From a sacred cliff where hundreds of soldiers lost their lives fighting for unity in the Hawaiian Islands to a haunted cave thought to be the home of a shark god that kills visitors, and from a palace that hosted a luau of more than 10,000 people to a healing temple that now connects volunteers to the ‘aina, Oahu is full of sacred places.
Rebekah Walker, adjunct faculty from the Faculty of Culture, Language & Performing Arts, said she hopes as students learn about sacred places on Oahu, they will make connections to their own culture and protect their own sacred places in their home communities.
“As students from around the world come, they learn about Hawaii. They learn to respect it. They learn about our sacred places, but it always makes them think about their own [sacred] places,” she explained.
Nu‘uanu Pali Lookout
A windy welcome to windward Oahu, the Pali Lookout is an exciting place to discover spooky legends, brush up on Hawaiian history and hike through several interconnected trails, said Rebekah Strain, a member of the Faculty of Religious Education.
The Pali Lookout is the site of the Battle of Nu‘uanu when King Kamehameha I arrived in Waikiki in 1795, says the Hawaii’s Department of Land and Natural Resources’ plaque located at the site.
Kamehameha drove Maui forces up the Nu‘uanu Valley to the Pali Lookout, the plaque reads. The warriors fought with Hawaiian spears and western guns, but Kamehameha brought a cannon and overpowered his enemies. As the battle surged closer to the cliff, says the marker, an estimated 400 soldiers were forced off and fell to their deaths below. This was the final battle Kamehameha fought to unite the Hawaiian Islands, the plaque explains.
Because of its violent history, the Old Pali Road is a spooky hike commonly presumed to be haunted, said Strain. According to an article by Megan Shute on the Only in Your State website, there have been several reports of the fallen warriors’ lost souls wandering the area at night.
Shute says Pele, the Hawaiian goddess of fire and volcanoes, and the demigod Kamapua‘a, agreed to never see each other again and chose the Old Pali Road as the border dividing their sides of the island. In her article, Shute says because pork symbolizes Kamapua‘a, if you bring pork on the road from one side of the island to the other, your car will break down, and a woman with a dog will appear. “To continue on your way, you must feed the pork to the dog—or else,” Shute writes.
Before tunnels were built for cars to get from Laie to town, the quickest option was to hike the trail over the Pali cliffs, says Hawaii’s DLNR’s plaque. This was a regular journey for farmers in Kailua bringing produce to town from home, the plaque says.
Over time, the trail broadened and the government commissioned several projects to establish the path as a highway, the department says on the plaque. Kristen Pedersen of the Historic Hawaii Foundation writes, “By 1931, more than 2,000 cars were navigating the 22 hairpin turns of the Old Pali Highway every day.”
Gliding enthusiast and Second Lieutenant William A. Cocke used the strong trade wind over the Pali Lookout to break a world gliding record in his homemade glider “Nighthawk,” says National Soaring Museum’s marker at the lookout.
According to Burl Burlingame of the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, Cocke’s glide lasted 21 hours and 34 minutes. He flew 3,454 feet in the air, breaking both the world and United States’ duration and height powerless flight records.
Peter Young writes in his article “Soaring of Nighthawk,” the world record has since been broken, but this fateful December 1931 flight remains the longest glide in U.S. history.
Strain, who called herself an avid hiker, said there are several fun hikes to trek around the Pali Lookout. She recommended exploring the Old Pali Highway, Likeke Falls or V Falls. “It’s beautiful. There are some beautiful viewpoints, wild peppercorn and wild guava,” she said. She laughed, remembering her family even found a chameleon on the trail, which they promptly added to the family as a pet.
People can access the Old Pali Highway and other hikes around the Pali from Ko‘olau Golf Course, said Strain. “It’s a fun area because it is so lush and green, and the waterfalls, when they’re flowing, are beautiful.” Strain said the history and the lore of the Pali add to the fun of the trip.
She said to stay away from hiking Pali Puka and Pali Notches, which are other hikes in the area. “Those are closed and extremely dangerous. I would definitely not recommend them.”
Strain advised, “Always know the trail. Be informed before you go. Know the length, the difficulty, and where to go. Bring water and good shoes. Tell someone where you’re going and have a map.”
The haunted Makua Cave
Although there are many myths and legends surrounding the Makua Cave, one Hawaiian legend describes the upper cave as the home of the shark god Nanaue. Alohalani Housman, associate professor in the Faculty of Culture, Language & Performing Arts, said Nanaue “could assume the form of a man or a shark.”
ccording to an article written by Diane Lee for the Honolulu Magazine, Nanaue disguises himself as a man to lure visitors into a false sense of security.
Lee states, according to Hawaiian legend, those who go to the cave at night are invited to join an old Hawaiian man tending to meat at a fire. When the traveler becomes dizzy from eating the food, the man turns into a shark, kills them and later eats them. Lee writes, “Makua Cave is supposedly an active hotspot for the spirits of those who died there.”
In an article on sacred-destinations.com, the legend says the Hawaiian people killed Nanaue long ago.
“Honoring this colorful history, the cave has been the site of magic, ritual and religious ceremonies,” the article states. “The area around the cave has been considered sacred and kapu by local communities in recent times.”
