An Unmissable Northern Kauai Adventure

Taking a trip to Hawaii this year? Hopefully you have some time to make it to the Garden Isle, Kauai. If you do, make sure you make the drive up the North Shore, home of dramatic cliffs, gorgeous beaches, and lots of fascinating wildlife.

From the airport, you’ll travel north on Route 56, a coastal highway that crosses over the Wailua River and the several busy small towns before transitioning to a more rural and scenic landscape, with stunning views of the island's rugged interior mountains. The highway turns west and narrows after Anahola (site of a very beautiful beach loved by locals), where it passes by our organic farm up at the northeast corner of the island. The road then travels through Kilauea and Princeville before dropping down into Hanalei Valley.

This gorgeous coastal drive only takes an hour or two if you don’t stop (impossible given the scenery, we promise), so it makes a great day trip even if you’re spending the bulk of your time on Kauai in the south part of the island. Here are some stops you’ll have to make along the way.

Kaakaaniu Plantation

We recommend starting your day with a 10am free tour of our organic noni farm, located on beautiful Kaakaaniu Plantation. We’re located just a few miles south of the Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge, so there’s lots of wildlife to see on our land, as well as many gorgeous native plants. Our Organic Noni Farm & Wellness Tour is very highly rated on TripAdvisor — here are just a few testimonials from 2015.

You’ll also learn about noni fruit, which we grow on the farm and turn into Noni Fruit Leather andNoni Lotions. Noni fruit is known to help with a wide variety of health issues from diabetes to high blood pressure to pain and inflammation to skin ailments. We’ll share everything we know about this unusual fruit, including the growing body of scientific research about this fruit’s properties and traditional usages. We also spend about a half hour on our organic processes- mulch, compost, vermiculture and compost teas. Things that we do on a very large scale that you may do on a small scale in your home garden.

Click here to learn more about our farm tour, and we hope to see you soon!

Kilauea Point National Wildlife Refuge

Here you can see many different species of birds, including possibly Laysan albatross. Many of these birds are very rare, or don’t often appear in the large numbers that frequent the wildlife refuge. There are also sea turtles, spinner dolphins, monk seals and, if you’re especially lucky, humpback whales! It all depends on the season and what the animals are up to.

Kilauea Point is also home to a very photogenic lighthouse, which you can tour if you plan ahead.

Discover two more unmissable adventures on the original blog!

What are your favorite sights on the North Shore of Kauai? Let us know in the comments!

The Art and History Behind our Lauhala Gift Bags

You may have noticed that this month’s coupon from Hawaiian Organic Noni gets you a free lauhala bag and a red bow when you buy one of our Holiday Special Lotion 2-Packs. You can choose any two 8 oz lotions, and we’ll include one of these attractive gift bags for free!

But we’ve gotten a lot of questions: What is Lauhala? Why is it culturally significant? Why do we include it in our holiday special?

What is Lauhala?

Lauhala is a Hawaiian word, coming from the root word lau, which means “leaf” and hala, the word for a common plant in Hawaii, also known as Hawaiian Screwpine or Pandanus tectorius.

Hala has long leaves that can be woven into fabric, which can then be put to a wide variety of uses. The art of weaving hala leaves is common across many Pacific cultures, including in Hawaii. Lauhala refers to the art of weaving hala leaves.

History of Lauhala

Lauhala may have been brought to Hawaii as a canoe plant, which you can learn more about here. Ancient Polynesian explorers brought many of the most important plants they needed for survival with them in their canoes, in the form of seeds or seedlings.

Or, as legend would have it, hala trees may spread across the islands when the volcano goddess Pele ripped the tree apart in punishment for snagging her canoe when she first landed on the island of Hawaii.

However the hala tree got its start on Hawaii, it’s been a vital part of Hawaiian culture for thousands of years.

Hala Trees

Hala would have been considered a very important plant, as it was used for such a wide variety of things, including lauhala weaving. In addition, hala trunks were used for building, and the flowers were used to make special ceremonial leis.

The Ancient Art of Lauhala

The art of lauhala was once a highly prized and developed skill, and weavers were traditionally very well off and praised for their skill. Indeed, most families had many weavers, who turned the plentiful leaves of the hala trees into mats, baskets, clothing, fans and hats.

The art was passed down over generations, with children learning from a variety of teachers who would teach unique styles and techniques. Each weaver’s unique style would be a blend of everyone who taught him or her.

Impact of Western Trade

Unfortunately, the increase in trade with the West caused a decline in the 19th century. Lauhala is still practiced today largely because of the plantation industry. Artisans created hats (still one of the most common applications of lauhala) and baskets to harvest and carry coffee beans. Many artisans survived by trading their lauhala products directly for food.

Lauhala Today

Today, lauhala survives largely due to the tourist industry. Whereas lauhala was used in ancient times to make canoe sails, wall thatch, and mats, it is now most often used to make purses, placemats, and yes, gift baskets. As in ancient times, it’s also commonly used to make garments, especially hats.

Along with leis and grass skirts, lauhala products are seen as one of the iconic souvenirs of Hawaii.

Click here to read about Lauhala today and how the legacy is in danger.