Kauai Path, Inc. is a non-profit organization that advocates for better walking and bicycling facilities for all of Kauai.
Ke Ala Hele Makalae is Hawaiian for 'The Path that Goes by the Coast'. This is the name of the shared-use path envisioned to follow the coast from Nawiliwili to Anahola.
Kauai Path’s mission is to make attractive walking and bicycling travel ways commonplace in our neighborhoods.
Kauai Path’s vision is Kauai residents working together to preserve, protect, and extend access island-wide through the design, implementation, and stewardship of non-motorized multi-use paths.
Please use our Contact Form to reach out to Tommy Noyes, Kauai Path’s executive director.
Following Federal Highways Administration requirements, the County of Kauai built Ke Ala Hele Makalae to be fully ADA compliant and accessible for people who rely on mobility assistance devices.
From Lydgate Beach Park to the path on the makai side of the Beach Boys Resort everything is ADA compliant, with many parking areas designated for handicapped access. Starting at the North side of the Beach Boys Resort property in Kealia there is a stretch of sand and grass about 0.3 miles long where the path has not yet been built.
The path resumes on the makai side of the Sheraton Kauai Coconut Beach Resort, and continues with ADA compliant surfaces and slopes up to Kuna Bay.
The ADAaccess standards allow for the path’s relatively steep connection between the Kealia Kai trailhead/comfort station at 22° 06' 58.40" N, 159° 18' 03.03" W and the Kuna Bay Beach as a categorical exclusion. That section of pathway exceeds the slope limitation and is steeper than one would probably want to negotiate with a wheelchair. You can access the overlook of Kuna Bay and all of the coastal path from numerous other access points along the coast.
The County of Kauai's Ke Ala Hele Makalae project is a six Phase undertaking. Phase I is 2.5 miles, complete in Lydgate Park.Phase II is 4.5 miles from the Lihi Boat Ramp in central Kapaa to Ahihi Point in Kealia. Phase III will connect Phases I & II, from Lydgate Park to Lihi Boat Ramp. Phase IV will go from Ahukini Landing State Park to Lydgate Park.Phase V is planned to go from Ahihi Point in Kealia to the Anahola Beach Park. Phase VI is planned to go from Ahukini Point to Nawiliwili. See graphic.
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Phase I (2.5 miles of multi-use path) is complete in Lydgate Park.
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Phase II extends along the coast from Lihi Park in central Kapaa 4.5 miles north to Ahihi Point in Kealia. This Phase was completed and opened for public enjoyment on June 26, 2009.
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Phase III (from Lydgate Park to Lihi Boat Ramp, plus a spur to the Kapaa Elementary School area): consultant Kimura Associates International has completed the Environmental Assessment and a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) has been approved by the Federal Highways Administration. Construction began in 2009 and the path to be completed in the 2013-14 timeframe.
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Phase IV (from Ahukini Landing State Park to Lydgate Park) consultant R.M. Towill is expected to complete the Environmental Assessment in late 2013/early 2014.
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Phase V (from Ahihi Point in Kealia to the Anahola Beach Park) is envisioned to be built on land owned by the Department of Hawaiian Homes Lands. The first of three Community Input meetings was held on December 12, 2006, conducted by SSFM, the consulting firm tasked with preparing the Phase's Environmental Assessment (“EA”). As of Q3-2023, the County of Kauai has suspended all planning efforts for this Phase.
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Phase VI (from Ahukini Point to Nawiliwili) is in the permitting process. Consulting firm R.M. Towill has completed the Environmental Assessment and been issued a Finding of No Significant Impact (“FONSI”). The next step as of Q4-2023 is to seek the approval of the project from the State of Hawaii’s Office of Conservation and Coastal Lands (“OCCL”), Department of Land and Natural Resources (DLNR”).
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Only maintenance and emergency vehicles are allowed on the paths, with the exception of mobility carts for genuinely disabled persons. Motor-scooters, motorcycles, mopeds, e-bikes (except Class I e-bikes), powered bicycles, Segways, and quads are all considered by the County to be motorized vehicles and so are excluded.
Yes, except for the small portion of pathway in Lydgate Park between the Morgan Swimming Ponds south to the intersection of the pathway connecting to the Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Sports Park area. Current County ordinances prohibit bringing animals into County parks in general.
In May, 2010 the Kauai County Council passed amended animal control ordinances, and the key points are:
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Dogs may be on path except for the small portion of pathway in Lydgate Park between the Morgan Swimming Ponds south to the intersection of the pathway connecting to the Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Sports Park area.
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Handler must be in control of dog at all times.
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No minimum age requirement for dog handler.
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Two dogs per handler max.
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Must have poop bag in evidence.
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Dog owner must remove & dispose of dog’s feces.
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Dog must be leashed.
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Maximum leash length 6 ft., non-retractable.
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Must remove dog from the area if it gets aggressive.
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Fenced off-leash dog park to be created in Wailua Homesteads Park.
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Ke Ala Hele Makalae is part of the County parks system. For all non-emergency situations, call police dispatch at 808 241-1711. Police Dispatch can notify appropriate personnel to address the issue of concern. All emergencies, call 911. Emergency calls should not be directed to the Department of Parks & Recreation. For maintenance issues, contact the Department of Parks & Recreation at 808 241-4460.
Not at this time. Equestrians were considered to be allowed only from the North end of Kealia Beach to Ahihi Point, within Phase II. A rock fall hazard was identified along the path, and the narrow section was deemed too dangerous to accommodate the equestrian element. During the preparation of the Phase V (Ahihi Point in Kealia to Anahola Beach Park) Environmental Assessment, an equestrian element will be considered for Phase V and possibly continuing South into the Kuna Bay area presently served by Phase II.
Kauai Path, Inc. is not affiliated with the County or State governments. Kauai Path is a registered 501 (c) (3) non-profit educational organization.
In 1999 then Council Member Bryan Baptiste convened a group to serve as a Citizens’ Advisory Committee in order to provide a forum for community input to the planning of an East Kauai coastal pathway. That group selected the name “Ke Ala Hele Makalae” for the pathway from Nawiliwili to Anahola, and between 1999 and 2007 met as the Ke Ala Hele Makalae Committee.
In 2007 members of the Ke Ala Hele Makalae Committee nominated individuals to serve on the board of Kauai Path, an organization with a scope of endeavor encompassing all of Kauai.
As of December 2007, Kauai Path’s board of directors had been elected and the group registered as a Hawaii corporation, and as of 2008 was an independent registered non-profit organization.
Complaints should be addressed to the County of Kauai Department of Parks & Recreation at 808 241-4456.
That is the remains of the Pineapple Dump. Up until the 1960s the Hawaiian Canneries Company, Ltd. canning plant in Kapaa (where the Pono Kai condominiums are now) used to produce canned sliced and crushed pineapple and pineapple juice used for food-flavoring purposes. Factory by-products — the crowns & skins from the processed pineapples — were loaded onto train carts and hauled up to that structure. The rubbish was then dumped into the ocean from the end of the pier. At some point a fisherman installed a fishing pole holder near the end of the pier. Today access onto the pier is blocked with railings displaying a pineapple motif reminiscent of that bygone industry.
NOTE: Since this question was asked, interpretive signage has been installed with this sort of cultural, historical, and environmental information at the rest pavilion near the Pineapple Dump and at about a dozen other locations along the path. This interpretive signage project was awarded a Historic Hawaii Foundation Preservation Award.
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