Make the Lana'i ferry your taxi

By Chris Oliver
Advertiser Staff Writer

At the Garden of the Gods, seven miles from Lana'i City, mysterious rock formations cover the mountainside leading to Polihua Beach. At its best at sunrise and sunset, the multicolored boulders change color depending on cloud cover and time of day. Chris Oliver • The Honolulu Advertiser

First off the state's only interisland surface shuttle, three teenagers carrying longboards set off for Hulopo'e Beach, a 10-minute walk from the harbor entrance.

Behind them, families unload coolers and lawn chairs, and men carrying fishing tackle shout greetings to waiting relatives. Golfers haul clubs to the waiting minivans heading for Lana'i's golf courses. A young, well-dressed couple shake hands with the captain, adjusting their Oakleys and backpacks in the dazzling morning glare.

Ten years ago, Lana'i fully entered Hawai'i's high-end travel business with the opening of the sumptuous Lodge at Koele and the Manele Bay Hotel — wonderful to stay in but beyond most kama'aina budgets. Today, you don't have to stay at either resort to enjoy Lana'i as a day trip. Just take the ferry from Maui, spend the day exploring the island in a rented four-wheel drive and be back in Lahaina for dinner.

Or camp overnight at Hulopo'e Beach next to Manele Bay Hotel, snorkel and scuba in the bay's pristine waters by day and (depending on the clouds) enjoy brilliant views of the Milky Way by night.

If you must sleep inside, Hotel Lanai, a low-key, plantation-style facility in the cool heights of Lana'i City, offers comfortable, affordable accommodations on a bus route that shuttles between the Manele Bay Hotel and the Lodge at Koele. Hotel Lanai guests also use this free shuttle.

Lana'i, once the site of the world's largest pineapple plantation, is moving on. At Adventure Lanai Ecocenter in the middle of Lana'i City, outdoor equipment surrounds the office. Visitors can sign up for guided tours or rent kayaks, mountain bikes, hiking and snorkling equipment. Name your adventure, they'll supply what you need.

You can buy a cappuccino and listen to jazz at Coffee Works on Ilima Street; order a spinach-and-feta wrap at Pele's Other Garden on Eighth; buy Hawaiian-made gifts at Petroglyphs on the Square. But the real clue to Lana'i's changing social landscape is how many cell phones connect residents on this "Private Island."

Lana'i is 17 miles long and 13 miles wide. Sheltered by Moloka'i and Maui, a giant's stride from low-lying Kaho'olawe, "The Secluded Isle," as Lana'i has dubbed itself, has no lush valleys or waterfalls, no steaming vents or lava tubes. From Lana'i City in the foothills of a small mountain range, the scorched, red-dirt landscape stretches across abandoned pineapple fields to a distant cobalt ocean that melts into the blue horizon. There is no public transportation and you'll need a car, preferably with four-wheel-drive, to get around.

Many of Lana'i's trails won't suit the casual hiker, either. These featurer rocky conditions, "killer kine" brambles and earth which stains skin and clothes a chalky, semi-permanent rust. But if you're not afraid to eat dust, discovering Lana'i by Jeep can be an exhilarating adventure. There are uncrowded hiking trails, secluded beaches, remarkable snorkeling. It's rugged and quiet, with cool pine forests and strange rock formations, hidden petroglyphs and architectural shrines to the gods. Where else will monarch butterflies chase your vehicle along deserted red-earth tracks?

Things to do on Lana'i

Off-road exploring

Exploring Lana'i is best done in a four-wheel-drive vehicle. Most interesting places lie beyond the island's 25 miles of paved roadways, along dusty, rocky trails. Know that road conditions change daily; the slightest rainfall changes a compact dirt trail into a mudslide that grips tires like concrete. Keep an eye on the clouds and allow time to get back before dark. Once you leave town there are no facilities, lights, running water or telephones.

