It’s a sublime spot for sunbathing and sunset, but usually not for swimming as, again, the currents are fierce. On the calmest days, daredevils leap off the giant rock ledge at the beach’s southern end.
To get here, turn off Kaluakoi Rd onto the road to the Paniolo Hale condos and then turn left toward the condo complex. You can park just beyond the condos and walk, or follow the dirt road heading off to the right for a quarter of a mile to a parking area. From there, cross the golf course remains to the beach. In some of the distant reaches, clothing has been deemed optional.
Kepuhi Beach
You can see why they built the Kaluakoi Hotel here: the beach is a rocky, white-sand dream. However, swimming here can be a nightmare. Not only can there be a tough shorebreak but strong currents can be present even on calm days. During winter, the surf breaks close to shore, crashing in sand-filled waves that can be a brutal exfoliant.
A five-minute hike up to the top of Pu’u o Kaiaka, a 110ft-high promontory at the southern end of Kepuhi Beach, rewards strollers with a nice view of Papohaku Beach. At the top, you’ll find the remains of a pulley that was once used to carry cattle down to waiting barges for transport to O’ahu slaughterhouses. There was also a 40ft heiau on the hilltop until 1967, when the US army bulldozed it (and gave the superstitious another reason to ponder the local run of bad luck). There’s plenty of parking in the resort’s cracked parking lots.
Sleeping
Units in the condominium complexes are rented either directly from the owners or through various agents (see the boxed text, Click here). There is a small convenience store with a few basics, otherwise you’ll need to shop in Kaunakakai, 20 miles distant. The closest restaurant is the splendid Kualapu’u Cookhouse (Click here), 15 miles east in Kualapu’u.
Although the two condo complexes listed here are maintaining their properties well, we need to again note that much of the rest of the area has a run-down and eerie feel. We can’t recommend the Kaluakoi Resort, which has rental units in one wing of the failed resort: for one, its cooking facilities are meager and there’s nowhere locally to eat. And a final note: Moloka’i Ranch supplied water to the West End and at the time of research efforts were being made to secure a permanent replacement.
Paniolo Hale (www.paniolohale.org; studios from $100, 1br from $130, 2br from $180; ) Separated from the environs of the failed resort by the weedy expanse of the former golf course, this is an attractive option. Large trees shade this plantation-style complex, giving it a hidden, secluded air. Each unit has a long, screened-in lanai overlooking the quiet grounds; as always with condos, shop around to get one that’s been recently renovated. It is a short walk to Make Horse Beach.
Ke Nani Kai (www.knkrentals.com; Kaluakoi Rd; 1br/2br from $135/140; ) This tidy operation shames the rest of the resort complex. The 100-plus units are large and well-maintained (though your interior-decor mileage may vary depending on the owner). The pool is big. Note that the ocean is not right outside, so the premium for ‘ocean view’ units is debatable. Kepuhi and Papohaku beaches are short walks away.
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WEST END BEACHES
Windy, isolated and often untrod, the West End beaches define moody and atmospheric. Together with the beaches in the Kaluakoi Resort area, they can easily occupy a day of beachcombing and beach-hopping.
From this stretch of coast the hazy outline of O’ahu is just 26 miles away. Diamond Head is on the left,