Posted on: Thursday, June 13, 2002

Kaua'i reopens access to ponds

By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Kaua'i Bureau

HANALEI, Kaua'i — The county this week reopened the parking lot and trail to the coastal area known as Queen's Bath.

Better weather conditions and a less hazardous trail and coastline compared with a couple of months ago, prompted the move, county officials said.

Community activist Ray Chuan, who had threatened to have residents of the area remove barricades themselves, cheered the move.

He said that the small parking lot, which had been closed off with concrete pillars, was full by Monday afternoon.

The public access down a dirt path runs from a residential subdivision within the Princeville resort, along a small stream, to a rocky shelf facing north.

The shoreline includes several small inlets and a couple of ponds that are filled by waves washing over the rocks. Visitors have been injured and one man was killed earlier this year after being swept from the rocks during high surf.

Mayor Maryanne Kusaka's administration cited liability concerns when it closed the beach access, noting that the county is fighting one case in which someone was injured in the area.

The reopening simply reflects the changing of the season, with drier weather and calmer seas, the administration said.

"Ocean conditions are different now—much more predictable," said Beth Tokioka, Kusaka's public information officer.

She said the county will install signs alerting beachgoers that the area is hazardous and that there are no lifeguards.

Tokioka said the county could close the access once more if dangerous conditions arise. "We'll be constantly reassessing the state of the ocean," she said.