They call it the “Friendly Isle”…

You may come away thinking of Molokai as the “Indifferent Isle”…

But what did you expect?

If you’ve come to Molokai for the nightlife, you’ve been woefully misled…

If you’ve come to Molokai to eat roasted pig at an “authentic” luau, while being entertained by “real Hawaiian hula dancers”; you’ve come to the wrong island…

But if you’ve come to Molokai to visit the place Hawaiians go to get away from it all…

Then you’ve come to the right place.

This is Hawaii for Hawaiians.

Molokai is a rural, agriculturally based community. The population does not exceed eight thousand inhabitants, half of whom are native Hawaiian. Except for the private island of Niihau, near Kauai, Molokai is the only island where the majority of residents are native Hawaiian.

Molokai has enjoyed a mystical quality, reaching back into its dim past. Ancient heiaus (temples) dot the landscape from which the kahunas – or sorcerers – weaved their magic. The sorcerers of Molokai were revered and respected among the inhabitants of neighboring islands, as were the fierce warriors that defended the agricultural bounty of the island. Molokai has always been mysterious as well as giving.

As with all the islands of Hawaii, Molokai was formed as volcanic activity slowly pushed up from the sea floor. After millions of years, the tops of these volcanic mountains broke above the sea, eventually forming the islands we know today. Molokai rose up from the sea about two million years ago and is the third oldest Hawaiian Island. Three volcanoes, now either dormant or inactive, make up the island of Molokai. To the west is Pa’u Nana, to the east is Kamakou, and centered in the small peninsula jutting off the central northern coast of Molokai is the Kauhako crater, now with an eight hundred foot deep lake at its core. Molokai sits as the northern point in a triangle made up of Maui to the southeast and Lanai to the southwest. Between these islands are the Pailolo and Kalohi Channels.

Thirty-seven miles long and no more than ten miles wide, Molokai is the fifth largest island of the Hawaiian chain. The climate of the island is divided between a dry, arid western side and a green, verdant eastern side. Depending on locale, average temperature ranges from seventy-five to eighty-five degrees. Thirty inches of rainfall is the yearly average.

Molokai sits near the center of the Pacific Ocean, and is one of the most isolated spots on earth…

And that’s why you want to go there, isn’t it?

That’s why we wanted to go there…

As I reported in the September issue of Tourist Traveler, my expectations of Molokai were summed up as follows:

“Molokai will be quiet, uncrowded, and laid-back – even for Hawaii”

And that is what we found…

We were finally taking advantage of a standing offer to “home exchange” for our flat in San Francisco. We could settle quietly into our own Hawaiian home, soak up the sea and the solitude for ten whole days, and live as Hawaiians do, or at least a lot closer than the time-share on Kona.

We arrived in the early afternoon with two suitcases, a set of keys, and some fairly vague instructions on finding the “nicely rusted” car, and then finding the house - “turn right out of the airport, go to the main road and turn left. Stay on that road for awhile. After the nineteen-mile marker you’ll see a little stone church on your left. The house is right next to the church.”

And there it was. A beautiful island home complete with a “treehouse” lanai to sit and watch the evening sun cast an orange glow across the channel, on the western shore of Maui.

We spent our time on the island quietly exploring, with our new companion, Barkley. A Jack Russell Terrier, Barkley, upon seeing us drive up in her masters’ nicely rusted Toyota, immediately adopted us and stole our hearts.

NEXT MONTH:

The People of the Red Dust – Molokai’s West End.