A Walk on the Wild Side, Kauai

The resort coast of Poipu ends, and ends abruptly, beyond the Grand Hyatt on Kauai's sunny south coast. The unpaved road becomes one unending pothole for a few miles before reaching wild Mahaulepu. There, a mile or two of sand backed by an ironwood forest runs from Gilian's Beach to Kawailoa Bay. Snorkeling is good-to-excellent, with clear, reef-protected waters. Monk seals often haul out to join sunbathers (though people need to give these endangered fellow mammals 100 feet of space).

From road's end Kawailoa Bay, a trail hugs ragged coastal bluffs for a mile, dipping into a cove and then coming to an end at Haula Beach. Above this little bay, a hunter's trail switchbacks up a head of land and comes to a remote overlook of Kipu Kai Beach—which was the "ranch" featured in the movie, "The Descendants." Kipu Kai is private property. Kayakers also access this beach (all beaches are public land) by paddling around the head of land visible from Kawailoa. This paddle, though not extreme, is not for beginners or for anyone else when the surf's up.

Clooney Walks on Water in Descendants

Hanalei Bay Stand Up Paddling

St. Regis Princeville Beach

George Clooney, Shailene Woodley (playing his teen daughter), and the crew took a classic Hawaiian beach walk when they barefooted the sand from below the St. Regis Princeville Resort to the long curve of Hanalei Bay in the movie, "The Descendants." If you'd like to walk these footsteps in real life, be advised that you will have to cross the wide and often deep Hanalei River. To get to Hanalei from the resort on dry ground, a six-mile drive is required.

Abandoned terraces, Hanalei Colony Resort

At the mouth of the Hanalei River—as far as you can walk from the St. Regis—is a stunning patch of ground from another one of Kauai's glamour moments: the lush terraces of the old Hanalei Colony Resort, which was the "estate" featured in "South Pacific." Up from the terraces are some high-end home sites, one of which (getting back to the "Descendants") is the future home of Laird Hamilton—who plays the chunky blond guy who was in the speed boat incident with Clooney's wife. Hamilton is as well known as any movie star in Hawaii, famous for his athletic prowess and innovation in the use of the jet ski to tow surfers up to the speed they need to ride the big waves—50 feet and higher.

View of Bali Hai from Princeville

Once driving to Hanalei, you can begin the movie family's quest anew, at Black Pot Beach. The pier at this local-boy surfer beach is also a Hollywood fave, having made appearances in three or four films. Black Pot is one of the places to learn surfing. The walk out the pier will turn shutterbugs into fiends at sunset with the surfers gliding by and the stand-up paddlers stroking for open water.

Unlike most Hawaiian beaches, where the sand is often soft and sloping, Hanalei is an excellent outing for hikers and joggers—a likely spot for our friend Clooney to have finally found that cad Brian Speer in the movie world. The cottage depicted in the film is not far down the beach from the pier. This whole zone on the north shore of Kauai is loaded with beaches, many reachable only by foot. See Kauai Trailblazer beginning on page 37 to hone in.

Kauai Stars in "Descendants"

George Clooney? Hard to miss with this guy in your movie. But director Alexander Payne also showed smarts by picking a great novel in the Descendants and then adding the "co-stars" of glamour-puss Kauai and the slack key guitar music of Gabby Pahanui, and others. The result is a movie on the way to greatness. Hanalei Bay is a featured locale in the film, along with Princeville and the Kipu Ranch on the other side of the island. Scenes were also shot on Oahu.

Kauai has a resume that includes dozens of movies. "South Pacific," a 1950s award-winner, though not the first shot here, is credited with boosting tourism significantly. Other movies include Outbreak, King Kong, Jurassic Park, Six Days Seven Nights, Blue Hawaii (Elvis!), Tropic Thunder, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Body Heat, Dragonfly, Soul Surfer, and tv's Fantasy Island and Gilligan's Island. It's a long list. A tour company offers day trips. Or, take a look at page 222 of Kauai Trailblazer, which lists movie locales and the films that were shot there. Directions are included, so you can do your own tour. Also available on Amazon Kindle and Barnes and Noble Nook.

SLIDESHOW: Kauai, Maui, Oahu, Big Island Hawaii

Take a free tour of Hawaii without leaving your cubicle.



