Nearby Attractions

R.W. Meyer Sugar Mill / Molokai Museum & Cultural Center

Located topside Moloka'i on Highway 470 at the four-mile marker, the Meyer site features the restored 1878 sugar mill with a mule-driven cane crusher and operational steam engine. The cultural center has changing exhibits and artifacts. Tours are offered Monday through Saturday for a nominal fee. Rudolph Meyer was a German sugar farmer and rancher who came to Molokai in 1848. He served as the supervisor for the isolated Kalawao Settlement from 1866 until his death in 1897.

For more information, contact Molokai Museum & Cultural Center, PO Box 986, Kaunakakai, HI 96742. Phone: [phone] or 808.567.6624.

 

Pala'au State Park

Pala'au State Park sits at an elevation approximately 1600 feet above the Kalaupapa Peninsula at the edge of the steep north-shore pali cliffs of Molokai. The 233-acre heavily wooded park is located at the end of Highway 470, about 10 miles northwest of Kaunakakai, Molokai. The park has a campground for tent camping in an ironwood and eucalyptus grove, plus a large covered picnic pavilion. At the overlook, there are wayside exhibits with information about the park, and the visitor has an excellent view of the Kalaupapa Peninsula.

 

The Nature Conservancy - Molokai Preserves

• Guided Conservation Hikes
  • For information on TNC guided conservation hikes offered to Kamakou and Mo’omomi Preserves, March – October, email [e-mail].
  • For self-hiking, please come into the TNC office at 23 Pueo Place, Kaunakakai, Monday-Thursday, between 9-3 pm for access information.
• Important Access Information
  • The Preserves are landlocked, remote, and have no facilities. All roads leading to the Preserves are unpaved, unimproved, uneven, owned by others, and 4WD only. The weather is a factor for access, especially November-April during the Ho’oilo – the rainy season. No commercial tours are permitted on the TNC Preserves.
• Preserves Highlights
  • Kamakou Preserve: This is a 2,774-acre preserve containing native rainforest and shrublands. These remote forests are home to native forest birds plus several hundred species of plants, insects, and land snails found only in Hawai’i. The Pepe’opae boardwalk protects the fragile forest floor and bog, which collects water – a precious resource for Molokai.
  • Mo’omomi Preserve: Located on the northwest coast of Molokai, the windswept dunes shelter globally imperiled plant species. ‘Ua’u kani, the wedge-tailed shearwater makes its burrow nests in the sea cliffs. The sandy shoreline offers a haven for Hawaiian green sea turtles to nest. There are also important and protected sites for Hawaiian prehistory, paleontology, and geology within the preserve boundary.
  • Pelekunu Preserve: (Pelekunu Preserve is not open to self-hiking or guided hikes.) Containing 5,714 acres on the rugged north shore, this remoteness has protected the lowland rain forests, verdant sea cliffs, and one of Hawai’I’s last remaining free-flowing streams. Pelekunu stream contains nearly all of Hawaii’s native aquatic fauna, including five fish species collectively referred to as ‘o’opu, among the most remarkable organisms in the world.

 

Other National Parks in Hawai'i

There are seven other National Park Service units in the state of Hawai'i, also managed by the National Park Service. Kalaupapa National Historical Park shares knowledge and broad themes with these parks, including volcanism, geology, endangered flora & fauna, decreasing habitat, threats from introduced alien species, Hawaiian culture, land use, and history.

See following list:

* Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail - Hawai'i

* Haleakala National Park - Maui

* Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park - Hawai'i

* Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical Park - Hawai'i

* Pu'uhonua o Honaunau National Historical Park - Hawai'i

* Pu'ukohola Heiau National Historic Site - Hawai'i

* World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument - O'ahu