POLIHALE — A drive out to Polihale State Park used to be a test of endurance for motorists and their vehicles. Today, it is simply a test of patience, as the 5-mile-long park access road has been closed since Nov.
POLIHALE — A drive out to Polihale State Park used to be a test of endurance for motorists and their vehicles. Today, it is simply a test of patience, as the 5-mile-long park access road has been closed since Nov. 28 due to the heavy rains and flooding resulting from a severe Kona storm last month.
According to Deborah Ward, spokeswoman for the Department of Land and Natural Resources, typically at least five consecutive sunny days are required to properly dry the road so it can be used. Unstable weather patterns during December have postponed repair work, and until the weather allows for drying, all access roads will remain closed to avoid further damage, which could prevent emergency vehicles from entering the park.
“Once the road has sufficiently dried, state park crews can lay cobble-sized stones as a form of road maintenance, a practice that goes on throughout the year,” Ward said.
A Kaua‘i parks maintenance supervisor was scheduled to inspect the road’s condition on Friday.
Repairs must also be made to the road leading to a broken water pump. The pump has shut down all toilet and shower facilities in the park, suspending the issuance of camping permits at Polihale since mid-September. Ward said the pump has failed before and called the water system a “chronic problem.”
DLNR expects a new pump by early January.
Ward added that as with other state parks, facilities at Polihale are aging and in need of repair, a process that continues statewide as funds are appropriated. Currently there are no funds available for more permanent road repairs leading to Polihale Beach.
With the longest stretch of continuous sandy beach in Hawai‘i, Polihale is a popular, but remote, destination for local residents and island visitors.
DLNR annual visitor count statistics put Polihale State Park use at 169,700 in 2007 (year-to-date). Last year, DLNR issued 736 camping permits to 3,910 campers.
According to Sue Kanoho, executive director of the Kaua‘i Visitors Bureau, complaints have gone up about the state of the park.
“We have received increased complaints from both residents and visitors on the lack of maintenance to the park, which I have shared with our governor’s liaison,” Kanoho said via e-mail. “It continues to be our hope that the state will put adequate resources into maintaining this park so it can remain open and viable to those that enjoy the area so much.”
Polihale State Park was also closed during the tsunami warning that followed the October 2006 Big Island earthquake.
Nearby at the Pacific Missile Range Facility, spokesman Tom Clements said the base has not seen a noticeable increase in use of recreational beach areas that can be attributed directly to the Polihale road closure.
Unlike Polihale, which only requires a sturdy vehicle and sound constitution for access, PMRF’s recreational beach areas are accessible only to permit holders.
Major’s Bay and Housings, two popular surf points at PMRF, drew less than 20 cars during the period of lower surf on west Kaua‘i last week. By contrast, the base can see as many as 60 to 90 cars a day between January and March during periods of high surf.
PMRF has a recreation pass program with close to 1,000 people signed up for the annual pass, which allows public access to designated areas on base.
Formerly open only to Kaua‘i residents, the program was amended in 2006 to include all U.S. citizens. To obtain the annual pass takes an average of three weeks and costs $20 for a national background security check.
