Mount Makana confronts 2,500 fierce miles of Pacific Ocean, jutting into 40-knot winds and 50-foot swells—unrelenting forces that produce a ghostly mist of low clouds enshrouding every peak of Kaua’i’s North Shore. No surprise, Makana was cast as exotic Bali Ha’i in the 1958 film adaptation of James Michener’s “South Pacific.”
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The “World’s Most Picturesque Small Town,” Hanalei is surrounded by scenic vistas: two miles of sandy beaches, verdant mountains, mystic mists…and not a single hotel or structure above 30-feet tall.
A heavenly paradise of native and invasive botanical species nestled in the bosom of Bali Ha’i. Overlooking the ocean, Limahuli Botanical Garden has preserved 700-year-old native ruins, including farming terraces and home sites.
We heard it rains a lot on the North Shore. I’m from Tampa Bay (“lightning capital of the world”) so I assumed this meant “tropical:” a brief but regular afternoon deluge, followed by copious sunshine and humidity. This was not the case. Just south of us, Mount Waialeale averages an annual rainfall of over 450 inches. Some years, it is the wettest place on the planet. Flash floods and mudslides are common, making some trails treacherous or fatal: the Kalalau Trail, a strenuous 11-mile trek along the Nā Pali coast, claims hikers annually who drown in rising streams or fall to their rocky deaths. All that weather makes for some dramatic lighting, though.
At ten miles long and 3,000 feet deep, Waimea Canyon is called the “Grand Canyon of the Pacific.” The canyon was formed by eons of river and wind erosion…and an ancient volcano, the collapse of which formed Kauaʻi.
Beer on the pier is the closest thing in Hanalei to a bar with an ocean view. (It doesn’t suck.) Nearby Princeville offers the best cocktail views, including the St. Regis’ dramatic panorama high above Hanalei Bay, and the airy, tropical man-cave, Happy Talk.
It’s not the fastest route to see the Nā Pali Coast, but sailing is by far the safest and most pleasant: there are no roads along the Western Shore, and over sixty helicopters have crashed on Kaua’i over the past three decades. During our visit, the seas were too rough to visit Nā Pali, so we chased spinner dolphins instead. Our skipper found us an amazingly fast humpback: spouting a hundred yards to port, disappearing, then flopping a giant tail to starboard…turns out it was two whales.
© 2026 Jamie Martin
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