Here's more images from our trip along the windward (east) coast of Oahu. The beaches along this coast are on narrow strips of land hemmed in by the steep mountain ranges to the west. The first image is of Kaupo beach near Waimanalo. If you look closely you can just see Makapuu lighthouse in the distance. The two islands are about 1 Km offshore. The larger one is Manana Island, also called Rabbit island. The island is on old volcanic cone with 2 craters. Evidently some people see it as the shape of a rabbit's head; I don't. Rabbits were here in plague numbers in the 20th century. The owner of Waimanalo plantation introduced them in the 1880s as a captive food source but they almost destroyed the ecosystem and were eradicated in the 1990s. The island is an important seabird breeding ground. The smaller island is Kaohikaipu, also an important bird colony. Near the northern end of the windward coast is Laie Point, where the lower 2 photos were taken. You can get to some spectacular rock formations and cliffs on this part of the coast if you are a fit hiker, but even my Oldies found some pretty stuff. A fit youngster could spend weeks exploring this coast. The surf is usually calm and the beaches protected by reefs, but around the corner onto the north coast things change - that's where the legendary surf rolls in.
Labels: beach, Hawaii
# posted by Bart Bear @ 3:28 pm
