The AFR’s Washington correspondent visits the Hawaiian island where Mark Zuckerberg has his hideaway.
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Amonth or so ago, a scheduled interview I’d set up with an American general based in Pearl Harbour fell through at short notice.
Within hours, I’d convinced myself it was surely only logical to still take the flight to the Aloha State for a much-needed sun-and-surf break, and simply switch the time to annual leave.
A mate had told me to avoid Hawaii at all costs – it’s an overrated, commercialised tourist destination stuck in the 1970s. But I sought a second opinion from the Australian former chief executive of globally recognised brand WD-40, Garry Ridge, who recently purchased a few million dollars’ worth of land near Anini Beach on the island of Kauai.
The Nā Pali Coast along Kauia’s north shore has rugged cliffs and lush vegetation.
Yes, much of Hawaii has become run-of-the-mill tourism, Ridge agreed. But not his precious Kauai, known as the “Garden Island”, a 22-minute (or so) flight from Honolulu.
“We love Kauai for its beauty and calm, but also the engaging environment. It’s different to the other islands, because it’s not a mirror of the US mainland – its culture is about nature,” Ridge says.
He found the island via what he calls “the Aussie spirit of discovery” – visiting there after his daughter’s wedding on Oahu.
Garry Ridge and his wife, Maria, are building their forever home on the island of Kauai, Hawaii.
Ridge is based between San Diego and Sydney, and loves Hawaii, given it’s halfway between his two homes. Unlike former advertising king John Singleton, who quickly flipped his Hawaii home (on Oahu’s Lanikai Beach), Ridge and his wife, Maria, are in the process of designing and building their last “forever home” on Kauai – and the couple hopes to be living there by 2026.
With that, I’m sold. A few weeks later, shortly after touching down at Kauai’s Lihue Airport, I’m standing at the car rental kiosk – a car being essential on the island. As I complete the paperwork, a rooster struts through the main door followed by a hen, which pecks at people’s feet. Some wealthy American honeymooners snap a photo as a reminder of the casualness of this place.
I quickly discover that the local towns are pretty drab, a bit like Byron Bay in the 1990s, but that hasn’t deterred the rich and famous.
In December 2021, Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg added 110 acres purchased for $US17 million ($26.6 million) to the 1350 acres he already owned on Kauai’s north shore – all just part of his vast real estate portfolio in the US, estimated to be worth about $US320 million. (Zuckerberg created a media and Facebook storm in 2016 when he built a rock-and-stone wall around his Kauai compound.)
Over the years, celebrities of the ilk of Ben Stiller, Pierce Brosnan, Bette Midler, Julia Roberts and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson have all had (or still have) hideaways here.
Kauai is the fourth-largest island of Hawaii, and generally considered quieter than the other pin-up island of Maui. The big difference is that, unlike the bigger Hawaiian islands, there are no high-rises, highways or commercial food chains at every town on Kauai. It’s touted as one of the lesser-developed islands, but don’t be fooled – Southwest Airlines schedules about 10 flights a day from Honolulu. This is definitely not untrodden terrain.
Manawaiopuna Falls (Jurassic Park Falls) is a privately owned waterfall in Hanapepe Valley on Kauai. Getty
Kauai’s key selling point is as a true adventure island. So adventurous, in fact, that the activities can get a little exhausting. Steep and challenging red soil hiking tracks wend past guava trees and gushing creeks and waterfalls powered by the 11 metres of annual rainfall the island receives. The island’s pounding 122-metre Manawaiopuna Falls even featured in Jurassic Park.
With so much strenuous activity on offer, I treat myself to a luxury hotel for a few nights – 1 Hotel Hanalei Bay, recommended by Ridge, to recover from all the physical exertion.
The drive from the airport weaves through lush farms of pineapples, palm trees and tropical forests with views of some quite rough beaches.
1 Hotel Hanalei Bay overlooks the iconic Hanalei Bay, with the waterfall-striated Hihimanu, Nāmolokama and Māmalahoa mountains as the backdrop.
As I arrive at the hotel, perched on the side of a cliff, a remarkable sunset is taking place, and someone is sounding a conch shell – which, despite the cliché, is so impressive, I stop in my tracks.
