Ola I Ka Wai O Ka 'Opua or There is Life in the Water From the Clouds

Ola I Ka Wai O Ka 'Opua or There is Life in the Water From the Clouds. .

"…we behold water falling in cascades and running in streams to the sea after having watered the habitation of the natives which are so numerous that a space of three or four leagues [9 or 12 miles] may be taken for a single village." - Description of Kipahulu by French [unreadable] by 1786.

, You are looking at the remains of a traditional hahale - or housesite, part of a larger kauhale (complex) that included garden terraces, animal pens, and walls. The complex extends mauka (towards the mountain) now obscured by thick forest. , Traditional land records trace this kauhale back to the Kauhoalalua family, who had lived here since the time of King Kamehameha I, in the 1790's. Radio carbon dating from a rock shelter above the house suggests that people had lived here as early as 1486 A.D. , [Captions:] , National Park Service reconstruction of a traditional hale (house), showing stone foundation and wooden framework. The stone foundation in front of you would likely have been framed by 'ohi'a (Metrosideros polymorpha) posts and thatched with pili grass (heteropogon contortus) or lau hala (Pandanus tectorius). , Upstream at the park's Kapahu Farm, kalo (taro) is still cultivated in ancient lo'i (wet terraces) and dryland terraces. The Kapahu Farm is managed by the kapahulu 'Ohana, a non-profit partner. , In Hawaiian cluture, kalo is believed to be by many to be the older brother of the first Hawaiian, Haloa, and is sacred. Kalo is the staple food of the Hawaiian culture and is made into poi and other delicacies.