The Na Pali Coast State Park spans 17 miles of the North Shore of Kaua’i, and is rated by National Geographic as one of the 50 most beautiful places in the world. Na Pali literally means “the cliffs.” This area is a sacred place that includes beautiful beaches, waterfalls, deep and narrow valleys, rugged terrain, and cliffs that rise 4,000 feet above the ocean. The park is inaccessible to vehicles. A day-hike trail goes through the park, but doesn’t provide the panoramic views of the park’s beauty that can be seen from the sea or from the air. The best views of the coastline are from the sea. (Think about it: Coast. Sea.)
Kaua’i was settled hundreds of years ago by Polynesian navigators who were followed by Tahitian migrants. After Captain James Cook landed in Kaua’i in the late 18th century, other western settlers followed. Western diseases killed the native population, and the last known Hawaiian natives to inhabit the Na Pali Coast were sighted in the early 20th century.
Our ship cruised slowly past the Na Pali Coast, giving us two hours of viewing from our stateroom balcony. There’s little I can say about how beautiful this cruise was. My amateur cell phone camera photos will need to do their best.
Here are some of the people whose staterooms were on the other side of the ship.
Our first view of the north coastal mountains.
We cruised from 4:00 p.m. until sunset, and my pictures show the changing colors as the sun drops lower in the sky.
There were high surf warnings out for the north shores of the islands. You can see waves crashing on the beaches.
As the sun gets lower, the red color of the rocks is highlighted.
At one time, about 200 Hawaiians lived in this valley. They were, by necessity, totally self-sufficient, and supported themselves with farming, fishing, and a little bit of trading with other islands by canoe.
This location was used in “The Descendants” movie. There wasn’t any human action in the scene–only the scenery.
Clouds begin to form as the air cools at sunset.
The red volcanic rock is a beautiful contrast to the green vegetation, the blue water, and the white waves.
The sun is setting over the Pacific as we sail beyond the state park area. You can see the Hawaiian islands of Ni’ihau (center) and Ni’hoa (right) on the horizon below the clouds.