The hotel is still in the final touches of a $US300 million ($472 million) renovation, much of which is aimed at bolstering its sustainability credentials. Here, you won’t find mass-produced commercial fittings, but rather earthy warm interiors with thatched rugs and wooden furnishings. There was probably a television in the room, but I didn’t notice because the view over Hanalei Bay, framed by creeping vines, was so captivating.
Room with a view at 1 Hotel at Hanalei Bay, Kauai. Matthew Cranston
I sat transfixed until it was dark, then went to dine at the hotel’s Welina Terrace, a modern, Japanese-inspired restaurant with wonderfully fresh seafood.
The chef determines a course of Nigiri sushi, which proves to be so extensive I ask him to write down the best parts: Madai, a Japanese sea bream with Spanish olive oil, lemon zest and Shiso fleur de sal (a special salt); nodoguro (blackthroat sea perch) with nikiri soy, and the Anago (saltwater eels), plus the conger eel with sesame seeds and sansho pepper.
White Tiger Roll at Welina Terrace, 1 Hotel Hanalei Bay.
A ukulele is being played on the other side of the restaurant, accompanied by classic Hawaiian voices. This is now all way too comfortable for me. Too nice! My adventure tomorrow will change that.
From the hotel, I drive 14 minutes to pick up a shuttle bus, which takes its riders along the Nā Pali Coast for about 20 minutes, up into the Hono O Nā Pali Natural Reserve Area.
Hono O Nā Pali Natural Reserve Area preserves a forest ecosystem. Matthew Cranston
It’s a solid two-hour hike up to the Hanakāpīʻai Falls. I travel lightly, wearing an old cotton polo shirt, board shorts and sneakers, carrying a small backpack with water, snacks and a change of shirt. (Almost everything got wet.)
Reaching Hanakāpīʻai Falls is an experience in itself. Other tourists are around, but there’s a sense of otherworldliness here, as if you’ve stumbled into a fantasy movie. I dive into the lagoon and swim under the waterfall.
The foliage is a lush lime green and glistening; exquisite dragonflies and beetles of unimaginable colours are all around; they move so slowly in the heat, you can reach out and touch them.
A couple swims at Hanakāpīʻai Falls on Kauai. Getty
I set off for the downhill journey still feeling the spray of the waterfall 50 metres away. Then a squall of rain hits, rapidly increasing the flow of water in the creeks – suddenly all the signs warning of flash flooding make total sense.
On reaching the beach at the bottom of the valley, I’m soaked, and plunge into the warm ocean fully clothed and shod. Tomorrow will be gentler, I figure that night, as I tussle with some swordfish skewers at the hotel’s more casual restaurant, 1 Kitchen.
Next morning, I wake up late and amble down past the swimming pool and deckchairs to the hotel’s private beach to hire snorkelling gear. The dark trunk of the giant False Kamani tree (Terminalia catappa) frames a sail boat; the clear water beckoning with its treasure trove of fish and turtles.
Hanalei Bay is a popular spot for swimming and snorkelling.
I swim through schools of striped fish all bunched together, darting in unison; then explore caverns and tidal pools – noticing a particularly circular-looking entity which turns out to be a green sea turtle. On closer inspection, this beautiful creature’s camouflage seems to wear off until finally, it looks up and around, as if to say: “OK, you found me.”
Back at the hotel, I rest on a pool deckchair; a waiter wanders past with trays of chilli sugared pineapple pieces. If this isn’t heaven, it’s close.
After being so up close to the island – battling thick forest and playing tai chi with the sea – I feel the need for a bigger picture view, so take a 45-minute helicopter tour. Some 20 operators each do about five flights a day, meaning you don’t need to panic about booking late in your holiday.
The tour includes the dry part of the island, which Mark Twain once dubbed “the Grand Canyon of the Pacific”. Whoever your pilot is probably won’t shut up with the plentiful stories, but they are mostly informative.
A helicopter ride offers a spectacular view of the Nā Pali Coast. Getty
Having felt like an extra from Jurassic Park over the past few days, my drive back to the airport provides time to recalibrate before re-entering reality. I drop into the charmingly daggy Jimmy’s Grill on the beach in the small town of Kapaa.
A mature-age local band plays an acoustic version of Harry Styles as I sip beer and feast on a Hawaiian salad. “You know it’s not the same as it was/ As it was, as it was,” they sing. And yet, in Kauai, it’s still very much the same as it was. At least, aside from the likes of Zuckerberg and his controversial privacy wall that is.
The writer travelled at his own expense.
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