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Two of the major scenic attractions in all Hawaii, the gorge of
Waimea Canyon
and
Kokee State Park
, with its views of the Na Pali cliffs to one side and the sodden Alakai Swamp to the other, can only be reached from the
west coast
of Kauai. The coast itself, however, is nondescript.
WAIMEA
, the largest town, is just one short street at the foot of the poorly marked road up to the canyon. The statue of
Captain Cook
, which commemorates his "discovery" of Hawaii here on January 20,
1778, is an exact replica of one in Cook's home town of Whitby,
England. Western Kauai's only accommodation
option is
Waimea Plantation Cottages
(tel 808/338-1625,
; $130-160), set in an attractive coconut grove, and with a good restaurant and brewpub in the main plantation house.
It's not unreasonable to call
Waimea Canyon
the "Grand Canyon of the Pacific." At three thousand feet, it may not
be quite as deep as its Arizona rival, but the colors - all shades of
green against the bare red earth - are absolutely breathtaking. Erosion
by torrential rains created this landscape, but the process began when
a massive geological fault almost split Kauai in two. The road from
Waimea climbs beside the widening gorge, until after eight miles the
mile-wide canyon can be seen in all its splendor. Each of the roadside
lookouts is definitely worth stopping for.
Explore Kokee Park as early in the day as possible; by late
morning the valleys may be filled with mist and clouds. Trails head off
to both sides of the highway. Although the ranger station at KOKEE
, the park headquarters, is often unstaffed, you can pick up detailed information from the small but informative
Kokee Natural History Museum
nearby (daily 10am-4pm; $1 donation), where displays center on the
indigenous wildlife. Kauai is the only island where mongooses have not
killed off most native birds
, and at this height mosquitoes are no threat either, so some of the world's rarest species (such as the
o'o a'a
) survive here and nowhere else.
Kokee Lodge Housekeeping Cabins
, next to the park headquarters, are rented by the day (PO Box 819,
Waimea, Kauai, HI 96796; tel 808/335-6061; $35-50), and there's free camping
, with permits from the parks office in Lihue. For
food
,
Kokee Lodge
has lunch specials for around $8.
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West Kauai 
