Kaena Point
Template:Short description Template:Coord Template:Use mdy dates Template:Use American English
KaTemplate:Okinaena or Kaena Point is the westernmost tip of the island of [[Oahu|OTemplate:Okinaahu]]. In Hawaiian, kaTemplate:Okinaena means "the heat". The area was named after a brother or cousin of Pele. The point is designated as a Natural Area Reserve.
HistoryEdit
According to ancient Hawaiian folklore, KaTemplate:Okinaena Point is the "jumping-off" point for souls leaving this world.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
In 1899, the Oahu Railway and Land Company constructed a railway that encompassed 70 miles from Honolulu through Kahuku to transport sugarcane. Most of the tracks were destroyed by a tsunami in 1946. Parts of them are visible along the Ka'ena Point Trail.<ref name="Yuen 2009">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
EcologyEdit
Ka'ena Point sustains an ecosystem that is home to many native Hawaiian plants and animals.<ref name="Division of Forestry and Wildlife: Native Ecosystems Protection & Management 2013">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Plants:
- ‘ohai (Sesbania tomentosa)
- naupaka kahakai (Scaevola sericea)
- ‘ilima papa (Sida falax)
- naio (Myoporum sandwicense)
- pa‘u-o-Hi‘iaka (Jacquemontia ovalifolia)
- ma‘o - Hawaiian cotton (Gossypium tomentosum)
- Ka‘ena ‘akoko (Chamaesyce celastroides var. kaenana)
- hinahina (Heliotropium anomulum)
- pohinahina (Vitex rotundifolia)
- nehe (Lipochaeta integrifolia)
- 'Ahinahina (Achyranthes splendens)
Animals:
- Hawaiian monk seal (Neomonachus schauinslandi)
- Moli (Phoebastria immutabilis)
- Yellow-faced bees (Hylaeus longiceps)
PreservationEdit
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In 2011, the United States' first predator-proof fence was constructed at Ka’ena Point, costing about $290,000.<ref name="Pala 2012">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The fence is about 2,133 feet long (650 m), and encompasses Template:Convert of land.<ref name="Aguiar 2009">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The population of wedge-tailed shearwater fledglings, Laysan albatross fledglings, ohia, sandalwood trees, and several other species has risen significantly.Template:R
AccessEdit
Ka'ena Point is a park and hiking site, and is also known for snorkeling. This spot has a white sandy beach that runs from Oahu's western tip to the Waianae Mountains. A Template:Convert can be entered from Keawaula Beach or Mokuleia.Template:R
Until January 28, 1998, when professional surfer Ken Bradshaw was photographed riding a wave with a reported Template:Convert face, it was believed that Greg Noll's 1969 photo had shown the largest wave ever photographed. During that famous swell in January 1998, several people reported seeing waves with Template:Convert faces at KaTemplate:Okinaena Point.Template:Cn
ReferencesEdit
External linksEdit
- Template:Official website
- Ka‘ena Point Ecosystem Restoration Project, Division of Forestry and Wildlife, HawaiTemplate:Okinai Department of Land and Natural Resources