Hanalei

Kauai: Hanalei Valley

Hanalei, village, Kauai county, on the north-central coast of Kauai island, Hawaii, U.S. Near the head of Hanalei (“Crescent”) Bay, the village is in the scenic and fertile Hanalei Valley, which reaches depths of more than 3,400 feet (1,050 metres). Missionaries arrived at the site in 1834. The Waioli Mission House (1837), now used as a community centre, was built of coral limestone blocks and combines the starkness of a New England clapboard house with Hawaiian features such as lanais (porches), wide eaves, and long, sloping roof lines. This synthesis exerted a strong influence on subsequent Hawaiian architecture. Hanalei Valley is one of the state’s few rice-producing regions (though rice farming has declined), and the area grows much of Hawaii’s taro crop (taro has been grown in the area for more than 1,000 years). The Wainiha Power Plant, 4 miles (6 km) northwest, is serviced by waterfalls—fed by Alaka‘i Swamp—that pour over the nearby Wainiha palis (“cliffs”). The locality around Princeville (east) has been developed into a resort complex, and Lumahai Beach (west) is noted for its scenic beauty. The valley is part of the nearly 1,000-acre (400-hectare) Hanalei National Wildlife Refuge (closed to the public), which has some 50 species of birds. To the west are a 300-foot- (90-metre-) deep dry cave and an underwater wet cave. Pop. (2000) 478; (2010) 450.