Perfect Days -- Moloka'i

Moloka’i is the hidden, relatively unspoiled gem of Hawaii in plain sight. It’s a contradiction for travel writers but one of the reasons we love Moloka’i is lack of tourists. Nothing much has changed on Moloka’i in the 20 or so years that I’ve known it. A few businesses open and close from time to time and sometime reopen. But the beauty and serenity of the island remains essentially undisturbed. Moloka’i is a perfect trip for people who want a very different Hawaii travel experience, nature lovers, romantic couples, and parents with kids, especially adventuresome ones, but also kids who may need some tutoring to feel adventuresome.

Having spent so much of my lifetime living on and visiting islands around the world, including all of Hawaii’s major islands, I had ample reasons to fear for Moloka’i’s safety from development, especially as the Hawaiian Islands exploded with tourism. Apparently those fears were unfounded. Visitors to Moloka’i can breath a sigh of relief as soon as their boat docks at the wharf in Kaunakakai since they will not be greeted by any activity booths or timeshare salesmen, no stop lights and only a pervasive plea to “PLEASE SLOW DOWN.” 

Even Kalaupapa Peninsula, that provided the horrific setting for one of the worst human nightmares in modern history, is a place sublime beauty and inspiration. Eastward from Kalaupapa, the incredible and virtually inaccessible pali of the North Shore has to be seen by helicopter, kayak or boat. In contrast to West Molokai, East Molokai is green with a road along the shoreline from the main town or Kaunakakai that passes historic fish ponds and a couple of superb beaches on the way to Halawa Valley and Beach Park, one of the great natural destinations in Hawaii.

You have to know where to look for and search out Moloka’i’s many secluded beaches, large expanses of golden sand and also tiny pocket beach gems, all of which among the most beautiful, undeveloped and unused in Hawaii.  Verdant valleys, ocean cliffs, and shorelines, as spectacular as you’ll find on any island paradise in the world, shelter hundreds of rare and endangered plants and archeological remains, and their caretakers, the Nature Conservancy (553-5236, hike_moloka’i@tnc.org), can help you to explore and enjoy them. These protected forest and beach preserves in both East and West Molokai require some effort to reach but the rewards, without any exaggeration, are truly unforgettable memories.

A vast ranchland on western Molokai covered with pasture and cattle, instead of pineapple fields, provides a unique adventure habitat and active getaway experience resembling African savannah more than Hawaiian terrain. Luxury camping at a beautiful beach on the west coast provides the best accommodations on this unique ranch property. Hawaii offers no better place for extensive mountain biking trips than western Molokai through countryside where no one lives for miles around and long unpaved scenic roads usually lead past great views to brilliant white sand beaches.

Moloka’i is still a very Hawaiian place and more people of Hawaiian blood live there than on any other Hawaiian Island. More than half of the approximately 50,000 residents of Moloka’i are Hawaiian. Moloka’i’s Hawaiian population and roots have insulated the island from the excesses of tourism development.

No doubt it’s the natural wonders, and especially the historic tragedy of the Kalaupapa leper colony, that brings most visitors to Moloka’i. Local Hawaiians, however, embrace their island not as a tourism asset but rather as a way of life that has roots in the beginning of Hawaiian culture, religion, hula dance, aquaculture, fishing and hunting. While exploring the natural and historic wonders of this most Hawaiian island, please be respectful of the people, their historic sites, land and communities.

Tourists actually are hard to find in many parts of Moloka’i, but seclusion, peace and wonderful vacation rental bargains are not. Except for touring Kalaupapa National Historic Park, most tourists don’t spend enough time on Moloka’i to create crowds at my favorite places, like Halawa Valley, Papohaku Beach, Waikolu Lookout, Kamakou Preserve and Mo’omomi Preserve, and the surprising number of gorgeous, secluded (unsafe for swimming) beaches in west and southwest Moloka’i, and even the Sheraton’s Moloka’i Ranch.

Friendly? Not only are there no stoplights on Molokai, but just about every oncoming driver waves, and no one passes. If you're looking for entertainment, restaurants, shopping and nightlife, you're on the wrong Hawaiian island. Shopping on Molokai is more or less limited to the Kamakana Gallery, coffee at the Molokai Coffee Plantation, kites in West Molokai at the Big Wind Kite Factory.

