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Reviews for the Exploring Lost Hawaii Series:

All the islands have their stories. The best way toexperience the magic is to go in person. Get the book and start planning youradventure. -- Michael Breckenridge, photojournalist review 
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If you have a curiosity about the ancient Hawaiiancivilization, its legends, folk-tales, religious beliefs and practices, andsociety, this book should be on your reference shelf. -- Christopher T.Carey, historian, researcher, writer, and consultant
 
A good deal of research went into this book, and EllieCrowe cites her sources...she adds her personal experiences at the sites, orthat of someone who lives nearby...an effective technique. William Croweconsistently finds a way with light and perspective to take dramatic photos ofheiau ruins, healing stones and bare lava petroglyphs. -- Columnist BobKrauss' Review Honolulu Advertiser, Saturday April 28, 2001 
 
What I found particularly fascinating about this book wasthe way it linked specific places throughout the islands, which can be seentoday, with historical lore and people from Hawaii's past. -- Bookhills 5Star review
 
· Should be in the collection of every public library inHawaii...would be a welcome tool to people planning trips to Hawaii...I couldimagine it being popular in California public libraries -- April 2006 byElisabeth Kittredge, LIS (Library and Information Services) Student, Universityof Hawaii at Manoa. 
 

Wedding on the Big Island of Hawaii

The Big Island of Hawaii is a ravishingly beautiful place, raw too and new. This island is still growing thanks to the volcanic goddess Pele and her 2,000 degree fiery-red lava that she sends out at random when and where she feels like it. The lava flow paused before the wedding. Spewing fissure 8 simply stopped sending lava fountains sky high. That was gracious of Pele. It meant there was no more vog - volcanic fumes mixed with fog. However, although the lava flow was on hiatus, there was a new threat -- Hurricane Hector, a grade 4 hurricane, was scheduled to arrive at 2.30 pm, right when the bridal couple were scheduled to exchange vows. But all went well. Beautifully.  And although mists whirled and rain poured down on Mauna Kea slopes just above the beach park, Adam and Katie got married as the sun shone and blue waves crashed below..

Ko'Olina - Place of Joy

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Ko Olina

Place of Joy

The name Ko Olina means Place of Joy, and this 642-acre resort community with luxurious resorts and vacation villas has the pristine lagoons and wide, white beaches that have brought joy to the people of Hawai'i for centuries. The vegetation is unexpectedly arid here, but this sunny western shoreline of O'ahu offers breathtaking scenery with the towering Wai'anae mountains, vast amphitheatre valleys, sparkling blue water and golden beaches.

600 years before westeners came, Polynesians came to this coast to fish the teeming waters. They named Wai'anae for this abundance of ocean life, wai meaning water and anae for the popular mullet. Archaeological records verify Ko Olina as an ancient settlement and show that hula was practiced here in honor of the volcano goddess Pele, who legend says visited with her sisters. Scores of heiau and religious sites have been documented along this coast and deep in the valleys.

Ko Olina was considered a sacred place by Hawaiian chiefs and royal families. It was also a favorite fishing and relaxation spot for the chiefs, including the great King Kamehameha who came here with his favorite wife, Queen Ka'ahumanu.

A coastal trail leading north of the resorts leads to a large ocean pool near Paradise Cove, almost certainly one of the sacred pools of Queen Ka'ahumanu. The pool is separated from the ocean by natural walls of reef over which the waves flow. The cove is noted among local fisherman as having good Threadfin fish and the property adjacent is the location for the popular Paradise Cove hukilau (gathering of fish using a net pulled by many hands).

In 1877, the vast, dry Ewa plains surrounding Ko Olina were purchased by industrialist James Campbell who drilled water wells and built a sugar cane plantation. In the late 1930s, his daughter, Alice Kamokila Campbell, moved to what was then a secluded shore in the Ko Olina area. She named her home Lanikuhonua, “where heaven meets the earth.” Today, Lanikuhonua is a site for Hawaiian cultural education as well as a wedding venue.

