It seems really unfair to compare anything to the Grand Canyon, and yet it is done regularly. So color me skeptical when I visit Waimea Canyon, dubbed the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, on Hawaii’s Kauai. But here I stand at the first of several overlooks within Waimea Canyon State Park, and I am thoroughly impressed. Is it the Grand Canyon? No, but nothing is. However, it is majestic, beautiful, and altogether grand.
Waimea Canyon is accessed from the town of Waimea, along Kauai’s south shore, with a road that winds up the hill and along the canyon rim, ending at an overlook near the western side of the island. The canyon itself is roughly ten miles long, with a depth of approximately 3,000 feet. Waimea means “red water” in Hawaiian, and is a reference to the color of the exposed basalt carved by the same-named river. (Yes, basalt is generally black, but millennia of weathering has turned it red.)
At the time of Kauai’s formation several million years ago, the island – like all of Hawaii’s islands – was volcanically active. This portion of the island was subject to a huge fissure and depression, creating first a natural flow for the lava (which created the basalt) and then the Waimea River. The river is fed from rainfall on Kauai’s central mountain, Mt. Wai’ale’ale, which is known as the wettest place on Earth, with a ridiculous 350-450 inches of annual precipitation!
The result is a canyon that is unlike any other I’ve seen. The red of the exposed and weathered basalt is topped with green from the plant life that is so abundant on the Garden Island, and the river tumbles over falls visible from the viewpoints (or from hikes). Helicopter tours of Waimea Canyon actually fly below visitors, winding their way up the canyon and to the Na’Pali Coast.
It is cold standing at the rim, and gets colder as I move up the succession of “official” viewpoints (the ones with parking lots). What was a sunny day down at the coast is now rainy and features a chilly wind here at 3,500 feet, and I’m glad I thought to bring a sweatshirt. I feel for the tourists in shorts and flip flops. (These official overlooks are also where one buys a permit for admission. It is $10 per car and an additional $5 per person, payable by credit card at a machine. You’ll display the permit on your dash.)
Crowds grow as the day progresses, though thin as I make my way further up since the tour buses can’t get as far. The road alternates between good and less good, sometimes barely having room to pass another car or having more pothole than road, and other times being freshly paved with clearly marked lanes. I pass a small museum – the huge flock of chickens outside are more exciting than the museum itself – and pass out of Waimea Canyon, reaching the western edge of the island overlooking the water and the back side of the Na’Pali Coast. Here the clouds nearly reach the road, so I skip the final two miles and head back down.
On a nicer and dryer day, I’d probably opt for a hike – or at least a walk – along the rim of the canyon. But today doesn’t seem like the day to stroll along a precipitous drop, a decision reinforced as drizzle comes and goes. But even just from the marked overlooks, there is no doubting the truly incredible place I’m seeing.
In all, I spend about two hours inside Waimea Canyon. Given the nearly ninety minute drive from my base in Kapa’a, it seems hardly worth it. But believe me, it is. (Plus just east of Waimea is the Kauai Coffee Plantation, so you can swing by there on your drive back to caffeinate. Or check out the Hanapepe Swinging Bridge. Or enjoy the surfers at Kekaha Beach. There are lots of ways to turn this into a magical full day even if you don’t spend hours hiking.)
It seems there are Grand Canyon comparisons made all over the place. Well, Waimea Canyon comes as close to living up to that sort of hype as anywhere. Styled the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, it is absolutely worth a visit if you find yourself on Kauai, and even worth a trip to the Garden Island just to see.
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