(Redirected from Hawai\'i Belt Road)
The 'Hawaii Belt Road' is an alternate name for the 'MÄmalahoa Highway' and consists of
Hawaii State Highways [11], [19], and [190] that encircles the
Island of Hawaii. The southern section, between
Hilo and
Kailua-Kona is numbered as
State Highway 11. The section between Hilo and
Waimea is
State Highway 19. Between Waimea and Kailua-Kona, the road is split in two: the original "mauka" route (now
State Highway 190) and a "makai" route [19], completed in
1975, which serves as access to the Kona/Kohala Coast resorts. (In the
Hawaiian language, "mauka" means "''towards the mountain''" and "makai" means "''towards the sea''". These terms are commonly used in travel directions.)
Much of the 'Hawaii Belt Road' through North Hilo and HÄmÄkua districts was built on the roadbed and bridges of an old rail line as part of the recovery from a tsunami that ravaged the island's northeast coast in 1946.
Parts of the southern half of the Hawaii Belt Road were known during the Territorial days as the 'KaÅ« Belt Road'. Whilst the names "Hawaii Belt Road" and "MÄmalahoa Highway" refer to the road system that encircles the entire island, many sections are also referenced by local names, shown in ''italics''.
History
'MÄmalahoa Highway' is named for the royal decree by King
Kamehameha I after an incident he and his party experienced in
1783.
As he prepared to unite the Islands of
Hawaii, Kamehameha I would conduct shoreline raids on the neighboring
ahupuaa (traditional land divisions). It was on one such incursion that the King’s warriors encountered two local fishermen along the
Puna coast. The two fled to warn others of the pending attack and Kamehameha and his men took chase. Whilst they crossed a
lava field, one of the King’s feet got caught in a crevice and became stuck.
The fishermen, seizing the opportunity to retaliate, returned and attacked. In the ensuing brawl, one of the King’s steersmen was killed and Kamehameha himself received a blow to the head that was so hard that it splintered the man’s weapon – a solid
koa canoe paddle. The two Puna men escaped.
Kamehameha I opted not to retaliate but instead took this as a divine lesson: The strong must not mistreat the weak, his people must be assured protection from harm’s way in their pursuits and that safe passage must be everyone’s entitlement. A decade later, King Kamehameha the Great, upon reflecting on his deliverance that day in Puna and on the memory of his fallen warrior, proclaimed '
Ke KÄnÄwai MÄmalahoe' – ''the Law of the Splintered Paddle'' – at Kahaleioleole in the Kaipalaoa area of
Hilo.
'KE KÄ€NÄ€WAI MÄ€MALAHOE:'
''E nÄ kÄnaka''
''E mÄlama oukou i ke Akua,''
''A e mÄlamahoi ke kanaka nui a me ke kanaka iki;''
''E hele ka elemakule, ka luahine a me ka kama''
''A moe i ke ala''
''Aohe mea nanÄ e hoopilikia.''
''Hewa no, make !''
'THE LAW OF THE SPLINTERED PADDLE:'
''O my people''
''Honour thy God,''
''Respect alike [the rights of] the great man and the humble man;''
''See to it that the old man, the aged woman and the child''
''Sleep by the side of the path''
''Sans the fear of harm.''
''Disobey, die !''
Ke KÄnÄwai MÄmalahoe is considered such an important
law to the
Hawaiians that at the
1978 Constitutional Convention it was added to the
Constitution of Hawaii. In it, the law protects the public and the safety of all who travel throughout the Islands, including fishermen, gatherers, hunters and visitors alike.
:'Hawaii Constitution (Article IX, Section 10) - Public Safety'
:''The Law of the Splintered Paddle,'' Ke KÄnÄwai MÄmalahoe, ''[as] decreed by Kamehameha I, [that] every elderly person, woman and child lie by the roadside in safety, shall be a unique and living symbol of the State's concern for public safety. The State shall have the power to provide for the safety of the people from crimes against persons and property.''
:(Add ''ConCon 1978'' and election
7th November, 1978.)