Get directions to all these places in Hawaii's best-loved guides: Trailblazer Travel Books. The Maui, Kauai, Big Island and No Worries Hawaii now are available as e-books. Buy them for your I-Pad, Kindle Fire or Nook on amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com.

The Easy Way to see Kauai's Kalalau Valley

The trail to Kalalau Valley on Kauai's roadless north coast is a 22-mile round-trip trek. And it walks like twice that far: don't think about speed hiking it in one day. On the other hand, a bird's eye view of one of the most beautiful views in the world can be had for only a few footsteps. The Kalalau Overlook is at road's end on the west side of the island, by driving to about 4,000 elevation past the rim of Waimea Canyon and through the forests of Kokee State Park. The geography of this place is amazzing. Full directions in your Kauai Trailblazer guide.

Stairway to Koko on Oahu

Thanks to the decrepit railroad ties of a supply line to a military installation in World War II, exercise hikers can hop up more than 1,000 feet to the top of Koko Crater on Oahu's east shore. The crater, which appears as a mountain on the ascent, is across the highway from Koko Head, the onshore knob that lords over Hanaumu Bay, the island's (overly) popular snorkeling venue.

The Koko Crater trailhead is via a regional park that is just down the road in Hawaii Kai. The route is not dangerous, provided you watch your step, particularly on the way down. One short section is at a slope, with spaces between ties, so those with a healty fear of heights may wind up using all fours (like a simpering dog). From the lofty crater rim is a view into the botanical garden that is held in the crater below—and a grand panorama of Oahu and the Pacific. Maui and the Big Island will be in view on clear days.

The Koko Stairs are a training run for extreme sports althletes, although recreational hikers also show up. Bring water and avoid this one on sunny mid-days, when southern exposure is a cooker. Oahu Trailblazer has the deets (including how to use this parking lot to reach Hanauma Bay on crowded days).

Happy New Year Trailblazers

Big Island's Kihilo Black Sand Beach & Blue Lagoon

As is often the case on the Big Island of Hawaii, paradise awaits down a sun-scorched rocky road that is hard to find. In this case, paradise is Wainanali'i (Blue) Lagoon, in the middle of the South Kohala Coast, a hangout for sea turtles. The lagoon was built as a fishpond in 1810 at the behest of King Kamehameha the Great, although lava flows and wave action have done some damage over the years.

Enticed by the view of a turquoise streak from a highway scenic viewpoint, many visitors embark on a dry, wandering trail that drops through a kiawe forest. A better option is to drive down on a state park road that is about .25 mile from the viewpoint. The distance to Blue Lagoon is similar, but the trail is along the coast, easier to follow, and has no drop in elevation.

Kihilo Black Sand Beach, along the Huehue Trail, has excellent snorkeling--better than the lagoon itself, which tends to be milky because of silt, and suprisingly cold, due to fresh water intrusion below its surface.

You'll see a couple mega-mansions along the way, including the hardwood beauty imported from Indonesia by cosmetics tycoon Paul Mitchell. More modest cottages (and some in artful ruin) line a sweet cove just before Blue Lagoon.

Turtles haul out along a lava-banked shoreline, turning crusty white in the sun. Their shells sparkle amber when they ease back into the aquamarine. Hawaii the Big Island Trailblazer has more details.

Mele Kalikimaka, Trailblazers!

Sing-A-Long!

One-horse open surf board: Christmas in Hawaii

Time to put Frosty the Snowman in a Mai Tai and make sand angels? Hawaii awaits, and airlines are offering super cheap deals. Contact trailblazertravelbooks@gmail.com to order Trailblazer adventure guides at discount prices (for two or more books).

Fire, Earth, Water: New Real Estate on the Big Island

Since the Pu'u O'o began spewing melted rock more than two decades ago from the east rift of the Kilauea Volcano, hundreds of new acres of land have been formed at the edge of the Pacific. It's still too early to buy timeshares. But thousands of visitors each week make the drive down from Hawaii Volcanoes National Park to see the towering plume of noxious gas that forms when the molten lava meets seawater.

Visitors can also come out at night to see the flowing red rivers of rock. Viewing sites vary with the whims of the lava. On several occasions, some of this new land is highly speculative, including a recent event when some 40 acres of lava bluff cracked off and fell into the ocean.

Hawaii the Big Island Trailblazer has the details and contact information.