Strategy for Perfect Days on Moloka’i
Day-trippers no doubt are heading for a tour of Kalaupapa peninsula. Some of you will fly directly into Kalaupapa Airfield and out again at the end of the tour, either to Molokai Airfield, Kahului or Honolulu. Most visitors to Kalaupapa will hike or take a mule ride down from the Molokai Mule Ride barn to the peninsula.
The tour of Kalaupapa includes lunch and really consumes the day other than brief visits to the Coffees of Hawaii Plantation Store and Purdy’s All-Natural Macadamia Nut Farm.

For visitors to Molokai who can stay longer than a day-trip, break up your Perfect Days on Moloka’i into a Kalaupapa Peninsula tour, an East Moloka’i Perfect Day or days, with a couple of overnights on the East End, and Central and West Moloka’i Perfect Days, staying several nights in West Molokai. On the East End, Molokai’s best beach for snorkeling, Murphy Beach Park, compares favorably with some of the best beaches on Maui. The beaches on the West End may not be the best for snorkeling, but for beautiful beach walks and beachcombing, Papohaku and others compare very favorably with Maui’s best beaches.

If you promise not to tell anyone about my treasure trove of lovely, secluded strands on the coasts of West Moloka’i, I’ll share them with you along with nearby vacation rentals that are ideal for romantic couples, families and friends, and reunions in a far away place that is only 20-minutes by air from Honolulu or Kahului. I have so many favorite experiences and things for you to see and do on Moloka’i that you that you’ll find it hard to believe that the island is only 38 miles from end-to-end and 10 miles wide.

Vacation Rentals

Moloka’i is for escape. Bring good walking or running shoes, bicycling gear, camera and plenty of film, binoculars, and practice easing up on the gas. "Slow Down, Your on Moloka'i Now." Vacation rentals can be an important part of that escape. In one way or another, all of them are off the beaten track. With some the most affordable vacation rentals (comparable to the North Shore of Maui), plan to stay for as many days as you can include in your Perfect Days itinerary.

On the East End, check out Dunbar Beachfront Cottages, Honomuni House, and Pu’u O Hoku Ranch; on the West End, Hale Aloha, Molokai Ranch and numerous condos and villas in Kaluakoi Resort such as Molokai Condos, Paniolo Hale – H2, and Molokai Vacation Rentals.

Favorite Experiences on Moloka’i 

Ride a mule or hike down the breathtaking trail to Kalaupapa into the former leper colony and, as a bonus, see the world’s highest sea cliffs, and otherwise, fly in and out of Kalaupapa or, at the very least, see the peninsula from Kalaupapa Lookout.

Tour the North Shore and Wailau Valley by helicopter, zodiac boat or sea kayaks in summer (especially August-September) to see the world's largest sea cliffs, and Kahiwa Falls, the world’s highest waterfall plunging into the ocean. (If you want to kayak or zodiac along the North Coast, contact Wally, the owner-operator of Moloka’i Action Adventures, 558-8184.)

Make a 10-mile trek through Wailau Valley to the coast (where Moloka’ians go for vacations by boat), an extremely tough hike that very few hikers attempt.

Drive east from Kaunakakai past MM 20 to see the beautiful scenery, take advantage of reef-protected Sandy Beach, snorkel in the calm waters of beautiful Murphy Beach and explore Moloka’i's East End and Halawa Valley where, if you’re up to the challenge, you can hike up to Moa’ula Falls and perhaps even Hipuapua Falls.

Hike to the colossal ‘Ili’ili’opae Heiau, second-largest heiau in Hawaii, part of a Hawaiian society that once used it as a temple for human sacrifice, and it is still holy to the Hawaiian people.

Join the Nature Conservancy to journey into the Moloka’i Forest Reserve to Waikolu Overlook and the Kamakou Preserve to see the botanical wonders in the bog along the Pepeopae Trail.

Join the Nature Conservancy to visit Mo’omomi Preserve on the northwest coast of Molokai, see its Hawaiian archaeological sites and endangered plant species, and hear about exciting discoveries of prehistoric birds by Smithsonian Institute ornithologists.

