Halawa Valley - Moaula Falls

Visitors who stay for longer than one day on Molokai should be prepared to accept the difficulties of a journey to Halawa Valley. The beauty of this unique landscape more than makes up for it.

The valley lies to the east of Molokai, no great distance from the west or from Kaunakakei, but the difficult and winding stretch at the end of road 450 makes the journey time to the valley longer than might be expected. Allow at least four hours for a return journey and longer if stops along the route are envisaged.

A vantage point along the route offers a good view of Halawa Valley and Halawa Bay. Molokai's first inhabitants probably settled in Halawa Valley (Halawa means "curve" in Hawaiian). Taro was extensively grown here on layered terraces until a particularly strong tsunamis (spring tide) in 1946 flooded the whole valley and deposited so much salt that plants would no longer flourish here.