Anahola Aloha

Anyone looking for an old-timey, little-grass-shack getaway to Hawaii need look no further than Anahola on Kauai's east shore. Leave the strappy sandals at home. Bring the cross-trainers for some excellent coasta hiking, swim fins for above-average snorkeling, and surfboard to try several good near-shore breaks. And throw in the mountain bike to connect with red-dirt trails that continue miles to Kapa'a.

While your at it, scrounge up a kayak and head up jungled Anahola stream. But save some time to kick back in palm-frond shade and gaze at the Anahola Mountains that surround the three-mile bay.

Also bring some respect for the Hawaiian culture, as Anahola is one of the first communities to be designated as Hawaiian Homelands, thanks to Johah Kuhio, Hawaii's first congressional representatives. For more on this superlative spot—and a number of wild beaches that are nearby—check out Kauai Trailblazer, pages 64 to 71.

Livin' Da Life in Hawaii

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You can get a good workout and manage to be a hedonist at the same time by taking one of the many glitzy resort walks in Hawaii. Pictured here is the Wailea Resorts walk, a paved path along the breakers which connects to three beach parks on Maui's sunny coast. On the north of Maui, Ka'anapali offers a similar chance to hike along resort pools and very good snorkeling beaches.

Poipu Beach is the place to combine fine dining with a coast walk on Kauai. On the Big Island, the Mauna Lani-Fairmont Orchid wild coast combines gardenscapes, lagoons, and snorkeling pools. Same goes for the coast at the Hilton, not far away in South Kohala.

Directions for all the walks are in the Trailblazer Travel Book guides for Hawaii.

Trailblazer Cyber Monday Deal

We offer a 40% discount on the purchase of six or more books, with free shipping (to a single address only). Think about gifts, employee perks, a set for the family, or bundle-buying with friends. 


Groups can buy the books at this price and then re-sale to members as part of a fundraiser. For a book costing $16.95, you pay $10.17, with no tax and no shipping. To order, send us a request via email, to trailblazertravelbooks@gmail.com

Airborne on Kauai's Nualolo Trail

Nualolo Trail

You'll need a hang glider to continue from the terminus of the the Nualolo Trail, at the Lolo Vista Point, a barren cinder nub lofted about 2,000 feet above Kauai's precipitous northwest coast. The trek is about 8 miles, round trip, with a 1,600 drop on the way out. Sure-footed hikers can make a car-shuttle hike out of it by taking a hairy connector trail that reaches the Awa'awapuhi lookout (pictured in the distance in the bottom photo). After heavy rains, erosion can make the connector trail an experience best left to goats.

Nualolo Vista Point

The Nualolo Trail is one of ten trails and hunters' roads that radiate out from the road at the edge of Waimea Canyon to Koke'e State Park. All end at oh-wow vistas and all involve 8- to 10-mile treks with a drop approaching 2,000 feet on the way out.

To the right of the highway on the way up, is the road's main attraction: red-walled Waimea Canyon, a.k.a. the Grand Canyon on the Pacific. Several trails lead into the canyon, or into the birdland forests along its rim. But wait, there's more: The canyon road ends past Koke'e at stunning overlooks of the Kalalau Valley, with view trails along its upper rim and into the fabulous Alakai Swamp. You want tropical trekking? Head to Kauai (and take a look at pages 151 to 171 of Kauai Trailblazer).

The Green World of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park

Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island centers around the Kilauea Caldera, a barren crust of lava that is currently (from its Halemaumau Crater) spewing metric tons of noxious gasses into the atmosphere. The vast moonscape of the park on the island's east side is connected to, but a world away, from its newest section: 116,000 acres of tropical forest that will bring out your inner Tarzan.

In 2003, HVNP doubled in size when a portion of the former Kahuku Ranch was added. The easiest access to the lush forest is a long way from the main park entrance. The best way to get there is off Lorenzo Road, near the turnoff to South Point, about 50 miles away (see Hawaii the Big Island Trailblazer, page 117). Park official guess that plans to develop and publicize this area of the park will be completed in 2016. But it's open for adventurers right now.

From the Big Apple to the Big Pineapple

New Yorkers: start making Hawaii vacation plans for June. Hawaiian Airlines is touching down in your city. A 294-seat Airbus A330-20 will make the ten hour flight. Check out the discounted fare promotion....$212 one way....a steal!

