Visit Lanai island, it is the real Hawaii

LANAI
The Real Hawaii

By Ray Chatelin
Photos by Toshi

LANAI, HAWAII -Every day, Hawaii is challenged by its own image - wind-swept beaches and crystal blue waters edged by palm trees.

The fact is there are many Hawaii’s with Maui, Oahu, Lanai, Molokai and Kauai each offering a potpourri of pleasures. But travel to Lanai, and you’ll find an island that is so pure in its Hawaiian character that you’ll think you’ve taken a trip into another century. Unlike many of the other islands it has kept its pristine character even though it has two five-star resorts, two championship golf courses, and an airport.

At about 13 miles wide and 18 miles long Lanai is the third smallest island in Hawaii. Just off the western coast of the Maui and it can be easily reached by a 45 minute speedboat ferry that leaves frequently from dockside at Lahaina. You can get there by air, but it’s not as exciting.

With ground elevations that vary from sea level to more than 3,300 feet, a population of about 2,500 full time residents, and miles of untouched beaches, Lanai offers what most of the other islands cannot – the sense that you’re isolated on a South Seas island.

The island has two luxury resorts plus a historic hotel that seems out of a Somerset Maugham novel. The super-luxurious, ocean-side Manele Bay Hotel, with its spectacular golf course, is a combination of south-seas and Mediterranean architecture. It’s just a few feet away from Hulopoe Beach, one of Hawaii’s most picturesque stretches of sand.

The Bay and Hulopoe beach are part of a marine conservancy district, where you find outstanding snorkelling. Views of the sea, high bluffs, and jagged cliffs on the stretch of the coast add to the physical drama of the resort’s location. For personal pampering, golf and tennis with a view, exquisite cuisine, and other amenities of a premier resort, this is where you stay.

Highway 440 cuts from the harbor through miles of highlands and what used to be pineapple fields but is now hay fields, connecting the harbor with Lanai City – which is really as small village. Here, you’ll find three small general stores; all of which are closed by 7:00pm and a couple of restaurants. The stores also close for mid-afternoon siesta and early on Sundays. There’s one movie house, which shows 1 or 2 films per week.

On Saturdays, the Market in Dole Park features a gathering of local vendors, as they sell their local grown vegetables, potted plants and a cultural mix of Hawaiian, Japanese, and Filipino foods. Local artists and craft makers often display their art work.

The stately Lodge at Koele is an easy walk from the town centre and has a hunting lodge character. Its Greg Norman designed golf course cuts through trees and highlands in direct contrast to the ocean bluff located, Jack Nicklaus designed course at Manele Bay.

The Hotel Lanai by contrast is in the heart of Lanai City and was built in 1923, by James Dole as lodging for Dole Plantation executives. With 11 rooms and a restaurant definitely worth experiencing, the hotel fits in nicely with the island’s old south-seas motif.

But, it’s not just golf that is guaranteed to hold your attention on Lanai. Get away from the town and the resorts and you’ll find a network of jeep trails that lead to hidden beaches and scenic mountain ridges.

Hikers come here for the Munro Trail, named for George Munro, the New Zealand naturalist who planted Lanai's large pines. The eight mile four wheel drive and hiking trail starts about a mile north of Lanai City and climbs in a southeasterly direction through rain forests and deep canyons. Eventually you arrive at 3,370-foot Lanai Hale, the highest point on the island. On a clear day, all of Hawaii's islands, except Kauai and Ni'ihau, can be seen from this perch.

The remains of Canola Village on the south coast are what are left of a once busy fishing community, now scattered on a bluff above the ocean. The ruins of more than 80 homes and other structures are a national historical landmark and rest at the end of a rugged three-mile jeep trail traveled only when the soil is dry.

The south coast of the island was the summertime playground of Hawaiian King Kamehameha the Great, perhaps the most beloved and illustrious of Hawaii's heroes and who ruled Hawaii from 1795-1819. From the cliffs high above the sea at Kahekili's deep leap, Kamehameha's soldiers proved their courage by plunging more than 60 feet into the ocean.

No less dramatic is the Garden of The Gods, a canyon of wind carved sand and lava formations whose colors change throughout the day. Legend has it, that the rock formations were created by the gods. There is no grass or trees. Just dirt and stones.

Keomoku road, leads from town to Lanai's northeast or windward coast and the narrow, winding road climbs over the middle of the island and offers are great views of Molokai and Maui as well as the abandoned, rusting hulls of two old Liberty Ships. The eight mile stretch of road is paved until you reach a dirt road, which takes you left, into the entrance of the miles-long beach.

The island offers more than physical pleasures. Throughout the year, the Lanai Visiting Artist Program brings in well known musicians, film makers, artists, and chefs – adding a bit of spice to a mix of other, more physical pleasures.

After the bustle of Maui and the other islands, Lanai is an oasis of solitude and adventure. Get there before it changes.