Take a self-guided tour of the R.W. Meyer Sugar Mill Museum(on the National Register of Historic Places, also called the Moloka’i Museum andCultural Center, $2.50 donation, adults, $1 children, Mon-Sat, 10am-2pm, 567-6436, located on Hwy 470, a few miles north of Kualapu’u), to gain a great deal of insight into the operation and restoration of the sugar mill, the early history of growing sugar on Molokai, and the fascinating life of Rudolph Wilhelm Meyer. A professor who, as part of the California Gold Rush, came to Moloka’i from Germany in 1850, Meyer married a high chieftess, had 11 children, and built and operated a small (smallest in Hawaii) sugar mill from 1878 until 1889 to process sugar cane from his scattered 30 acres, in addition to a coffee plantation, farm, and dairy.

Taste the coffee made from local beans at the Coffees of Hawaii Plantation Store, in Kualapu’u, where the beans are grown, processed, and packed on this 500-acre plantation. The former Del Monte pineapple town of Kualapu’u today is the center of coffee growing on Moloka’i on acreage in the cool foothills owned by Coffees of Hawaii. The Expresso Bar at the Plantation Store (Hwy. 480, 567-9241) sells my favorite local dessert -- Mocha Mama (Moloka’i coffee, ice, chocolate ice cream, chocolate syrup, whipped cream, and chocolate shavings on top). Mon-Fri, 7am-4pm, Sat, 8am-4pm, Sun., 10am-2pm, walking tour, $7 adults, children 5-12, $3.50.  

Take a free short tour and taste macadamia nuts at Tuddie Purdy’s All-Natural Macadamia Nut Farm where visitors are welcomed by Purdy himself who provides a full tour of his eco-friendly working farm that does not use any irrigation, pesticides, or chemicals of any kind. After a demonstration of nutshell cracking, visitors can crack all the nuts they can eat and sample macadamia honey on slices of fresh coconut. Free. From Hwy. 470, turn left on Farrington Ave., then right on Lihi Pali after 1 mil, drive for a ½ mile on Lihi Pali Ave, behind Moloka’i High School, in Ho’olehua, 567-8801, Mon-Fri, 9:30am-3:30pm, Sat. 10am-2pm.

Watch the sunset from royal Kapuaiwa Coconut Grove along the shoreline next to Hwy. 460, 2 miles west of Kaunakakai, across the highway from Church Row, seven churches, each one a different denomination.

Drive out to the Moloka’i Ranch on the West End to see the village of Maunaloa, rent mountain bikes and tour the country roads and beautiful white-sand beaches along the coast, especially Papohaku; visit the town’s three theaters at Maunaloa Town Cinemas, housed in the same kind of building as every business in town (green farmhouse with red trim); and check out kites in all colors and styles in the unique Big Wind KiteFactory (open 8:30am-5pm daily, Sun 10am-2pm), all designed and produced on the premises (except for a few made in Bali).

Walk on the golden sands of Papohaku Beach, one of the longest beaches in Hawaii (over 2 miles), or camp at Papohaku Beach Park, the only campground on the West End. Camping equipment is available for rent from Moloka’iRentals and Tours (553-5663, two-person camping package, $20 a day or $80 a week.

Try to time your visit to Moloka’i with the celebration, once a year, on the third Saturday in May, of the Ka Hula Pikoi Festival, a daylong event that includes dance, music, food, and crafts, held at Papapa, the third of three access points to Papohaku Beach.

Camp free in the ironwood forest at Pala’au State Park, home to the Kalaupapa Lookout and hike to Kalaupapa, about an hour descend the 2 ½ miles from 2,000 feet to sea level and a couple of hours for the hike up to the trailhead on the mauka side of Hwy. 470, just past the Mule Barn. (Check in at 7:30am to get a permit.)

Hike in various parts of Moloka’i's West End on your own or on hiking tours arranged through Moloka’i Lodge.

During the summer months, when the waters on the north shore are calm, advanced ocean kayakers can paddle from remote north shore valley to remote valley, on your own or on kayak tours organized by Moloka’i Rentals and Tours.