Highway 11
The MILE Ø marker is at the intersection of 'Kamehameha Avenue' [19], Banyan Drive and '''Kanoelehua Avenue''' in
Hilo. Highway 11 then proceeds along '''Kanoelehua Avenue''' towards
Keaau where it becomes '''Volcano Highway''' near MILE 4 before crossing into
Puna District. '''Volcano Highway''' intersects with the terminus of 'Keaau-PÄhoa Road [130]' past MILE 6 and 'Old Keaau-PÄhoa Road [139]', then continues through the towns of
Kurtistown,
Mountain View,
Glenwood and
Volcano.
Just beyond the
Kaū District line, the entrance to
Hawaii Volcanoes National Park at MILE 28 marks another name change, back to '''MÄmalahoa Highway'''. The two lane road crests (4024 ft/1226M) just before the MILE 30 marker and then heads down a l—o—n—g downhill stretch through the KaÅ«
Desert towards the
black sands of
Punaluu Beach Park, passing
macadamia orchards near the town of
PÄhala at MILE 51 and the
SeaMountain Resort in
NÄ«nole at MILE 56.
Next are
NÄÄlehu (MILE 63), the southernmost community in the USA, and
WaiÅhinu (MILE 65) which was a favoured retreat for
Mark Twain. A winding uphill climb yields to a meandering country lane were 'South Point Road', near MILE 69, leads to
Ka Lae.
Another comfortable stretch of two lane road and a return to highway speeds begins past the MILE 71 marker. '''MÄmalahoa Highway''' crosses
Mauna Loa's 1907 Lava Flow — there is a beautiful scenic point at MILE 75 — before passing through
Hawaiian Ocean View Estates between 'Tiki Lane' and 'Aloha Boulevard'. Just past MILE 82 is the
South Kona District line.
Starting at MILE 89, '''MÄmalahoa Highway''' becomes quite twisty-turny with a number of sharp curves and steep drop-off along the "makai" side of the road. Many small fishing villages dot the coast, including
Milolii,
PÄpÄ Bay,
Kona Paradise and
Hookena. The
macadamia orchards soon give way to another tree crop. This is
Kona Coffee Country.
'Keala o Keawe Road [160]', just shy of MILE 104, serves as access to
Puuhonua o HÅnaunau National Historic Park and
St. Benedict’s Painted Catholic Church. Further along is the town of
Captain-Cook, named for the famed English explorer
Capt. James Cook, RN. 'NÄpÅopoo Road [160]' leads down to
NÄpÅopoo and Kealakekua Bay, site of the Cook Monument.
After MILE 111 come the towns of
Kealakekua,
Kainaliu and
Honalo. At "Coffee Junction" (MILE 114), 'MÄmalahoa Highway' continues straight and eventually becomes
Highway 180, whilst Highway 11 veers to left and becomes '''Kuakini Highway'''. A somewhat steep descent off Puuloa drops into the town of
Kailua-Kona.
Just past 'Lako Street' is where 'Kuikini Highway' branches to the left and Highway 11 becomes '''Queen Kaahumanu Highway'''. In the vicinity of MILE 121, 'HualÄlai Road [182]' (incorrectly signed as "180") crosses at an exaggerated angle (a rare
concurrent route). Highway 11 finally reachs the
crossroads of the '''“Queen Kâ€''' and 'Palani Road', pinpointing the termini of all three ''Hawaii Belt Road'' route numbers.
★ TOTAL MILES = 122.3 (196.9kM).
Highway 19
Tucked away at the gates to
Hilo Wharf on '''
KūhiŠStreet''' is the MILE Ø marker for Highway 19. One block later, it then turns right onto '''Kalanianaole Avenue''', running between the waters of Hilo Bay and the Runway 8/26 of
Hilo International Airport, before crossing 'Kanoelehua Avenue' [11] and 'Banyan Drive' where the name changes to '''Kamehameha Avenue'''. Flanking the Wailoa River Bridge is the
Tsunami Memorial Clock with its hands frozen in time at the moment the killer waves struck early morning on
23rd May,
1960.
