Maulili Pool These days, Koloa’s Maulili Pool, located off Waikomo Road, is a deep swimming hole called “Green Pond” by local children. But in ancient times, this pool was the legendary home of a large dragon goddess. The steep rock
Maulili Pool
These days, Koloa’s Maulili Pool, located off Waikomo Road, is a deep swimming hole called “Green Pond” by local children.
But in ancient times, this pool was the legendary home of a large dragon goddess. The steep rock ledge on its eastern bank was called “Pali o Koloa,” from which the Koloa District received its name. And long ago, two ditches draining from the southern end of the pool watered east and west Koloa.
In 1835, Maulili Pool became the original mill site of Ladd & Company, Hawai‘i’s first successful sugar plantation, which was founded by William Ladd, Peter Brinsmade and William Hooper on 980 acres of land leased from Kamehameha III and Gov. Kaikio‘ewa of Kaua‘i at $300 per year.
However, by 1867, a visitor to Koloa wrote that “not a vestige” remained of the Maulili mill, which had been moved upstream.
Also in the 1800s, Koloa children, both Caucasian and Hawaiian, had great fun swimming, diving and jumping together at Maulili Pool, when the stream had not yet been diverted to irrigate sugarcane, so there was plenty of fresh water flowing through the pool, as is not the case today.
Back in those good old days, “Pahia” jumping, in which the children would jump off a ledge, fold up like a jack-knife on the way down and, just before striking the water, quickly straighten to hit the water with a curve that would skim the water to a feet-first entry, was considered an art.
Close by, the long since vanished millpond’s steep, wet, 10- to 12-foot high banks provided children with a great slippery-slide into the pond and hours of fun.
