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Makaleha Mountains

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Makaleha Mountains as seen from Moalepe Trail
Makaleha Mountains as seen from Moalepe Trail

The Makaleha Mountains (pronounced Hawaiian pronunciation: [ˈmɐkəˈlɛhə] or Hawaiian pronunciation: [ˈmɐtəˈlɛhə] in Hawaiian) are a mountain range in Kauai County on the eastern side of the Hawaiian island of Kauai. The highest point is approximately 3,215 feet (980 meters) above sea level. The derivation of the place name Makaleha is the Hawaiian word makaleha (from maka "eye" and leha "to lift up") meaning "to wonder at; to admire" or "to lift the eyebrows, as in wonder or admiration".Makaleha pritchardia or Pritchardia hardyi is an endangered species of Arecaceae palm tree that is endemic to Hawaiian tropical rainforests on Kauai. In 1998 only 30 individuals remained in the wild along Powerline Trail between Wailua and Princeville.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Makaleha Mountains (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Geographical coordinates (GPS)

Latitude Longitude
N 22.116666666667 ° E -159.41666666667 °
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Address

Kauaʻi County (Kauai County)



Hawaii, United States
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Makaleha Mountains as seen from Moalepe Trail
Makaleha Mountains as seen from Moalepe Trail
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Nearby Places

Puʻuʻōpae Bridge
Puʻuʻōpae Bridge

The Puʻuʻōpae Bridge (also known as Kalama Stream Bridge and Kapaʻa Homesteads Bridge #2) is a one-lane, single-span, concrete-encased steel bridge across Kalama Stream located along Puʻuʻōpae Road between Kalama and Kīpapa Roads in the Wailua Homesteads area near Kapaʻa in Kauaʻi, Hawaiʻi, United States. Originally built in 1915, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.The design of the bridge is of little significance. Its endposts appear to have come from materials dismantled from the old Wailua River Bridge in 1919, and its original trusses were removed during repair work in 1958. It is currently in poor condition and may have to be replaced, rather than restored, according to Kauaʻi County Engineer Donald Fujimoto. It is listed on the Hawaii Department of Transportation's current statewide transportation improvement schedule. Much more significant is its role in the socioeconomic history of the island. It was built to facilitate access to the Kapaʻa uplands, which had been opened to homesteaders two years earlier. When Hawaiʻi became a United States Territory in 1900, most of its land was held in very few hands, primarily those of large-scale sugar planters and the government itself. Despite being dominated by the sugar industry, the territorial government sought to encourage the growth of family farms by opening up large tracts of its own land to homesteaders. The best coastal plains were already devoted to sugarcane plantations, so homestead lands on Kauaʻi were located in the uplands of Kapaʻa on the east side of the island and Kalāheo on the southeast side.The Puʻuʻōpae Bridge was designed to serve tracts of land along Olohena and Waipouli Roads known as Kapaʻa Homesteads 2nd Series, which included 81 lots ranging from roughly 20 to 40 acres, on which 90 homesteaders harvested 31,500 tons of sugarcane by 1917, despite poor roads, limited water, and dependence on the large plantations for milling and marketing their sugar. Although most of the homestead plots have subsequently been rezoned as residential, the nearly 400 acres surrounding this bridge remain the only significant expanse of agricultural land in the region. "The history of the Kapa'a Homesteads ... is not the product of a single Great Man who shaped the area but the collective story of a group of settlers who struggled to make a life as independent farmers for themselves and their families. The names of the 1913 Kapa'a Homesteads lottery winners hints at a predominance of the Hawaiian and Caucasian settlers who bought into the homesteading idea, but people from other backgrounds were represented as well: Lino, Contrades, Kauai, Hanohano, Kaui, Kainoa, Kelekoma, Booge, French, Miyashi, Souza, Reis, Wilson, Tracy, Johonnot, Silva, Konda, Nasahiga, Hepa, Reichelt, Soto, Cummings, Louis, Achuck, Cheatham, Livesey, Israel, Cook, Jensen, Ferreira, Victorino, Barreta, Rapoza, Aroong, Ohai, Waiwaiole, Mailehuna, Rodrigues, Amalu, Kaiu, Ventura, Kikaahu."

Ka Loko Reservoir
Ka Loko Reservoir

Ka Loko Reservoir is a reservoir created by an earthen dam on the island of Kauai, Hawaii. It is located on the north side of the island at 22°10′39″N 159°22′39″W. Waters flow from Ka Loko Reservoir down to Waiakalua Reservoir, Waiakalua Stream and down to the Pacific Ocean. Ka Loko (sometimes spelled Kaloko) is notable because its dam burst on March 14, 2006. The dam burst was preceded by unusually heavy rain. The flood from the dam failure raced downhill through a ravine east of the town of Kilauea, Hawaii, with a wall of water reported to be between 20 and 70 feet (6.1 and 21.3 metres) high and 200 feet (61 m) wide. The flood destroyed several homes, killed 7 people, including a toddler and a pregnant woman. An independent civil investigation attributed several possible conditions and practices that may have led to the dam failure: The State of Hawaii did not adequately inspect the dam and did not have enough dam inspectors to cover all of the antiquated dams in the state. The owner of the dam (James Pflueger) performed grading operations near the dam without permits and may have filled in the emergency spillway for the dam. Neither the current nor prior owners of the dam maintained the dam adequately. Finally, the County of Kauai knew about the unpermitted grading operation, but did not enforce a stop-work order.On November 21, 2008, James Pflueger was indicted for manslaughter and reckless endangerment in relation to the dam failure. Pflueger's lawyer claimed that the indictment was an attempt by the state of Hawaii to deflect its own responsibility in the matter.On August 4, 2009, it was reported that a settlement between the parties of all civil cases has been agreed upon, pending judicial review. On July 17, 2013, Pflueger entered a plea of no contest to reckless endangering in a deal with prosecutors. In exchange for the plea, state prosecutors agreed to drop seven manslaughter counts.In December of 2021 the Honolulu Star Advertiser announced 110 acres surrounding Ka Loko reservoir had been purchased by Mark and Priscilla Chan Zuckerberg. Mark Zuckerberg stated his attention to fulfill the legal requirements for the property.