In the mid 1980s, Hawai'i developer Herbert Horita and his Japanese investment partner, Takeshi Sekiguchi, purchased the Ko Olina Resort property and designed and built the four stunning man-made lagoons, marina basin, golf course and all the infrastructure. However, when the Japanese economic bubble burst in the early 1990’s, the Japanese were forced to sell their interests. The one hotel remaining from that time is now the Marriott Ihilani Resort and Spa. Other development later followed with the building of condos, Marriott timeshares and resorts such as the Aulani, a Disney Resort and Spa and Marrior's Ko Olina Beach Club. More resorts are planned.

Still remaining, despite wars and property development, are the three beautiful natural lagoons on the outer edges of the resort area, thankfully still staying somewhat untouched through the ages. When the sun sets in the evening, you can stand at the mouth of any of the aqua lagoons and watch the rainbow colors of the setting sun.

 

 

 

I love beautiful calendars, don't you? They make excellent "thinking of you" Christmas gifts. Here are some of the best 2018 Hawaii calendars with beautiful scenes of Hawaii. Perfect when you're planning your Hawaii vacation or remembering your visit to these lovely islands.

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Exploring Lost Hawaii: Spent the weekend on the Big Island and researche...

Exploring Lost Hawaii:
Spent the weekend on the Big Island and researche...: Spent the weekend on the Big Island and researched some sites for the next Exploring book - "Exploring the Lost Big Island of Hawaii... ">">

Spent the weekend on the Big Island and researched some sites for the next Exploring book - "Exploring the Lost Big Island of Hawaii." We visited Halemaumau Crater to see the new rising fiery lava lake. Wow! Make sure you go to see #Halemaumau at #HawaiiVolcanoesNationalPark!

We ate Thai food first in Hilo and then drove up - the drive was quick, just over 30 minutes. By 7pm cars were leaving Volcanoes National Park which was great as it meant that we found parking at #JaggarMuseum. It was a five minute walk to the crater overlook. Freezing cold. Icy up there in the mountains. But totally worth the effort - the lava lake was magical, moving and changing shape, shimmering, sending up bursts of flames and rocks. We could hear accents and languages from all over the world as watchers gathered at the overlook. The main expression: Oooh! Oh! Look! Wow!

NEW BOOK IN EXPLORING LOST HAWAII SERIES!!  TAKING A TRIP TO THE MAGICAL ISLAND OF MAUI?  READ THIS BOOK!  DISCOVER THE STRANGEST, MOST FASCINATING THINGS ABOUT THE PLACES YOU EXPLORE.

EXPLORING LOST MAUI -- PLACES OF POWER, HISTORY, MYSTERY AND HEALING

An alternative travel guide to Maui's sacred places, a hidden Maui that most travelers and residents never experience. Exploring Lost Maui takes the reader on a cultural tour of massive ancient stone temples, healing stones, places of refuge and places of power. The award-winning authors have visited and researched all sites and include stories from Maui's past and present that are fascinating, informative and often dark and mysterious. Discovering Maui's intriguing past will enhance your visit to this beautiful island.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"All the islands have their stories. The best way to experience the magic is to go in person. Get the book and start planning your adventure."-- Michael Breckenridge, photojournalist review of Exploring Lost Hawaii, Places of Power, History, Mystery and Magic series.

"If you have an curiosity about the ancient Hawaiian civilization, its legends, folk-tales, religious beliefs and practices, and society, this book should be on your reference shelf." -- Christopher T. Carey, historian, researcher, writer, and consultant

"A good deal of research went into this book, and Ellie Crowe cites her sources...she adds her personal experiences at the sites, or that of someone who lives nearby...an effective technique." -- Columnist Bob Krauss' Review Honolulu Advertiser review of Exploring Lost Hawaii, Places of Power, History, Mystery and Magic series 

"What I found particularly fascinating about this book was the way it linked specific places throughout the islands, which can be seen today, with historical lore and people from Hawaii's past." -- Bookhills 5 Star review

"Should be in the collection of every public library in Hawaii...would be a welcome tool to people planning trips to Hawaii...I could imagine it being popular in California public libraries" -- Elisabeth Kittredge, LIS (Library and Information Services) Student, University of Hawaii at Manoa.

NEW STATE SCENIC BYWAYS!

