'Iao Valley State Park
Last updated 07. Jun, 2009 by Walker in Adventures & Sights | Central, Central Maui, Central Maui Sites, Easy Walks, Kid Friendly, Most Popular
Click photo for a detailed view.
(Love the shaka!)
Rating: 
In a nutshell: ‘Iao Valley is a treasure that is easily accessed by anyone. While you probably wont spend an extended period of time here, it is a must-see.
Minuses: Official trails are minimal. Not a whole lot to do for most visitors after you’ve seen the main attraction.
Sound-bite: “One of wettest places on earth.”
DETAILS:
‘Iao Valley State Park should be (and usually is) on most everyone’s short list of must do places. It is easily accessible by car or tour companies, has paved walkways with steps, and signage with historical information. It is also a dramatic place to visit, and is particularly well suited for older folks and kids because the trails are short, and paved.
The second wettest place in Hawai’i (the wettest, on Kauai, is also unofficially the wettest place on earth), the summit of the valley receives an average of over an inch of rain per day. (that isn’t an inch every day…maybe it’ll rain 7 inches on the day you come, and then take the rest of the week off!) Needless to say – a LOT of water comes from the Iao stream (much of it diverted by a massive diversion EMI has downstream, between the park and the Hawai’i Nature Center.)
The main attraction here is the ‘Iao needle (Kuka’emoku) – a 1200′ (2250′ from sea level) high peak created by erosion of the softer rock around it over many millennia. In Hawai’ian culture, it is known as the phallic stone of the god of the ocean (Kanaloa.) They must not have wanted to share this view when they erected the lookout deck – because any normal person will wonder what kind of Freudian case-study thinks of a phallus when they see this scene. But if you look from a different angle (hint: parking lot) you can see a much clearer (if less impressive) view of the whole package.
Iao Needle - View from observation deck.
Unlike the “Seven Sacred Pools“, this place is actually sacred. Used as a burial site for Hawai’i's Ali’i (royalty) for centuries – this valley was once kapu (forbidden) to commoners like you and me.
When you first enter the park you can go up, or down. Down will take you to an exhibition area where they have been in various stages of attempting to create a model of what the greater valley (just outside of ‘Iao) once was. They have constructed a hale (house) with thatched roof common for the time, and have many plants that were commonly grown in pre-sugar Hawai’i. The one thing that they seem to be unable to get working (not for lack of trying) are the model lo’i (terraces for growing Taro.) Typically the lo’i are empty, but over the years I have seen them attempting to get them producing several times.
If you go up, you will soon come to a foot-bridge over the stream. Typically you will see locals jumping off a rock under the bridge into a pool – or even off the bridge itself. Obviously they like the tourist attention, because there are plenty of places along the stream locals know about that the tourists don’t – so feel free to waive, yell encouragement, take photos or just throw ‘em a shaka. After the bridge you have up/down choice again. Up takes you to the needle observation deck. Down takes you to the stream, and a short nature loop (with plenty of extracurricular trail access.)
Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar - but from this angle, I think we can agree we don't have a cigar here.
There are trails that follow the stream and go into the valley alongside Iao stream (some access points have signs marked not to follow.) I’m not gonna tell anyone to follow them, but I will tell you there are some nice places to enter the stream (when safe), and to my knowledge there is no kind of enforcement or land ownership in this area. Speaking of extra trails, there are also some nice places along the park access road (before the park) to jump and swim as well – from them you can follow more of the trail network. In those places, however, you may run into locals who aren’t so happy to see you there. I’d advise being respectful (if they wanted to swim with a throng of visitors, they’d be jumping with their buddies at the foot bridge.)
On the road through ‘Iao Valley, and before the State Park there is also the Kepaniwai Park Heritage Gardens. The gardens memorialize the multicultural history of Maui, with buildings and gardens representing Hawaiian, American missionary, Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese, Korean, and Filipino cultures. The gardens were restored in 1994, and are a nice place to stroll around, and have a picnic lunch.
Next door to the Kepaniwai Park Gardens is the Hawai’i Nature Center. (NOTE: TEMP CLOSED TO PUBLIC DUE TO BUDGET – CALL AHEAD) This is a nice little place to visit if you are traveling with children. It will teach them (and you) quite a bit about the natural history of Maui, and Hawai’i, by doing what kids do better than anyone: hands on! (Admission: Adults:$6, 4-12:$3, 0-3:Free)
Key Info:
Location: End of Iao Valley Rd (extension of Main St aka Hwy 320)
GPS Coordinates: 20.880576,-156.545166
Facilities: Bathrooms. (Kepaniwai Park just before the park has sheltered picnic tables & BBQ’s)
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