The highway continues along '''Kamehameha Avenue''', paralleling a closed section of 'Bayfront Highway' (constructed but never opened, it is used as access and parking for Hilo Bayfront Park), then turns right onto '''
Pauahi Street''' before quickly turning left onto the open section of '''Bayfront Highway'''. NOTE: Bayfront Highway, which serves as a
bypass for the
downtown business district of
Hilo, is often closed to traffic by the
Hawaii Police Department in times of high surf.
Passed the intersection with 'WaiÄnuenue Avenue [200]', Highway 19 crosses the "Singing~" or "Whistling Bridge" — a converted railroad
plate girder bridge whose metal grate roadway causes
tires to “sing†as vehicles pass over it. Leaving Hilo, the route assumes the name '''Hawaii Belt Road''', leaving 'MÄmalahoa Highway' to the older
decommissioned portions of the original thoroughfare. Many former
sugar plantation towns dot the highway, including
Wainaku,
Paukaa and
PÄpaikou.
Shortly after the MILE 7 marker, part of the old 'MÄmalahoa Highway' crosses '''Hawaii Belt Road'''. The road to the right leads down the “Onomea Scenic Drive,†a four-mile (6½ kM)
loop road that crosses several one-lane wooden bridges and past the
Hawaii Tropical Botanical Garden overlooking Onomea Bay before returning to '''Hawaii Belt Road''' at MILE 10 in
PepeekeÅ.
'''Hawaii Belt Road''' meets the rugged
HÄmÄkua coastline near MILE 12. A left turn onto 'HonomÅ« Road [220]' leads to
Akaka Falls State Park, home of the namesake 442-foot (135-metre) tall waterfall and the slightly shorter KahÅ«nÄ Falls. These waters empty in the
Pacific Ocean at
Kolekole Beach Park past MILE 14.
The
Hakalau Bridge carries Highway 19 from the South
Hilo District to North Hilo District. A number of cascades are visible from the road on the “mauka†side of the highway.
Umauma Falls is inside the
World Botanical Gardens but from the Umauma Bridge (between MILE 16 and MILE 17), two just-as-beautiful falls are seen. Between MILE 18 and MILE 19 is
NÄnue Stream with another picturesque waterfall.
The highway negotiates three
"horseshoe" curves: Maulua (MILE 22), LaupÄhoehoe (MILE 26) and Kaawalii (MILE 28).
Maulua Gulch has a small waterfall emptying into the ocean (visible from the Hilo side by looking across the gulch) and another in the back part of the gorge near the base of the radio tower. Also, an abandoned railroad
tunnel is sometimes visible from the HÄmÄkua side). The
LaupÄhoehoe Railroad Museum is located on the “mauka†side past MILE 25. On the other side of
LaupÄhoehoe Gulch, an access road leads down to LaupÄhoehoe Point Beach Park where the victims of the
1946 “April Fool’s Day†tsunami are memorialized. Past
Kaawalii Gulch lie the much-welcomed
passing lanes as Highway 19 goes by the old sugarmill town of
OÅkala.
The
HÄmÄkua District begins on the opposite side of Kaula Bridge (MILE 30). Highway
speeds are now the norm but caution must be observed whilst crossing the narrow “Curved Bridge†near MILE 32. This area is rich in history from the days when
sugar was king. Hamlets with names like
KÅ«kaiau,
Paauilo,
KalÅpÄ and
PÄauhau were once sweet with the sounds of
plantation workers from places like the
Philippines,
China and
Japan.
'MÄmane Street [240]' (MILE 42) spurs off to the right to become the
main street of
Honokaa before providing access to
Waipio Valley. Across from Tex Drive-In, 'Old MÄmalahoa Highway' branches “mauka†of the '''Hawaii Belt Road''' to wind through the rugged hills of
Āhualoa and is a pleasant — if not slower — route to
Waimea. Meanwhile, '''Hawaii Belt Road''' makes its way through
fog-shrouded
eucalyptus stands.
The 'Old MÄmalahoa Highway' rejoins Highway 19 near MILE 52 where they cross into
South Kohala District. Now referred again as '''MÄmalahoa Highway''', Highway 19 continues into the town of Waimea (known as
Kamuela only by the
USPS), the
headquarters for Parker Ranch and the heart of
paniolo country.
