O`ahu: The Hoaloha Tour – Day 1: Arrival and Makapu`u Point Lighthouse Trail

Honolulu, Hawai`i – This trip happened because of the love of many friends. Kama`ainas Randy and Lesley, whom I met on the mainland about 5 years ago, hooked me up with transportation and a place to stay. I got to visit Cynthia, a friend from high school, and her husband, Fred. Plus, I got to hang out with The Sledge Grits Band, friends from the mainland. It has been 24 years since I was last here, and I was anxious and excited to return and see my hoaloha, my cherished friends.

Though my flight originated in Los Angeles, it showed up on the arrival board at Honolulu Airport (HNL) as arriving from San Francisco International (SFO). That’s because we had a stopover at SFO on the way to O`ahu. I’ll tell you, flying into San Francisco International this morning was probably the scariest approach I’ve ever experienced. But that’s a story for another day.

Randy picked me up from the airport. He had some business to attend to right after picking me up, so he dropped me off in Chinatown. This gave me a chance to explore a part of Hawai`i I had not seen before while I waited for him.

Since Chinatown is a tiny bit inland and elevated from sea level, I had a nice view of the ocean. I spent a few minutes trying to get my bearings back but could only recognize Aloha Tower. Aloha Tower, an old lighthouse, was easy to find, rising high above Aloha Tower Marketplace. Nothing else looked familiar, so I started my walk around Chinatown.

During my slow saunter around the area, I looked in almost every shop I passed. I had no particular route in mind, I just went wherever my feet took me. I did stop in a plaza of sorts to call my friend Cynthia to let her know I had arrived on the island. We talked for a few minutes and made plans for the evening, which I’ll tell you about a bit later.

It was lunchtime. My focus switched from ‘just looking around’ to ‘let’s find a place to eat.’ No question I was going to have some local fare and was specifically looking for anyplace that served Loco Moco. Surprisingly, I was unable to find any. I ended up going with a Portuguese sausage dish. It was pretty good, but I have to admit I was a bit disappointed that I couldn’t find my Loco Moco.

After finishing my meal, I had a few minutes left to walk around. I started a roundabout course back to where I was to meet up with Randy. We then headed to his place. To my surprise, we didn’t stay long. That’s because he suggested we go hiking. His wife Lesley joined us. A quick change of clothes and off we went.

Makapu`u Point Lighthouse Trail, a park within the Kaiwi State Scenic Shoreline, was our destination. It is situated on the southeastern-most part of O`ahu. It is known by other names like Kaiwa Ridge Trail, and Lanikai Pillbox Hike. The trail is about 2 miles out and back; pretty short but it has a few steep sections. Along the way are several great lookout spots. Randy pointed them out as we passed. We stopped at a couple of them. One offered a nice view to the west, back toward Diamondhead.

Supposedly on very clear days you can see Lana`i and Moloka`i. During late Fall through mid-Spring, you can see the migrating humpback whales from up here. There’s also a picturesque working lighthouse, Makapu`u Lighthouse, visible from the trail, but it is off limits to the public. The lighthouse is quite small, smaller than almost every lighthouse I’ve seen before. But because it sits up on a point on the easternmost part of island, it gets the job done.

While at one of the overlooks, Randy pointed out a vessel sailing just offshore. He told me it was the Hōkūle`a. The Hōkūle`a, a double-hulled canoe built for voyaging, is owned by the Polynesian Voyaging Society. Its purpose is to “[revive] the legacy of exploration, courage, and ingenuity that brought the first Polynesians to the archipelago of Hawai`i.”

Hōkūle`a means “star of gladness” in Hawaiian. The name refers to the star Arcturus, which passes directly over Hawai`i during its nightly transit. The star helps navigators to find Hawai`i and other islands at night.

The Hōkūle`a gained fame for sailing from Hawai`i to Tahiti using only traditional navigation techniques. Techniques that are hundreds, if not thousands, of years old. No compass, no sextant, definitely no GPS. They found their way using the stars, sea signs, and signals in the sky. This type of vessel and the sailing techniques it employs are part of Polynesian cultural heritage thought to be lost to time; or nearly so.

I remember hearing about the Hōkūle`a a few years ago, so it was very cool to see her in person. Especially when you realize that this vessel carries not only a crew, but the legacy of Polynesian sailing, a revival of a culture thought to be nearly extinct, and represents the Polynesian ancestors whose presence spans over 2,000 years in the islands. (Side note: While listening to my iTunes collection, I ran across a song from Joanie Komatsu called “Sail the Hokule`a”. Kind of cool to have it pop up while writing this.)

Turning our gaze away from the Hōkūle`a, way, way off in the distance through the haze, we could just make out Moloka`i. I then caught myself looking east beyond Moloka`i toward the mainland half an ocean away, but not longing to return home anytime soon. (Work, however, had other plans, so I did, very reluctantly, have to go back.)

We stopped at a lookout spot named Makapu`u Point. From here we could see the windward coast of O`ahu and Sea Life Park, which I would be visiting in a few days. I took a few photos. Then I just stood there looking around, taking in the views of the shoreline and neighboring islets.

We continued along the trail. Lesley and Randy pointed out the tide pool and Halona Blowhole below. We were quite a distance from the blowhole. You can’t really tell what it is until it ‘erupts’. When it does, it sports twin spouts, like the twin blowholes of the humpback whales that cruise by here. There were a couple of people down there among the jagged rocks, exploring the tide pools, I guess. It’s not all that far down there, but I didn’t see any pathways to or from the pools. Whatever way they got down there, it certainly was not easy.

As we neared the end of the trail, Randy explained history of the area. There are two old military pill boxes on the hill. They have a great vantage point from which to protect the area from foes approaching from the east. It was interesting to learn about this. I never knew these remnants from World War II existed here. My guess is they were built up here after the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Our hike over, the three of us returned to Randy and Lesley’s place. From there, I headed out to meet my friend Cynthia. The plan was to meet she and Fred, for dinner.

Cynthia knows of my love of Jamaica. So she suggested we all meet at a place called Jawaiian Irie Jerk Restaurant. Coincidently, I was wearing a Jamaican shirt today. You think I may have been just a bit excited to dine here? Click the link to read my review of Jawaiian Irie Jerk Restaurant and how the dinner went.