Kauai Beach – Anini
Anini Beach is one of the safest and most protected places to swim on the North Shore of Kauai. A fringed reef runs the entire length of the beach and creates a beautiful and calm blue lagoon. This reef is one of the longest and widest reefs in Hawaii measuring 1,600 feet at its widest point. The beach itself stretches for about two miles.
The flat waves and shallow, sandy shore make Anini the ideal beach to visit if you have children. The reef ensures Anini beach has calm ocean conditions, and is one of the few beaches that can offer swimming during large winter waves. Anini’s consistent breeze also allows great windsurfing and kitesurfing.
Because of its calm waves and rich underwater life, many consider Anini Beach Park one of the best snorkeling spots on Kauai. The lagoon is home to numerous trigger fish (humuhumunukunukuapuaa), parrot fish (uhu), unicorn fish (kala), boxer fish, damsel fish and other tropical fish. On the northwestern part of the beach near the reef, there is also a sudden 60-foot drop diving spot.
Great swimming
Snorkeling
Windsurfing and Kitesurfing
Sandy bottom near shore
Shade Trees
No lifeguard
Restrooms
Showers
Picnic pavilions
Campsites
Boat ramp
Directions: Driving North on Kuhio Hwy 56, pass the town of Kilauea, then down into Kalihiwai Valley, over the bridge at mile marker 25, and up the other side. Turn right on to Kalihiwai Road, and then left on Anini Road. It is 1 mile to Anini Beach Park, and more of the beach continues further down the road.
Please remember: When in doubt, don’t go out.
Napali Challenge 2010
The Garden Island Canoe Racing Association is hosting the 2010 Na Pali Challenge on August 14. Each year paddlers from the Hawaiian Islands and around the world gather on the north shore of Kauai for this unique outrigger canoe race. Each team of six kane (men) and six wahine (women) take turns in the canoe (making changes every 30 minutes) while racing down the Na Pali Coast.
The race starts in Hanalei passing some of the most beautiful coastline in Hawaii, majestic cliffs, sea caves, and arches, and finishing in Kekaha for a distance of 38 miles. The six-man and six-woman crews alternate in the boat, making changes on the fly in the open ocean. This year’s field will have around 40 boats lining up at the starting line.
Kauai Beach – Secret
Secret Beach (Kauapea) is on the north shore of Kauai and is known for its seclusion, size, and beauty. It is nestled at the base of a sheer 100 foot high cliff and is well off the beaten track with no public roads leading to it. You must hike down a fairly steep, rocky trail for about ten minutes (which is very slick when wet). On the way down you can see a glimpse of a magnificent stretch of sand and a shining turquoise sea. Once on the beach there are great views of the Kilauea Lighthouse and Moku’ae’ae Island – part of the National Wildlife Refuge.
This 3000 foot long expanse of golden sand is a popular spot for sunbathing, boogie boarding, and sometimes swimming with dolphins that also like to ride the waves. As with many Kauai beaches the ocean at Secret Beach tends to be rougher in the winter and is subject to extremely strong currents. It is sometimes swimable during the summer, but seldom suitable for novice swimmers. At times, there is a shallow, sandy tide pool. In winter, much of the sand on this beach will disappear from huge crashing waves.
Secret Beach is one of the most picturesque beaches on Kauai – with its blue water, long stretches of golden sand, and black lava rock. The beach’s seclusion is further enhanced by the sheer cliff backdrop, ironwood trees, and tropical plants. And the ocean floor is mostly covered with sand.
Dirt parking
No facilities
No Lifeguard
Rescue Tube
Swimming
Surfing
Sunbathing
Bodyboarding
Shelling
Directions: Take Highway 56 (Kuhio Highway) north about a half-mile past Kilauea and turn right on Kalihiwai Road. Then after about 75 yards turn right on a dirt road and follow it to the end and park. Nearby is the foot path leading to the west end of the beach.
Please remember: When in doubt, don’t go out.
Hawaiian Birds and Red-footed Booby
The Red-footed Booby (‘A) has long pointed wings and a relatively long, wedge-shaped tail. In Hawai’i the species nests on Kure Atoll, Midway Atoll, Peal and Hermes Reef, Laysan, Lisianski, Gardner Pinnacles, French Frigates Shoals, Necker, Nihoa, Kaua’i, O’ahu, and Johnston Atoll. They are also found elsewhere in the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, and Indian Ocean.
