island and especially good for driving is James A. Bier’s Map of Kauai from University of Hawaii Press. This is one in a series of similar, outstanding, color maps for all the major islands. They’re inexpensive and updated frequently. They include street maps of major towns and indexes to streets and points of interest. If you can’t find them on the mainland, you’ll find them in abundance in Hawaii, at nearly every grocery store, drugstore, and souvenir stand.
Driving on Kauai is generally slower than on the mainland, thank goodness. The major highways are two-lane roads except for a few stretches near Lihue, the county seat. The speed limit is as high as 50 miles an hour on some stretches, but they are exceptions. Count on an average speed of 30 miles an hour around the island. Look out for morning and evening traffic jams around Lihue. Driving time can make serious inroads in your hiking time.
Hiking
Road maps are useless for hiking trails. For trail maps, I recommend the maps in this book and the United States Geological Survey (USGS) 7½’ series of topographic (“topo”) maps for Kauai. Topos show elevation details as well as roads and trails. However, topos are not updated as often as you’d like. That’s why you should use them in conjunction with the maps in this book and maps from the agencies in charge of the island’s hiking areas, the Division of State Parks, Kauai District, and the Division of Forestry and Wildlife, Kauai District. If you do not write for the latter in advance, you will need to go into Lihue to get them. See their addresses in “Permits” in this book.
Kauai is covered by 11 topos, as shown in the illustration left. It’s also nice to have the USGS Kauai County topo map. If your mainland back-packing store does not carry the Kauai topos, you may get them in person or by mail from:
Western Distribution Branch
U.S. Geological Survey
Box 25286, Federal Center
Denver, CO 80225
or
Western Mapping Center (NCIC-W)
U.S. Geological Survey
345 Middlefield Road
Menlo Park, CA 94025
Write first for catalogs and prices. When you order the maps, enclose your check for the required amount, made out to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Or there may be a store near you that specializes in maps. Look in your telephone directory under “Maps.”
The Division of Land and Natural Resources on Kauai now publishes an excellent topographic map of Kauai showing all the trails maintained by the State of Hawaii. This two-sided, color map also includes summaries of the forest reserves, trails, and camping and hunting regulations on Kauai. You can get the map by sending a 10” x 13” stamped, self-addressed envelope to the Department of Land and Natural Resources, Division of Forestry and Wildlife; see their address in “Permits” in this book. The map is big—two feet wide and almost three feet long!—so either call to find out the exact postage required or put at least four first-class stamps on your stamped, self-addressed envelope.
Another useful map is Earthwalk Press’s Recreation Map of Northwestern Kauai. Earthwalk Press’s maps include topographic data, trail descriptions, and a wealth of other information. If you can’t find their maps in your travel store, call them at (800) 828-MAPS.
Permits
The trip descriptions in this book include information about what permits you need (if any) and to whom you should apply for them. All wilderness camping trips require permits. Arrange for them well in advance if possible—at least one and a half months, longer for Na Pali Coast (Kalalau Trail) permits—to avoid disappointment.
State Parks
You can apply for Division of State Parks permits in advance by mail. Your application must be accompanied by a photocopy of acceptable identification (such as a driver’s license) for each person 18 years old or older. The Division of State Parks is at:
Department of Land and Natural Resources
Division of State Parks, Kauai District
3060 Eiwa Street, Room 306
Lihue, Kauai, HI 96766
(808) 274-3444
If you need to see them in person, Eiwa Street branches off of Rice Street, the main thoroughfare of Lihue. The counters for the Division of State Parks and the Division of Forestry and Wildlife are next to each other in Room 306, but they act independently. You should address inquiries to each separately.
Division of Forestry and Wildlife
You may also apply for Division of Forestry and Wildlife permits in advance by mail; they do not require identification. The Division of Forestry and Wildlife is at:
Department of Land and Natural Resources
Division of Forestry and Wildlife, Kauai District
3060 Eiwa Street, Room 306
Lihue, Kauai, HI 96766
(808) 245-3433
See also the note on actually going into Lihue to see them in person in the paragraph above.
If you put off getting agency permits until you get to Kauai, you will have to go into Lihue to get them.
Weather
The short of it
Let’s face it: Kauai is a rainy place. You need to know that it’s:
Rainier on the north shore, which gets up to 45 inches of rain a year
Less rainy on the east side, which gets up to 30 inches of rain a year
Driest on the south and west, which get as little as 5 inches a year at Polihale and up to 20 inches a year at Poipu.
Rainy in the mountains, like Kokee State Park, especially the nearer you get to Mt. Waialeale, the rainiest spot on Earth.
If you want to get away from the rain, head for the south and west coasts. The image on the previous page summarizes the situation.
The long of it
Hawaii’s weather is temperate to a degree that puts the so-called “temperate” zones of the world to shame. The humidity is moderate, too: 50–60%, not the sweltering horror of some other tropical lands. You are still in the northern hemisphere, so it is warmer in the summer and cooler in the winter, but nothing like the sweltering/freezing mainland.
Hawaii’s mild climate is determined largely by its tropical location and also by the northeast trade winds that sweep across it. The north-east trade winds—so-called because sea captains took advantage of them on their trade routes—are dependable, steady winds that blow from the northeast west across the thousands of miles of open sea that separate the Hawaiian Islands from the continents. They are responsible for keeping the temperature and the humidity moderate. Since they are the prevailing winds in this area, the side of the island that faces them is called the “windward” side. The opposite side of the island is the opposite of windward; in nautical terms, “leeward.”
Sometimes the trade winds fail and are replaced by “kona” winds from the south. “Kona” means “leeward,” because it’s the leeward side of the island that more or less faces these occasional winds. Kona winds bring hot, sticky air. Fortunately, they are rare in summer, when they would be really unpleasant, and occur mostly in winter, when the lower overall temperatures moderate their effect. Kona storms are subtropical low-pressure systems that occur in winter, move in from the south, and can cause serious damage. There is apparently no pattern to them; in some years, they do not occur at all, but in others they occur every few weeks.
On