The Hawaiian gazette., 1894-08-03

IlS valley u OlONdlu - Oue VI lue
most beautiful and least visited
Very rarely a person is met with
who has seen it, and rarely anyone
speaks of it, although it is by no
means a small valley. Olowalu is
a land adjoining Lahaina, Maui,
on the south, at present occupied
by one of our thrifty little planta-
lions. The water which irrigates
the cane comes from the valley of
the same name in the mountain
range which forms the backbone of
West Maui.
On one occasion a tourist called
at nv store in Lahaina and asked
me il there was any scenery in the
neighborbood worth visiting. 1
replied that Olowalu valley, in the
vicinity, 1 was told, was grand, and
that in olden times there was a
trail through it to Waikiki. He
begged me to accompany him for
a trip up the valley, which would
be as novel to me as to him. |
agreed, and, getting up a lunch,
we started off on our horses. After
riding about four miles along the
beach we turned directly towards
the mountains, although no opening
to a valley could be discerned.
Presently we deserted the entrance,
which was so inconsiderable that
my companion averred that there
could be no valley of magnitude
up that way. A native, seeing two
white men riding towards the val
ley, followed us, and l asked him if
that was the right road to Olowalu
valley, to which he answered yes,
Being thus encouraged we pushed
on, and presently crossed the stream
pouring out of the valley. Before
we reached the magnificent am
phitheatre, or extinct crater
called 0lowalu valley proper, we
had to cross this stream fifty-six
times. We were soon on the
winding gorge, almost as mar
row as an ordinary road in some
places, and whose PERCEPTIONS sides
lowered from 5000 to 1000 feet
above the bed of the stream. On
some parts of the gorge the sun
shone but an hour or two each day.
Spurs of mountains from one side
seemed to project into recesses in
the other. 1t appears hardly cred
lille that water has carved out this
deep and winding channel. More
likely volcanic action has caused a
rift in the mountain, and gradually
the action of water has cut it TO its
present depth and proportions.
In some places one side of the
gorge is bleak and sunburnt, while
the opposite is covered with a
dense tropical growth of evergreen
shrubbery over which chambers
parasitical vines and convolvulous.
Fortunately for us it was the
season for the water being low and
we were enabled to cross and re-
cross the stream without peril, but
we could see where large powders |
had been washed down in the mad |
torrents which occasionally rush |
oceanward from the immense |
watershed, of which this is the |
only outlet.
Finally and suddenly on turn
ing a bend we were into Olowalu |
valley. We had indeed been |
rightly informed. 1t was one of |
the grandest and most picturesque |
sights to be seen in any land. An |
almost circular basin of gigantic |
proportions, whose sides rise hun
dreds of feet and are covered from
base to summit with mantle of |
beautiful ferns and shrubbery,
down which hang festoons of rare
vines. The center of the valley is
q somewhat elevated mesa or table
land covered with a forest of tree |
ferns and wild bananas, with here
and there an immense koa tree
from whose branches droop flower
ing convolvulous. Here Nature,
apparently to make amends for the j
solitude, has done her best to pro-
duce plants, vines. shrubs and |
trees. Every direction that the |
eye turns the precipitous side of
this extinct crater seems to be COW
cred with its verdant carpet, re-
lieved by the scarlet blossoms of
the ohia, lehua or the brilliant |
flowers of the wild morning glories,
or of varied nasturtiums. The |
serrated rim is tufted about with |
shrubs from which pendulous |
vines wave in the breeze. The |
whole scene is more like some |
brilliant picture from Monte Cristo |
or the Arabian Nights than from |
what one would expect in nature.
On asking the native which was |