Maha’ulepu Beach

Grandpa Rudell, Gavin & I at Maha'ulepu Beach in the fall of 1988

This beach was one of my favorite places to get away to. It was south of Nawiliwili towards Poipu, the biggest tourist area of Kauai and where it was mostly sunny, skipping the daily rain showers of the rest of the island of Kauai. Access was rather circuitous, travelling through a sugar mill yard and miles of surrounding cane fields. 

Depending on the season, the terrain was like a red moon, the fresh earth exposed and waiting for planting, or like a jungle with ten-foot cane towering over the rutted red road. And then there was the blackened time, when the harvested fields were burned and the pesticide laden smoke obscured the sky. 

Sugar cane is no longer grown on the islands. However, besides undermining a healthy diet, no matter where it is grown, the sugar industry is damaging to the environment. Just another reason to get on the wagon with our sugar addiction.

Kauai cane fields between harvests.

Eventually, after miles of traversing cane fields, the coast comes back into view and the rocky landscape is green with brush. There is a cave there, an archeological site currently under excavation. It is still being used as a sacred place, the locals placing offerings of flowers and fruit. While the beaches and ocean cliffs are breathtakingly beautiful, the cave held a different magic with an ancient energy that continues to emanate a mysterious allure. 

The geographic location provides strong currents and winds, making this a wind surfing heaven during part of the year. The profusion and colors of the sails are suggestive of dozens of butterflies dancing in and above the wind-swept spray of the surf. Visiting here, I could relate to every element: the sea, the air, and the earth, a definite respite from the all-encompassing focus of our project in the harbor.