Sunday, March 11, 2012

Chapter 4- Nawiliwili Harbor


Nawiliwili Harbor is on the western shores of Kauai Island, the northernmost of the Hawaiian island chain.  Nawiliwili Harbor is over 18 nautical miles and is about 2.5 kilometers southeast of Lihue, the island's second largest city with a population of less than six thousand people.  Nawiliwili Harbor is the main port on Kauai. Before Europeans came to Hawaii, the Nawiliwili Bay area was important to the island's inhabitants for its fertility.  Their subsistence-based economy depended on fish and the cultivation of taro.
The State of Hawaii's Harbors Division within the State's Department of Transportation manages Nawiliwili Harbor. The Harbors Division operates and maintains State water transportation facilities, including Nawiliwili Harbor.  Located at the mouth of the Hule'ia Stream, Nawiliwili Harbor is the port-of-call for cruise ships visiting Kauai Island.  There are two piers at Nawiliwili Harbor that receive or ship containerized and conventional general cargo and automobiles.  They receive petroleum products, bulk fertilizers, and cement and ship molasses and bulk raw sugar.  The piers are also used for passengers to board and deboard cruise ships at Nawiliwili Harbor.  The United States Coast Guard operates the US government-owned Nawiliwili Harbor Station Wharf to moor Coast Guard vessels.
Nawiliwili Harbor boasts two parks that residents and visitors enjoy.  Nawiliwili Beach Park and Niumalu Beach Park are both on the shores of Nawiliwili Bay.  Niumalu Beach Park is a popular location for launching kayaks, and campers need a county permit.  Located about less than two miles southwest of Nawiliwili Harbor is the Huleia National Wildlife Refuge.  The Refuge was established in to shelter the natural wetlands and habitat supporting several endangered species of Hawaiian waterbirds.  The Refuge is not open to the public, but can be reached from a nearby shoreline.

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