The cave can be found on the Southwest Coast of Oahu off of Farrington Highway, according to sacred-destinations.com. Hikers should be cautious, wear correct footwear and bring a flashlight, the article states.
On the Outdoor Project website, Patrick Nichols writes the formation of Makua Cave was formed volcanically by lava dikes. “Years of wave erosion has since exposed the ancient lava, forming the cave we see today,” Nichols explains.Kaniakapupu: King Kamehameha III’s summer palace
Although the stone and rope are slowly crumbling, Marjorie Perlas says on theculturetrip.com the legends and history of the ruins of Kaniakapupu are kept sacred by the Hawaiian people.
Perlas writes, “The area around Nu‘uanu Valley, where the ruins stand today, is riddled with wartime ghost stories and Hawaiian superstitions. The strongest of them being the supposed presence of night marchers or Huaka‘ipo.” She describes how one of the windows in the summer home was built off-center, which was believed to keep people out of direct eyesight of the night marchers. According to Perlas, the ruins are considered kapu, meaning sacred and forbidden.
In a Focus Hawaii video made in the early 2000’s, BYU–Hawaii librarians Riley Moffat and Zane Clark explain how the summer palace of King Kamehameha III and Queen Kalama was used as a getaway to escape the summer heat.
Moffat explains the palace was also used as a school to teach the traditional ways of life as a royal. Once they even hosted a luau, Moffat added, celebrating the restoration of the Hawaiian Kingdom, which around 10,000 people attended.
During the celebration, Moffat says, King Kamehameha III established the motto of the kingdom: “The life of the land is perpetuated by righteousness.”
Recently, Hawaii’s DLNR put out a statement that the Divisions of Forestry and Wildlife and the State Historic Preservation Division have restricted access to the ruins due to vandalism.
The statement explains those vandalizing the ruins “violate both state and federal laws and can result in hefty fines.” Visitors are now required to obtain a permit before entering the ruins, according to the DLNR.
Crews are also “constructing a low-impact barrier” around the perimeter of the ruins and plan to post signs to warn visitors the area is closed, says DLNR.
Ryan Peralta, from the DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife, explains, “We know people come up here, even though it’s closed, so we want to arm them with information to help them appreciate the cultural significance of Kaniakapupu.”
The Maunawila Heiau
Years of service rendered by students at BYUH, members of the Hawaii Land Trust and community members have helped conserve the Hawaiian temple named Maunawila Heiau in Hauula, explained Walker.
She said at a Hauula Community Association meeting in 2011, an archaeologist suggested a project to survey Maunawila Heiau Complex and mark it as a historical site.
After hearing about the project, she said she was excited to involve her students in the hands-on experience where they could serve the community and learn about archaeology.
The heiau in Hauula is believed to have been a healing temple, or Heiau Ho‘ola, used for spiritual and physical healing rituals, explained Walker.
Walker added the site has been linked to Makuaka‘ūmana, who Walker said sailed from Kahiki during the early voyaging era in the Pacific. Makuaka‘ūmana was the caretaker of the heiau and brought over many Hawaiian religious practices, she said.
The land containing the Maunawila Heiau was purchased by the McGregor family in the late 1800s, explained Walker, but they moved from the property in the early 1900s after a house fire and other family misfortunes.
Walker said in 2009, about 100 years after moving off the property, the McGregor family wanted to find a way to preserve the heiau and other historical sites.
Before the archeology project, Walker said the overgrown site was a scary area in Hauula, so people stayed away. However, she said the site is now a place where community members visit and assist in preserving the heiau. Volunteers have helped by pulling weeds, finding historical artifacts and clearing the landscape in and around the heiau site, shared Walker.
According to the Hawaii Land Trust website, the “Maunawila Heiau Complex has become a center for cultural connection and ‘aina-based education.”
Rosanna Thurman, principal investigator and archaeologist on the Maunawila Heiau Complex project, explained the project has many benefits.
“Community archaeology at Maunawila has been such a positive opportunity for the sharing of science, education, and cultural history and for individuals to respectfully enjoy and participate in stewardship of a treasured space.”
Walker said BYUH volunteers come with great attitudes and work hard. “The BYUH volunteers are the best because we get busloads of young, able-bodied, happy-go-lucky [people].”
Hekili Gibby, a senior from Oahu, Hawaii, majoring in Hawaiian Studies, said being raised in Hauula created a connection between him and the site. “I am part Hawaiian . . . and having that connection back to the land and to the ‘aina was amazing,” Gibby shared. “Being able to be in my hometown was an added experience.”
Gibby said he didn’t know much about the history of the site before working at Maunawila. After volunteering and doing an internship at the Maunawila Heiau, he said his knowledge of the heiau and Hawaiian history expanded.
Gibby also expressed his desire to remember the values and lessons he learned during the project, like malama ‘aina, or caring for the land, so he can implement them into his life.
Maunawila is open to the public and has workdays every second Saturday. The Hawaii Land Trust website lists other opportunities to visit or volunteer on their website hilt.org/volunteer.
Maunawila is located on the south end of Hauula Homestead Road.