Quite possibly the most magical two minutes of your drive to the Southside, Kaua`i’s famous tree tunnel sends you on a euphoric journey during your last leg.
Sunlight flickers through the branches and leaves on the Maluhia Road’s three-mile long stretch of over 500 Eucalyptus trees as you cruise on through to Sunny Poipu!
A bit of history behind Kaua`i’s tree tunnel:
- The original 500 trees were planted in 1911 as a gift to the community from Pineapple Baron Walter McBryde. They were leftover from a large landscape project of his estate home, which are now the grounds of the Kukuiolono Park and Golf Course in Kalaheo. McBryde was the co-founder of McBryde Sugar Company and also managed the Kaua`i Pineapple Company.
- The tree tunnel marks the entrance to the island’s most appreciated tourist attraction – The Koloa Heritage Trail. The Heritage Trail or the Holo Holo Koloa Scenic Byway is collectively represented by a series of places to stops that are of historical importance.
- These historically important attractions depict the island’s rich history and geology such as the ancient places of worship, the early sugar plantation days, or natural wonders like the Spouting Horn and Kaua`i’s iconic beaches like Waiohai at Poipu, Shipwrecks, and Salt Ponds.
- Eucalyptus trees are also sacred trees. The leaves have a purifying effect and negative energies disappear when Eucalyptus oils are exposed. The Eucalyptus spirit helps us strip away our fears in order to embrace the truth.
- The word ‘Maluhia’ from the Maluhia Road, means ‘serenity’… The perfect terminology for this road, as it embodies the emotions you feel while driving it.
- These big, beautiful trees have survived two hurricanes and continue to thrive creating a canopy of over 100 feet!
Kaua`i’s tree tunnel provides the most beautiful natural gateway to a slice of heaven – a trip of a lifetime, and the fairytale you’ve always dreamed of. What a welcome to Kaua`i’s south shore!
written by Lucy Wilson // photography by Lucy Wilson
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