This fare gets you to Oahu and Waikiki Beach, pictured here. From this airborne view, you can see that Diamond Head, the iconic dormant volcano that lords over the resort strip, is indeed a crater and not just the jagged ridge that can be seen from the beach.

To get to the other islands—Kauai, Maui, and the Big Island of Hawaii—you'll need to make a connection in Honolulu. In order to figure out which island is best for you, and everything else needed to plan a Hawaiian vacation, take a look at No Worries Hawaii, a planning guide for all the islands. If possible, give yourself at least two weeks in Hawaii, the minimum time needed to let aloha work its magic on a New York state of mind.

Seating with a View: Dining alfresco in Hawaii

All the islands have first-class restaurants, many with celebrity chefs reinventing pan Pacific cuisine. But if you want to save a boatload of money and eat at a restaurant with unmatched views and atmosphere, not to mention unlimited seating, then make like a Hawaiian and head for the beach.

For the menu selections, head for a Hawaiian plate lunch restaurant— L&L is a popular chain, but every town will have its locally owned offerings. For well under ten bucks, you'll get a meat or seafood selection, with a starchy side dish of rice or Hawaiian potato-mac salad. The leaning is teriyaki, but plate lunches reflect Hawaii's "calabash" of cultures. The first Hawaiian settlers brought food and cooking techniques with them from Polynesia, while Japanese, Chinese, Filipino and Portuguese immigrants have since each contributed their own culinary sensibilities.

Another option is a supermarket, like Foodland or Big Save, where bargain-priced sushi selections are prepared fresh and ready to go.

Then get to the beach before the sun goes down. Kihei on Maui has a number of plate lunch places with the three Kamaole Beach Parks nearby. On Kauai, head for Hanalei Bay after picking up dinner in town a few blocks away. Hilo on the Big Island has excellent take-out options and a huge beachfront park on Hilo Bay. On Oahu, the offerings are numerous near Waikiki Beach—but why huddle at a table when you can head for Kuhio Beach Park and dine in the sea breeze with the nightly free hula show as entertainment?

Find Your Dream: No Worries Hawaii now an eBook

Trailblazer Travel Books announces that their No Worries Hawaii guidebook is now available on Amazon's Kindle and the Barnes and Noble Nook. Have it with you wherever you go and happy vacation planning.

This planning guide is full of freebies and tips for all the islands, including all the nuts-and-bolts needed to plan a vacation that lives up to expectations. At the heart of No Worries Hawaii is a self-test that allows would-be-visitors to hone in on which island to visit, where to stay, and to choose from the best activities and attractions. Each person will have a different take on what constitutes a "dream" vacation: No Worries Hawaii has put it all together.

A large section of the book offers 36 different categories of Hawaiian activities (e.g., beginner snorkeling beaches, museums, tropical hikes, botanical gardens, places to watch surfers, wild beaches). The top 20 places for each category are grouped by island—and boldfaced entries note Hawaii's top five in each category.

As the title suggests, the end result is a worry-free vacation—with time spent having fun and not trying to find it. A Wikiwiki phonebook appendix lists the best accommodations, tours, campsites, attractions, with contact information. No Worries Hawaii has been out in paper for several editions. The authors have spent decades in Hawaii, and also have written a detailed travel guide for each of the islands, which go hand in hand with the planning guide.

Lawn Surfing at Kauai's Hanalei

Well, not exactly. These boards of all sizes are only taking a break on the green stuff before finding a new owner and heading onto the wet blue stuff, only a few blocks away at Hanalei Bay on the north shore of Hawaii.

The surfboard swap meet happens on the occasional Saturday, at the Hanalei School Shopping Center in the middle of town. Some boards are new, handmade by locals, but most are used, whose owners are looking to trade up, or just find a new ride. Prices are right.

Hanalei has one of the best beginner surfing breaks in Hawaii, at Black Pot Beach, which is home to the photogenic Hanalei Pier. Farther out, the bay also has the big-boy break called Queens (and others), offshore the Hanalei River. In the middle of the bay is the rough-and-tumble, many-tiered shore break at Pinetrees—home surf spot to former world pro champ, the late Andy Irons, and his brother, Bruce, who continues a tradition of excellence. Many of the surfers at the board swap will know the Irons brothers—Andy's death in 2010 hit the Kauai surfing family hard.