• Shipwreck Beach, a beachcomber's dream on the northeast coast, is an easy drive from Lana'i City along a paved road and two-mile dirt track to a narrow beach littered with wreckage, seashells and ocean debris, washed up by the strong winds between Moloka'i and Maui. Park, then take a short, flat but rocky hike to the largest shipwreck on the coast. A 100-yard trail inland takes you to easy-to-find petroglyphs.
• Keahi Kawelo (Garden of the Gods): Seven miles from Lana'i City, these mystical rock formations form an eerie landscape. Hundreds of multihued boulders are balanced one on top of another, creating a red moonscape across the heavily eroded mountainside. Boulders change color, depending on cloud cover and time of day, but are at their most dramatic at sunrise and sunset. Drive on and down to deserted Polihua Beach, home to green sea turtles, for sweeping views of Moloka'i and West Maui.
• Luahiwa Petroglyphs: Even if you've seen petroglyphs, it's worth a detour across an old pineapple highway between Lana'i City and Manele Bay. Wear shoes for the short climb up the escarpment to where the petroglyphs unfold across huge boulders.

Hiking Lanai

• Munro Trail: The best-known hike on the island, named for New Zealand naturalist George Munro, is also the longest. The 18-mile round trip from Koele to Lana'i City treks through eucalyptus trees, Cook Island pines and includes Mount Lana'ihale, at 3,370 feet, the highest point on the island. If the trail is dry, it's possible to drive the entire length in a four-wheel-drive, ascending steeply along the east side of the mountains to ride along Lana'ihale Ridge before dropping down to the city. However, in wet weather, the trail becomes dangerous and may close to traffic/hikers.
• Koloiki Ridge, a 2à mile hike, begins behind the lodge. The clearly marked trail through pine and guava trees takes an hour to complete and is ideal for the whole family.
• Shipwreck Beach: This hike is one to eight miles long, depending on your stamina. If you hike the entire distance, you must double back. The shadeless trail is hot, and strenuous in parts where the trail crosses boulders as well as sand.
• Lana'i Fisherman Trail is an easy one-hour family hike below the Manele Bay Hotel. Hikers join the trail head at Hulopo'e Beach below the Manele Bay Hotel where the trail parallels the hotel's perimeter.

Ocean excursions

Hulopo'e Beach at Manele Bay is a superb snorkeling spot in a bay visited frequently by spinner dolphins and sea turtles. Excellent for swimming, surfing and fishing. Adventure Lanai Ecocenter, 338 Eighth St. (808) 565-7373, (www.adventurelanai.com) provides hiking, kayaking, bike treks and snorkeling excursions, $69 and up. It also rents equipment for do-it-yourselfers.

Star-Gazing

Depends on weather. While on Lanai, drive to the coast and take advantage of the lack of street lighting, which makes viewing the skies particularly good when clear.

Where to stay

• Hulopo'e Beach campground: Camping is limited to seven days. Clean restrooms, fire pits, tables and beach showers; $5 registration fee, $5 per day, per person, camping fee. Request permits at least a week in advance: (808) 565-3978, Castle & Cooke Resorts , Attn. Camping Permits, P.O. Box 630310, Lana'i City, HI 96763.
• Hotel Lanai: Built in 1923 by James Dole. A friendly 11-room hotel in Lana'i City ($95 to $140, single or double occupancy, includes a continental breakfast); 1-800-795-7211 or (808) 565-7211, www.hotellanai.com
• Dreams Come True: 547 12th St., Lana'i City, (808) 565-6961, www.go-native.com It offers bed & breakfast in a large plantation house set in beautiful gardens. Three rooms at $98.50, based on double occupancy.
• Transportation: Dollar Rent A Car, 1036 Lana'i Ave., Lana'i City, (808) 565-7227, will rent a compact car for $59.99 and four-wheel-drive Jeep Wranglers at $129 per day.

Expeditions, 1-800-695-2624, (808) 661-7756, operates an inter- island passenger ferry. The boat makes five round trips to Lana'i and Maui daily. Cost: $25 ($20 ages 2-11) one way. Kama'aina rates are available with a valid Hawai'i driver's license.

Where to eat

• There are no facilities outside of Lana'i City, so buy deli sandwiches, pizza and salads and order a picnic lunch at Pele's Other Garden on Eighth Street (808) 565-9628.
• The Blue Ginger Cafe, 409 Seventh St., (808) 565-6363, offers inexpensive pizza and hamburgers and great breakfasts.
• Coffee Works, 604 Ilima St., (808) 565-6962, serves hot and iced espresso drinks for the latte crowd, and a selection of ice cream.
• Henry Clay's Rotisserie at Hotel Lanai offers dinner nightly, 5:30 to 9 p.m, with a wide selection of fish, rotisserie chicken, ribs, pasta and salads. Reservations recommended. 1-877-ONLANAI.