SCENIC BYWAYS ON OAHU

So great to see that the State is adding four more scenic byway roads to Hawaii's existing four. Each of the areas is designated under the state's Hawaii Scenic Byways program so the views will be protected. And that's so good as a lot of views on the islands are being spoiled by developing.

Take a drive this weekend and explore:

Diamond Head Scenic Byway encircling Diamond Head and called "The Lei Around Leahi." Leahi was the name for Diamond Head in ancient Hawaii. The word means Brow of the Tuna (ahi is tuna)

The Maunalua-Makapuu Scenic Byway, a 6.8 mile length of Kalanianole Highway from Hawaii Kai Drive to the Makai Research Pier.

The Kauhale o Ho'okipa Scenic Byway in Waikiki

and The Red Road Scenic Byway in Puna on the Big Island.

You can read about Diamond Head in my ebook Exploring Lost Oahu -- there's a lot of fascinating history both ancient with temples of sacrifice and modern with details of the tunnels built during WW11. LOST was filmed in those tunnels which is also interesting history!

And of course the history and stories on the Makapuu Scenie Byway are just as juicy with Pele and Healing Pools. There are two chapters devoted to those.

The Kauhale o Ho'okipa Scenie Byway in Waikiki is based on the historic Waikiki walking trail and you can read about the strange Sorcerer Stones in Exploring Lost Oahu.

Met Nina Wu from the Star Advertiser today. She was interviewing me about my book "Nelson Mandela, The Boy Called Troublemaker." I've added a link to the book -- can't believe it, but its No. 2 bestseller on Amazon today :) Mandela said that everything he needed to know in his complicated life he learned while growing up in the little village of Qunu.  The book is about Mandela's childhood. I hope you enjoy it. I grew up in South Africa and lived there for 20 years before coming to Hawaii. http://www.amazon.com/Nelson-Mandela-The-Boy-Called-Troublemaker-ebook/dp/B00H5ARQWI/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1386642868&sr=8-2&keywords=nelson+mandela+the+boy+called+troublemaker

Anyway -- back to Hawaii. Nina had just written about the turtles at Laniakea and she knew a lot more than I did. I love what she wrote so have added it here as I think everyone will enjoy it. The volunteers at the little cove have been tracking more than 20 turtles which are identified by their markings and scars and by tags.

There's Brutus, a 35-40 year-old male who lost part of his flipper to a tiger shark. Brutus has been hooked and entangled by he naps almost daily at Laniakea.

Hiwahiwa is a 35-year-old female with a fissure on her shell, likely from a watercraft collision. She has swam to the French Frigate islands several times.

Kaheka is a juvenile who was entangled and hurt by a fishing line and rescued and treated by a vet.

For a $25 donation you may symbolically adopt one of these honu and the funds go towards education and outreach. And you can also volunteer to be a Honu Guardian. See malamanahonu.org

Princess Kelea of Maui - a beautiful, daring princess from long ago

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00D6X6XBI

Read about Kelea, a Hawaiian princess who lived long, long ago. Kelea loved to surf and she was so good that she was called Kelea-who-was-born-with-a-fin. Kelea was daring. She was also very beautiful. Sometimes that is a dangerous combination. One day the beautiful princess went surfing and was stolen away.

Turtle Beach North Shore Oahu

                                          Photo by Brain Kusko

38. LANIAKEA BEACH or TURTLE BEACH

Laniakea Beach is where the turtles hang out—200 pound, friendly turtles who seem to actually like swimming and hanging out with humans. Of course the seaweed here must be tasty too, but that still doesn’t quite explain why the rock star turtles keep coming up to bask on the beach surrounded by their many fans.  Luckily for us, they do.

You are almost sure to see a green Hawaiian turtle in the pretty little cove at the right hand corner of the beach. Turtles make their way to shore through the channel and the boulders and coral reef act as a deterrent to the turtles’ natural predator, the tiger shark. Little turtle heads pop up and down out of the ocean and swimmers swim alongside turtles. Although you are supposed to keep six feet away, one turtle was so enthusiastic to get close that he nuzzled my friend’s tummy and pushed him right over.