At MILE 57, the route turns right onto '''Lindsey Road''' (see
State Highway 190). One block down, Highway 19 spurs left onto '''Kawaihae Road''', past Waimea's own “
restaurant row†and before starting downhill towards the Kona/Kohala Coast. Just beyond MILE 59 is a “
Y†junction with 'Kohala Mountain Road [250]' in front of
Hawaii Preparatory Academy.
'''
Queen Kaahumanu Highway''' begins at the "
T" intersection with
State Highway 270 past MILE 67 outside
Kawaihae. Completed in
1975, “'''The Queen K'''†connects the resort properties of
Mauna Kea Beach (MILE 68), Mauna Lani (MILE 73),
WaikÅloa Beach (MILE 76) and KaÅ«pÅ«lehu (MILE 87) with the
KeÄhole-Kona International Airport (MILE 83) and the town of
Kailua-Kona. Some of the noteworthy beaches include the likes of
HÄpuna, 69~ and
67-Beach, Holoholokai,
Anaehoomalu, Makalawena,
Kekaha Kai and
Kaloko-HonokÅhau.
The terminus of Highway 19 is at the
crossroads of 'Palani Road [190]' (MILE 100) where '''Queen Kaahumanu Highway''' continues as
State Highway 11.
★ TOTAL MILES = 100.0 (160.9kM).
Highway 190
The continuation of '''MÄmalahoa Highway''' from the 'Lindsey Road [19]'
intersection is the beginning of
Highway 190 with the MILE Ø marker posted on the “
Chevron†corner. This is the original
Hilo-to-
Kona link which served as Highway 19 until the route was reassigned in
1975 to the newly-opened 'Queen Kaahumanu Highway'.
The road subsequently runs past
Camp Tarawa, the
Parker Ranch headquarters and the
Waimea-Kohala Airport before traversing the rolling
pasturelands of the
South Kohala District.
Few intersections are found along the next twenty miles (32 kM). '
Saddle Road [200]' comes to its terminus near MILE 6 and '
WaikÅloa Road' ends its twelve-mile climb from the Queen Kaahumanu Highway at '''MÄmalahoa Highway'''’s MILE 11 marker. There are some tricky “
S-curves†as the old road passes
Puu Lani Ranch (MILE 20) in
Puuanahulu and the entrance to
Puuwaawaa Ranch. A long narrow strip of
asphalt stretches across the windswept
rangelands and
lava fields covered with
fountain grass.
As the road passes through a stand of
eucalyptus and
ohia trees near MILE 31, the “mauka†neighbourhoods of the North
Kona District come into view:
Kalaoa, Kona Palasades Estates, Koloko Mauka and
HonokÅhau. On the other side of MILE 35, a
traffic light is at the top of 'Hina Lani' “
Costco†'Street'.
A block later, 'MÄmalahoa Highway' turns left and becomes
Highway 180 whilst Highway 190 continues straight, becoming '''Palani Road'''. The route descends rapidly towards
Kailua-Kona, making many quick turns and narrow curves. '''Palani Road''' meets 'Queen
Kaahumanu Highway [11/19]', marking the end of the route ('Palani Road' continues “makai†to its junction with 'Kuakini Highway' and 'Alii Drive').
★ TOTAL MILES = 38.7 (62.3kM).
Junctions
State Highways are marked as '[××]' whilst County funded roads are with (××). Former or unmarked routes are indicated by an asterisk.
★ 'HIGHWAY 11'
★ 'HIGHWAY 19'
★ 'HIGHWAY 190'
| Mile | Town | | Street Name | Point(s) of Interest |
|---|
| Ø | Waimea | | MÄmalahoa Highway / Lindsey Road | '''Hawaii Belt Road''' |
| 6 | (Parker Ranch) | | Saddle Road | Waikii, Mauna Kea, Mauna Loa |
| 35 | Palani Junction | (180) | MÄmalahoa Highway | Honalo |
| 38 | Kailua-Kona | | Queen Kaahumanu Highway | '''Hawaii Belt Road''' |
| 38 | Kailua-Kona | | Queen Kaahumanu Highway | The ''makai route of '''Hawaii Belt Road''' |
External links
★
Big Island and Hawaii Belt at Oscar Voss’ Hawaii Highways
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