After almost a three year absence, Molokai's mules are back. No experience is necessary. This spectacular, untouched coastline, cloaked in evergreen for as far as the eye can see, is punctuated by offshore phantasmagorically shaped islets, sea caves that are a kayaker's delight and cascades that spring off lofty bluffs to plummet directly into the cerulean sea. The mule drive reaches sea level about 10 a.m.
Riders then proceed another quarter mile until they tie their mounts up at the bottom of the trail.
During the 19th Century, the Kingdom of Hawaii forced sufferers of Hansen's Disease into exile at the bottom of secluded Kalaupapa Peninsula. Father Damien de Veuster, the Belgian priest who aided Kalaupapa's afflicted from 1873 until he succumbed to the disease in 1889, epitomizes the kokua spirit. The highlight of the tour is a visit to St. Philomena, the unpretentious Catholic church where Father Damien preached to his banished parishioners. Today, with Hansen's Disease easier to control, the infected aren't forced to live on Kalaupapa, but a handful have voluntarily decided to remove themselves from the prying eyes of society and live in this simple village with its whitewashed wooden homes. The tour is totally nonpolluting.