Green Hawaiian turtles are an endangered species and the turtles are protected. Volunteers at the beach know many individual turtles by name. As some turtles are fitted with satellite transmitters, they can even tell you what a turtle does all day. For instance, Ipo, whose name means Sweetheart, during a monitored year spent a third of her days basking in the sun at Laniakea. During the nesting season in March, she swam 500 miles in 35 days to the French Frigate Shoals in the remote North Western Hawaiian Islands. During this long swim Ipo made sixteen deep ocean dives. She returned safely to Laniakea in September. Read about other turtles on www.malamanahonu.org/meethonu.asp.  In Ancient Hawaii, turtles symbolized the navigator able to find his way home again and again over hundreds of miles of open ocean. Some legends say turtles guided the Polynesians to the Hawaiian Islands as did the golden plover. Turtles were also revered as aumakua or guardian spirits.

One of those mighty voyaging chiefs arrived at this beach from Tahiti in around the 11^th or 12^th century and called the cove Laniakea, meaning Wide Sky. In his voyaging canoe he brought large lava rocks from the terrible, human sacrifice temple of Taputapuatea. Further up the coast, he built a temple or heiau and included the sacred rocks in the foundation. He called the heiau Kapukapuakea, a name showing how kapu or forbidden and sacred it was. It is said to have been a navigational heiau.

Laniakea also is known for its world-class waves. There is no restroom or lifeguard here—just a perfect cove, shade trees, and turtles.

DIRECTIONS: When you leave Haleiwa Town on the North Shore of Oahu, drive towards Waimea Bay. Roughly two miles along the Kamehameha Highway you will see a farm with lots of cows behind a white fence. You’ll also note lots of cars parked in the dirt on the mountainside of the road and people crossing the road. That’s where the turtles are.

OAHU -- THE BIRTHING STONES OF KUKANILOKO

6. KUKANILOKO, WAHIAWA

Birthing Place of Chiefs and Fertility and Healing stones

The time of the birth of the taboo chief,

The time when the Heavenly One pushed his way out,

The time when the bright one first saw the light,

At first faintly like the light of the moon,

At the season of Makali’i in the far past.

The Kumulipo, Hawaiian Creation Chant

Happy was the child born at Kukaniloko, the sacred birthing stone! The child would be called a Chief Divine, a burning fire. Kukaniloko means “to anchor the cry from within.”

The ancient sacred stones are gathered together near the green pineapple fields of Wahiawa.  The main stone, Kukaniloko, is a large, brown lava rock with a sculptured area that supported the mother in a semi-sitting position while she gave birth. There are two high, pointed spots on each side of the stone, where chiefs or priests would sit to assist.

For the royal mother, giving birth was rather a public experience. Thirty-six chiefs, eighteen on each side, surrounded her.  They came to witness the sacred birth and to give recognition to the bloodline and rank of mother, father, grandparents, and the newborn. The combined status of the parents determined the child’s status.

The selection of the attendants and the way the mother was placed on the stone was governed by strict kapu, sacred and forbidden, rules. Adherence to the kapu ensured the full sanctity of birth at this powerful place. If the mother had complete trust in the site and was properly positioned, the child would be born with honor and the gods’ blessings, and the mother would have an easy labor. A difficult delivery was a sign that the gods had not helped, and was viewed as a bad omen and a possible weakness in the bloodlines.

Thousands of maka’ainana (commoners) would witness the birth from the far side of the stream. Torches flared and drums beat, resounding through the valley, announcing the birth of a great chief.

Chiefs born here enjoyed the distinction, privileges, and taboos not accorded to ali’i, royal, children born elsewhere. Mighty chiefs born at Kukaniloko include:  Ma’ili-kukahi, a great warrior, Kakuhihewa, an honored chief, and a woman chief, Kukaniloko, known for educating the young.

History records instances of unfortunate royal women who went into labor and delivered their babies before reaching the birthstones. These children were considered “outside chiefs” and did not receive the special powers given those born at Kukaniloko. Kamehameha I, conqueror of the island of O’ahu, desired the full powers for his children and wanted his sacred wife, Keopuolani, to give birth at the birthing stone, but she was unable to because of ill health.

