The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1917-06-01
PUMA FURNISHES A
DELIGHTFUL TOUR
Pilot Car Party Finds Much To
Il Appreciate IN Beautiful,
I Little Known Places

nAiH'l nay 1v--mluht all the varied
and typieally Hawaiian scenes Of Puma
district, where primitive Hawaiian life
has one Of its few strongholds the Adj
vertiser Dodge Pilot Car roamed It's
way last week.
Kalapana, and along the sea shore 10
Kapoho, over excellent roads, in see.
| mic settings Of exceptional beauty. the
IPilof Car travelled. finding in this little.
known district one Of the choice motor
ing tours Of all the Islands.
Practically every kind Of scenery ne.
culiar to Hawaii il found in Puma
district Here forest and mountain.
volcanic formations and luxuriant veg.
citation, coast line and cane fields com.
bine in profusion Of color and pano-
rama vistns.
Kamaaina As Guide
Henry j. Lyman, cane planter and
road overseer for the district, enter
tanned the members of the Pilot Car
party and acted as guide and advisor
during the trip.
With Hilo as headquarera, the drive
to Kalapana, Kapoho and Other. points
Of interest in this district Is a round
trip Of eighty miles over fine motor
roads The roads compare very favor.
ably with any on Hawaii, though not
any belt road money had been used for
highway construction IN the district
south OF 0laa
Old Native Lffc
While glimpses Of old native life and
the beauties Of tropical scenery pre-
dominate as the attractions Of the dis
trict, many other features OF. interest
to the traveller are TO be found.
After leaving the belt road at Olaa.
the Pilot Car j0nrneyed south across
the old lava flow lands TO Pahoa, tax.
ing the south fork TO Kaimu and Ka-
lapana. The drive from this point on
was found to be one Of intense interest
and remarkable beauty. The road 10
kalapana Is one Of the most beautiful
tropical forest drives on the Island
Great ferns and vines and dense nm.
dergrowth cluster about the base OF
the ohia, koa, palm and puhala that
stretch fon@miles on each side Of the
highway in magnificent groves. Home
steads and native settlements are found
here and there through the forest
Here are also found extensive ava
plantations where probably more ava
is cultivated than in any other district
in the Territory.
Visits were made by the Pilot Car
party to ava drying camps where the
root is prepared for market.
Many Primitive Homes
Grass huts and other evidences Of
primitive Hawaiian life, always Of In.
tereat TO the traveller in the islands,
We're visited along the road. - ~ n
Arriving at Kaimu ON the shore,
where the black sand beach and the
grove of graceful cocoannt palms form
one Of the prettiest scenic pictures 70
be found on the Island, the Pilot Car
continued along the beach road to
Kalapana, where a halt was made for
lunch.
From Kaimu to Kapoho Is the recent.
" opened coast drive that reveals
the charm Of the district in a new
setting. Along this road, fantastic
lava flow formations are seen and ON
the makai side is a view Of surf and
rugged coast line where the lava ends
abruptly in the sea.
Foam Edged Lavas
The barren black lava coast line
edged by the froth Of the white line Of
breakers, is alternately near and clear
along the roadside OF distant framed
and half-hidden by the picturesque
groves Of puhala, palm and fern. The
eyer-shifting scene of surf-beaten lava
coast and tropical forest mingling in
panoramic views along this drive is
one of the most charming attractions
of Hawaii and, because of its aecessi-
bility to the visitor TO Hilo, one that
should be widely advertised.
Much Cultivation
Puma is not all lava and forest, for,
in addition to the numbering, ava grow
ing and rubber planting that are to be
found near to Pahoa, extensive fields
Of fine cane are located near Kapoho.
Here the Lymans and Olaa Sugar Com
pany have large areas under cnltiva.
ton and the Pilot Car found again new
scenery and new charms in this dis
trict Of varied interest Not only cane
but fruits and vegetables are seen
growing on the many homesteads and
small farms in this region.
The drive back to Pahoa from Ka-
poho is again one Of interest, Extinct
craters are the feature Of the land
scape, Haleakamahina--'' House Of the
Moon ~ and Waiapele nPele's
Lake being the two largest.
The latter crater is occupied by the
Green Lake from which II takes its
Hawaiian name. Many other points
Of interest to the traveller were visited
in1this district by the Pilot Car party
Warm Springs, the quaint little town
of Pohoiki, burial caves and burial
grounds on the lava flows.
The district abounds Ia places OF
legendary and historical interest that
but add to the attractions this sea-girt,
forest-eovered, lava.strewn region holds
for the motoring tourist.