Could authors be sued for visitor deaths?

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House Bill 548 has advanced Tuesday after passing the Tourism Committee in the state House of Representatives. This controversial bill addresses liability for injuries and/or deaths of visitors who go to popular spots that may be on private property and releases those property owners from liability. Many injuries and even deaths have occured after people have read about waterfalls, hikes and other natural attractions in popular Hawaii oriented guidebooks. I specifically recall 2 people who plummeted to their deaths on Kauai after following a hunter trail over Opaeka’a Falls outlined in a popular Kauai guidebook. I got chills seeing the area roped off with all kinds of signs not to trespass knowing why they were there. The problem is many visitors think because it’s written in a guidebook, it’s safe even if it’s worded it may be dangerous.

To read more about this bill and it’s potential impact, click here.

Temporary reduction in Diamond Head Trail hours

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The Diamond Head Crater Summit Trail hours have been reduced to 6 a.m. to noon, Monday-Friday. The trail will be closed to the public from 12pm to 6 pm M-F so that contractors can improve parts of the trail that have deteriorated. The restricted weekday schedule will remain in effect for the length of the project, which is expected to last 60 days. However weekend hours will remain the same. Weekday hikers are asked to begin their journey to the summit no later than noon and return to the parking lot by 2pm.

For more info about this project, click here.

Free admission to National Parks on Veterans Day

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If you’re going to be in Hawaii this Veterans Day, the National Park system is waiving entrance fees! When you’re vacationing every little bit helps! If you’d like to see the list of the National Parks in Hawaii, click here.

Not able to make it to paradise? Click here to find a National Park near you.

Kalalau Trail 1 week from closing

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We told you earlier in the summer about the DLNR closing the Kalalau Trail for about 2 months at the end of the summer. That begins September 7th and is scheduled to reopen on October 31st. (I wouldn’t set my watch by that one though) To read more about the closure, click here.

Restrictions extended for former popular Maui snorkel spot

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The ‘Ahihi-Kinau’u Natural Area Reserve (also known as Fishbowl or Aquarium) in South Kihei has 2 more years of protection from heavy visitor traffic. The area that is a little more remote was overrun with people following guidebook suggestions according to Hawaii Magazine and the reef and underwater sealife were disturbed, not to mention the tumbles taken to get there over the jagged a’a lava.

If you want to read more about this, go to the Hawaii Magazine article and/or the Maui Now update.

Kalalau Valley to close in the fall

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Kalalau rock mitigation- Garden Island News

If you’re planning a trip to Kauai in the fall and have sunset on Kalalau Beach on your to do list, you’ll need to rethink that. The DLNR will be doing massive “rockfall mitigation” work on the south end of Kalalau Beach due to rockslide issues and the entire valley will be closed for at least two months starting in the beginning of September. (Plan on that extending just because they may not know what they’re in for until they start the project)

Some say that because of the lack of enforcement and regular maintenance of toilets in the area that this is a way for them to finally close off the Na Pali coast since there have been many injuries and deaths. This is only speculation of course but if you have Kalalau on your bucket list, squeezing in a summer trip might not be a bad idea.

To read more about this story, click here for the Garden Island News’ article.

The merge has been completed

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For those who loved reading the Honolulu Advertiser either in print or online, those days have unfortunately come to an end. The Advertiser has been merged with rival paper the Star Bulletin. To read more about the merger, click here.

To read the new online version of Hawaii’s new hybrid, the url is www.staradvertiser.com.

How effective is your sunscreen?

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I have a fair skinned husband who has a family history of melanoma so sunscreen is an important thing to us. When we were on Kauai and the sunscreen was running low, we saw that Hawaiian Tropic had new spray sunscreen in SPF 50 so he was happy to be able to get that coconut smell in a spray. I wish I’d found this site before we bought the next bottle of sunscreen. You can find your sunscreen in their database and see how it ranks. Hawaiian Tropic…it’s on the avoid list. Sigh. I don’t know that I would stop buying it for me as a light sunscreen but for my man, when the bottle runs out, we’ll be consulting this list to make sure he gets the absolute best protection. If you want to see how yours rates, click here and search away. (This is one of those things you need to make up your own mind about and decide whether or not it’s something that concerns you enough to use in the future)

When will the jellyfish arrive?

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Box jellyfish can be quite a nuisance especially if you get stung while swimming. It seems that an influx can be predicted anywhere from 7-10 days after a full moon. It’s not at all uncommon to check the local papers and see that certain beaches have been closed due to being innundated by hundreds of jellyfish.

If you’re planning your vacation to the islands and are curious to see when might be the best time to avoid the water, there’s a great resource called 808Jellyfish.com. They give the 3 predicted days of influx per month along with the moon phases. The dates are based off of historical data and are predictions only. Please remember that these creatures are always a hazard and always present so be alert when swimming. If you have any questions about beach safety or certain beaches, go to the Ocean Safety website.

Trapping chickens/roosters humanely

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bird_behind_bars Most of us hear the sound “cock-a-doodle-doo” and think of a sweet farm scene or nature’s alarm clock telling us the day is about to begin. If you’ve ever been to Kauai (or most of the Hawaiian islands) you know that the chickens and roosters there are on a completely different time schedule than those idyllic farm scenes. They’ll crow morning, noon, night and all times in between. This is not only a disturbance for homeowners in the islands but their neighbors as well and some of them have gone to extreme measures to quiet the squawkers.

While perusing Kauai Humane Society’s website, I saw they recommended Kauai company Rooster Traps for humanely capturing the audible critters. The site comes with a FAQ section and a detailed description of how the trap works. This may be just the solution you’ve been looking for! Check ‘em out!

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