PRINCEVILLE – The Queen’s Bath coastal area at Princeville draws thousands of visitors each year. This summer the 20-minute or so hike to the basalt oceanside pool is as popular as ever, with a row of rental cars parked at
PRINCEVILLE – The Queen’s Bath coastal area at Princeville draws thousands of visitors each year.
This summer the 20-minute or so hike to the basalt oceanside pool is as popular as ever, with a row of rental cars parked at the trailhead to the coast.
The secluded coastal section was once known mostly to local residents of the North Shore who fished the coast, picked opihi, snorkled off the rocky ledges of the low-lying area and took children down to the natural basalt rock pool that gives the area it’s name.
A well-marked trail off Punahele Road within the main resort community at Princeville now has a parking area that’s usually filled with mostly rental cars.
Over the past decade Queen’s Bath has become known to visitors through detailed instructions on how to get to the trail that appear in visitor publications and in visitor guidebooks. Unfortunately, Queen’s Bath has gained notoriety for a string of visitor drownings that have occured in the waters off the bath. Most recently, a man accompanied by his son died there, though a heart attack played a role in the death. Last year an elderly man was swept offshore by a large wave and drowned.
There have been previous drownings at the spot, plus crippling injuries from an accident within the pool itself due to a shallow dive.
Several years ago the County of Kaua‘i closed the trail due to safety concerns, but later reopened it partly in response for requests from local residents for access to the spot.
The access and safety issues of Queen’s Bath have been discussed at past meetings of Mayor Bryan Baptiste’s Ka Leo ’O Kaua‘i meetings held on the North Shore.
At the meetings North Shore residents voiced safety concerns about Queen’s Bath at Princeville.
Discussion at the meeting claimed people were injuring themselves diving into the shoreline “bath,” and shoreline rocks become slippery and roads become muddy during heavy storms, opening the way for falls that could lead to serious injuries or deaths.
Letters have been sent to publishers of travel guidebooks, asking officials the companies to note the “potential safety hazards” that exist at Queen’s Bath, according to a statement from the county.
