Hikers find apocalyptic scene exiting Kalalau
The scene on the beach in front of Hanalei Bay Resort on Monday morning was one of organized chaos.
The previous day’s historic rainfall left travelers and locals alike stranded along Kauai’s northern coastline. Volunteers collected bottles of water, cans of gasoline, green bananas and other donations.
Local watermen periodically dropped off refugees from the storm who were trapped on the Hanalei side of the river.
I stopped to talk to a group of hikers who had incredibly hiked out of Kalalau to Hanalei after the storm. Hiker David Kazz recounted some of his experience:
“We took off from Kalalau (and) a lot of the cliffs were missing … We had to find ways around washouts … We got down to Kee Beach and there’s not one human anywhere … there’s cars parked in the middle of the road and just abandoned … There was no food or water and along the way there were landslides we had to climb over, power lines we had to go under and mud up to our waists … we had no information, we had no internet, we had no idea if we could get out of here (Hanalei) … We had to keep moving because there was no food or water.”
David went on to tell me about the condition of the road along the way: “The road in front of (Limahuli) Gardens is just gone, no concrete at all … There’s probably 12 major landslides between Hanalei Bay and the end of the road, I don’t know how they’re going to get it open anytime soon.”
The hikers all made it out with no injuries among the group.
Friends were there at the Hanalei Bay Resort to take them to dry lodgings, and volunteers continued to assist more escapees from the storm.
The damage is severe in Hanalei but the aloha spirit and malama attitude of the community is apparent in the faces and hands of everyone helping in this tragic time.
Christian R. Cook, Waimea
Warnings should be posted about cliff-jumping
I am writing today to tell you that we had an absolutely amazing and magical vacation on Kauai in December, but, unfortunately, on our sixth day there my son suffered a horrible injury jumping off Shipwreck Point. He has been in a back brace ever since but luckily, he will hopefully have a full recovery.
We need to make sure that everyone knows that jumping off this point is substantially higher than it looks, maybe 40 to 50 feet, and if you land slightly wrong, injury can occur.
The nurses in the emergency room told me that they have people coming in all the time who are injured from this point. When locals in the area saw my son in his brace, they would say “Shipwreck Point?” and then tell their story of the people they knew who were injured.
This point is a major hazard and we need to make people aware and get signs posted right on the point that mention that many have been injured in this jump and that some of the injuries have been life-threatening.
My son heard about this point from social media and from the travel book and there are no warnings!
This is an urgent situation that must be handled. Every day we wait is another day for more injured. From what I understand, another young man broke his back just last week. Please help me make sure no one else has to go through this trauma.
Let’s get signs posted and warn the public.
Ken Beckerman, Mendham, New Jersey
Warnings should be posted about cliff-jumping?
Ken, did your son NOT know that jumping from high places—even if it is into water—is inherently dangerous? Does he not know that mountain climbing is dangerous, too? And race car driving? How about sticking one’s hand into boiling water?
I could while away the hours
Conferrin’ with the flowers,
Consulting with the rain;
And my head I’d be a scratchin’
While my thoughts are busy hatchin’
If I only had a brain.
Of course it doesn’t help that TripAdvisor’s first article about the cliff at Shipwreck starts out with this: “I was fortunate to spend a nice afternoon jumping off the cliff at Shipwreck Beach. While doing this, I encountered a few issues that you should know if you intend to make the jump yourself.”
A few issues.
Kauai is NOT an amusement park! It is stunningly beautiful, but like countless other locations in the world there are places where it can be dangerous. I hope your son fully recovers but, above all, that he has learned a valuable lesson and will show better judgment the next time he is confronted with a potentially dangerous situation.
Sorry to hear about your son… but jumping from cliffs and bridges has been deemed dangerous for as long as bridges and cliffs have existed. We don’t need a sign in a natural setting like the cliff at shipwrecks
Ken: I am sorry about your son’s situation, but he took a risk, and it didn’t work out for him. No one pushed him off that cliff. It doesn’t take too many brain cells to know that jumping off a cliff, any cliff, can result in injury. Do you think a sign would have prevented him from jumping? I doubt it!
The state should open the road from Hanalei to Haena .From Haena 6am to 7am.one way.From Hanalei 5pm to 6pm.one way.Residents could leave and return,the roadworkers would not be interfered with and the need for helicopter and boat assistance would be greatly reduced.Remember those methods of transportation also come with a high danger factor.I have seen the road.They are driving heavy equipment on it.
It is the general consensus here that the cliff at shippy’s is 35 feet high. Most novices think any cliff is a lot higher than it actually is, when they look down. I doubt anyone thinks it is lower than it is.
Cliff jumping is dangerous. That is what makes it a thrill.
I am getting a little tired of tourists coming here and not respecting the natural dangers and then wanting to spoil it for the rest of us.
The social media is the place to put up warnings. If you put any signs at shippy’s, please find some way to make it classy. People love Kauai because it is wild and natural. Let’s not spoil it.
But, but, I saw it on social media. No squirrel suit for Junior.
Back in the day we used to learn from our parents.