NAWILIWILI — The sound of a conch shell pierced the gloomy, drippy weather at Kalapaki Beach, and people poured out of nearby buildings. The sound heralded the arrival of Santa Claus, perched regally atop a platform formed by lashing a
NAWILIWILI — The sound of a conch shell pierced the gloomy, drippy weather at Kalapaki Beach, and people poured out of nearby buildings.
The sound heralded the arrival of Santa Claus, perched regally atop a platform formed by lashing a pair of four-man canoes together.
As the sight of the unique water sleigh grew larger, a child shrieked in glee.
“It’s Santa! It’s Santa!,” the little girl screamed while jumping up and down with joy.
Santa’s reindeer were replaced by a team of six outrigger canoe paddlers and the sleigh was escorted by another four-man outrigger canoe. The paddler performed the conch shell announcement, and an OC1 canoe contained a Santa-hatted paddler and a Santa-hatted youngster clinging to the paddler.
“When I first came out and saw the weather, there was just a few people out here, and I thought, ‘Oh no, no one’s going to be here for Santa,’” said Kaupena Kinimaka of the Kaua‘i Marriott Resort and Beach Club security department.
“But, I don’t know where the people were, but they came out.”
Hundreds of people, many armed with cameras and cell phones, poured onto Kalapaki Beach, eagerly following the final few feet of the water sleigh in anticipation of the landing.
“This is the fifth or sixth year we’ve been doing this (arrival),” said Chris Kauwe, an organizer of the unique beach arrival. “Last year, the weather was blowing pretty bad. This year, at least the wind is not blowing, and the people are out here.”
Kauwe stopped amidst the throng of people, each one getting a visit from Santa, to thank Kinimaka for his contribution of candies, which was provided to the visiting keiki.
“This is so exciting,” a visitor said. “This is such a unique thing because I’m originally from Maine. I live here, and I absolutely love this.
I was over in Po‘ipu earlier in the day and saw Santa arrive there, too.”
To add to the drama of Santa’s brief, but personal, visit, sand artists created several art pieces on the beach, including a fireplace sculpted from the Kalapaki sand, complete with charred pieces of firewood.
“I had a ‘Baboons on a Fiscal Cliff’ piece done, but it’s being destroyed,” said Jeff Haigh of Auburn, Calif., a perennial visitor to Kaua‘i who creates art while staying on Kaua‘i. “I guess I’ll come back later.”
Kauwe, excited about the amount of people who turned out, said they’ll probably do the Santa arrival again next year.
“This time seems to be the best,” Kauwe said before joining Santa’s elves (paddlers) in returning the visitor to the North Pole. “We’ll be back again, next year.”
See the Kaua‘i Times in the Sunday edition of TGI for more coverage of Santa’s arrival.
• Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@ thegardenisland.com.