Almost all Hawaiian individuals are predominately white except for brownish black primary and secondary wing feathers, but several color morphs exist ranging from all brown to all white to brown bodies with white heads, brown bodies with white tails, brown bodies with white head and tail. Their feet and legs are orange to red, the bill is bluish except for the base of lower mandible which is pinkish, and around bill ranges from pink to red and blue. Their flight is characterized by strong flapping interspersed with gliding for as much as a mile. The sexes are very similar except females are larger than males, and male has a lime green or bluish green patch under and in front of eye prior to breeding, which fades once incubation begins.
The Hawaiian name for this booby is ‘A, presumably named after the species call. They are quite vocal, but with a limited vocabulary which consists of loud screeching squawks and guttural noises, mostly consisting of low “aaks”. A major part of their diet is flying fish and squid, caught in spectacular plunge dives from 12 to 24 feet over the water. It is believed morphs may have different fishing advantages – birds with dark bellies may be more difficult for fish to detect at dusk and after dark, while those with white bellies may be more difficult to detect during daylight.
The Red-footed Booby breeds in colonies ranging from ten to ten thousand pairs, building their nests of twigs, grass and various vegetation off the ground in shrubs or trees. On Kaua’i, these birds can be observed at Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge on the North Shore. They may be encountered at any time of the day and any month of the year, but a visit between November and June will provide the greatest numbers. In the evenings when birds return from feeding trips, several thousand birds may be seen over the cliffs and hillside at the refuge.
Kauai Book Taylor Camp
Taylor Camp is a book that reminds us of one period in time when all things were possible. It is the story of what really happened when a group of hippies, anti-war activists, surfers, and troubled Vietnam vets formed a clothing-optional, drug-friendly tree house village at the end of the road on the North Shore of Kauai.
In 1969 the brother of Elizabeth Taylor bailed out a rag-tag band of thirteen young mainlanders jailed on Kauai for vagrancy and invited them to camp on his oceanfront land, then left them on their own, without any restrictions, regulations, or supervision. Soon waves of hippies, refugees from campus riots, war protesters, and Vietnam vets found their way to the North Shore to expand this tree house village. In 1971 John Wehrheim began seriously photographing Taylor Camp as a settlement of refugees living next to a crystalline stream in a tropical forest along a beach in paradise. In 1977, after condemning the village to make way for a State Park, government officials torched the camp, leaving little but ashes and memories of the ‘best days of our lives’.
Thirty years later John tracked down and interviewed these residents, their neighbors, and the government officials who finally got rid of them and created this book Taylor Camp
Waipa Foundation
In ancient Hawaii ahupua’a were sustainable communities of land, water, and people. Waipa, on the North Shore of Kauai, sustained a significant community of Hawaiians who grew kalo and other crops. Several ‘auwai systems (water irrigation) were used for kalo growing in the Waipa valley through the 1860′s. Rice was then grown and milled between the 1860′s and 1940′s, followed by ranching through the 1980′s.
The Waipa Foundation is restoring these 1,600 acres as a learning and community center for the preservation, perpetuation, and practice of Hawaiian culture. It is a place where Hawaiians can renew ties to the ‘aina (land), and to restore the health of natural resources and native ecosystems of the ahupua’a. The land is rich with resources, including 1,400 acres of lowland conservation forest, 120 acres of agricultural land, 22 acres of coastal land along Hanalei bay, and its own perennial stream.
The non-profit foundation envisioned a valley in which streams would always flow uninterrupted from the mountains to the ocean, allowing migrating native fish to flourish. They dreamed of ‘ohana returning to farm native crops, gather medicinal plants, and support their families from the land. They imagined children learning their culture, and ‘olelo Hawai’i (Hawaiian language) would be spoken throughout the valley.
The Waipa Foundation welcomes lifelong learners to participate in various cultural and ‘aina based programs and projects, and to share what they do, and how they do it. They also provide various programs for keiki on farming, cultural practice, vegetables, and poi. They feed families from all over Kaua’i, and welcome customers and vendors to a weekly farmers market. They are managing and restoring native forests, a fishpond, wetland, native plant communities, kalo farming areas, and a stream. Waipa is an example of the perpetuation of Hawaiian culture, lifestyle, economy, and ‘ohana by just doing it.