Other ancient, weathered stones surround the birthing stone. Some were considered to possess powers of blessings; others were considered evil. Some stones were said to hold guardian spirits who had the power to absorb pain.

The stones also had the reputation of being fertility stones; women would go here to pray to the gods for children, touch the stones, and make offerings. Many offerings are still seen at the stones today.

References:   Kamakau 1991:38 ; Sterling and Summers 1978:138-140; Ramirez, T., “Birthing Stones open for tours,” The Honolulu Advertiser, O’ahu, June 1,1998.

   

Are the guardian spirits still at Kukaniloko? Kalama, the Hawaiian kupuna, teacher, who explained the significance of the stones to me, related how he had been restoring a broken stone when he had clearly seen the figure of a man leaving the stone. Kalama’s ancestors were protectors of the stones, and his grandmother was born at this place. 

“Did this give her extra prestige and powers?” I asked.

“Indeed, it did,” he replied.

And then a strange thing happened. I began to feel deep pains. Maybe I was identifying with the mothers of the past. The last time I felt similar pains was when giving birth. This wasn’t an experience I wanted to repeat, and I sat down on the grass and red dirt. Kalama asked me if I felt alright.

“Yes,” I replied, not wanting to go into details before the tour guides and members of the Wahiawa Civic Club. 

 “Good,” Kalama said, “Because often women who come to this site experience birthing pains.”

Excerpt from the ebook Exploring Lost Oahu, Places of Power, History and Mystery

http://www.amazon.com/Exploring-Places-History-Mystery-ebook/dp/B009PSAN8W

KANEANA CAVE OAHU EXPLORING LOST HAWAII - PLACES OF POWER, HISTORY, MYSTERY AND MAGIC

Come Exploring Lost Hawaii-- here we are on the island of Oahu-- this is an excerpt from my ebook Exploring Lost Oahu, Places of Power, History, and Mystery. http://www.amazon.com/Exploring-Places-History-Mystery-ebook/dp/B009PSAN8W

And what better than a spooky place - full of legend -- a great place to explore --

2. KANEANA (MAKUA CAVE) WAI’ANAE DISTRICT

Home of the Shark God’s Son.

It led me downward,

In the heart of the Wai’anae mountains,

This cave of Makua;

It was dark, and damp, and very closed in,

And I am sure I felt an evil force

As if some dark, bloody deed had there been done;

So strong was this sense of malevolency

I hurried out

Into the warm sunlight,

Into the blinding day.

Stearns, Norah D., Honolulu Star Bulletin, Sept. 9, 1939

Mysterious Kaneana Cave was once a sea cave formed through the ages by the relentless power of the waves. It sits at the base of a cliff outcropping and is about 100 feet (30 m) high and 450 feet (137 m) deep. The cave is estimated to be around 150,000 years old and was once underwater.

At the entrance of the cave, a rock ledge about twenty feet above the floor of the cave has wave-rounded boulders deposited by the sea thousands of years ago. The floor of the cave is beach sand, covered by a black coating of particles that have dripped from the rocks through the long ages. The interior of the cave is huge and cavernous, unfortunately marked with graffiti. Dark, narrow passages lead to further caves, and black pits beckon the unwary. Take a flashlight and be careful where you step.

For those who like exploring, another less known cave, Upper Makua Cave, is also here. Head west on Farrington Highway for one hundred yards and look up. The large cave is on a ledge above the cliffs with a big kiawe tree at the entrance. The route up is unstable so take care not to slip and fall. The ocean view from the top is beautiful.

In ancient times, kahuna or priests conducted secret rituals at Makua Cave, and as recently as fifty years ago, religious rites were performed. In an old photograph, men can be seen standing within the cave’s far depths, conducting rituals in the light of flaming kukui torches.

The cave is the ancient, legendary home of the shark god’s son. This horrible personage could change from shark to man at will. As a handsome young man, he lured travelers into his cave, and then changed back into a shark and ate them on his slimy, white stone altar at the back of the cave’s watery depths. He was finally captured and killed by angry neighbors.

For more on this site and directions -- also description of the hikes to this and the cave above -- see Exploring Lost Oahu, Places of Power, History and Mystery