Hamakua

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Hāmākua lies on the north coast of the big island of Hawai‘i and is approximately fifty miles long ending at Waipi‘o Valley. Hāmākua is used loosely to describe the region between Hilo and Waipio, although the Hāmākua judicial district begins somewhere near Laupahoehoe.

Many little towns sprang up around sugar plantations which were operating along the Hāmākua Coast from around the turn of the twentieth century until approximately 1990, notably Honoka‘a (the largest).

Driving the Hāmākua Coast from Hilo to Kohala is a very scenic excursion and can be completed in about an hour. Laupāhoehoe lies midway and is a beautiful park area that can be reached by following a side road leading to it. Camping is available at Laupāhoehoe point.

While virtually all of the pre-existing native forest below altitudes of several thousand feet was removed by sugar cane cultivation, several remnants of native forest can be found. One of these is at Kalopā State Park [1], which has preserved a small stand of native trees and their understory compatriots. The Park may be found by following signs several miles south of Honokaʻa, then driving several miles up the slope of Mauna Kea following the signs. Trails here are poorly maintained, but a number of rare plants can be found in the arboretum area, including the endangered loʻulu palm (pritchardia spp.), as well as a number of rare native hibiscus. Kalopā State Park also allows camping, but visitors should be aware that given the altitude, damp and chilly weather is the norm.