One of the prettiest places in the Hawaiian Islands – and thus anywhere in the world – is Kaneohe Bay on the Windward Side of Oahu – oppossite Honolulu. I’m sorry to tell you that you can’t experience the best parts of it unless you are in the U.S. Military in Hawaii or have base access.  One more piece of paradise seized by the U.S. after the overthrow of the Hawaiian Monarchy. The base itself houses about 12,000 Marines, their families, and contractors. In 1918 it was a U.S. Army Base, then a naval base, finally the home of the 2nd Marine Division. It was bombed nine minutes before Pearl Harbor during the Japanese attack. Today it is connected to Pearl Harbor by the H-3 Freeway.

What was once a scenic fishing village in a perfect sheltered bay is now a Marine Corps Base which covers an entire city sized peninsula and a town that mostly serves to take care of the servicemen and women who live there. The word kane means man and the word ohe means bamboo – so one might argue this is a ‘straw man’ – but the local story says that an ancient woman who lived there suffered from her husband’s cruelty and compared him to a sharp piece of bamboo.

There are about 40,000 non-military residents with no tourist infrastructure except for a hotel on the base. Also on the base are several beautiful beaches, one of the island’s best windward surf spots, and the ancient Mokapu volcano. Off the base you will find car dealerships, fast food, a pretty decent mall, a couple of golf courses, cemetaries, and a number of strip malls. There is an enjoyable miniature golf course, a small boat harbor, and a couple of mud or rock beaches which locals use for fishing.

In ancient times this was very productive farmland due to the sunlight, fertile soil, and heavy rainfall – today there are some banana patches in the area but not much more. To get an idea of how the Hawaiians saw this area it is essential to visit Ho’omaluhia Botanical Gardens where specific Hawaiian sections, walking trails and more show you a bit of Kaneohe as it was. Also a visit to He’eia Fishpond is recommended to see why the Hawaiians only had to work 4 hours a day and lived for a thousand years while importing nothing.  (Hint, they effectively used the land to provide for themselves).