One way, while gazing in awe at sheer cliffs overlooking the Pacific, was to descend on a mule along a 3-mile trail, with 26 switchbacks, from 1,700 feet on the North Shore Pali. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, those awesome cliffs are the tallest sea cliffs in the world, measuring as high as 3,900 feet. Unfortunately the Kalaupapa Pali Trail is closed indefinitely for repairs due to a landslide. The National Park Service is working to restore access. Thus the second way to see Kalaupapa National Historical Park currently is the only way: by air with breathtaking views of Molokai’s north coast.
One of the most remote and isolated settlements in Hawaii, the historic town of Kalaupapa was once home to Belgian missionary Father Damien and Mother Marianne Cope. In 1873 Father Damien chose to leave the “outside world” to care for people with Hansen’s disease (leprosy) who were exiled to and residing on Kalaupapa Peninsula. After 16 years of legendary service, he succumbed to the disease himself and was laid to rest at historic St. Philomena Roman Catholic Church in Kalaupapa. A few months before his death, almost miraculously, Mother Cope and her Franciscan sisters agreed to live and care for people in Kalaupapa. Father Damien was canonized in 2009 and Mother Marianne in 2012.
These days the only way to experience Kalaupapa National Historical Park, sequestered in the midst of Molokai’s natural beauty, is from an aerial perch. In addition to ridges, peaks and remote valleys, and waterfalls on the north shore plunging 1500 feet into the sea from the world’s tallest sea cliffs, Molokai’s south shore has Hawaii’s longest fringing reef (28 miles) that shelters scenic turquoise lagoons. Your expert pilot serving as a guide will cover highlights of the island’s diverse landscape and also the history of the island from the time of Polynesian voyagers who originally settled the island to the eras of Father Damien, Mother Cope and the Hawaiians that make up much of today’s population.
Best of all, a Molokai and Kalaupapa air tour is available in a state-of-the-art TWIN Engine-Pressurized airplane that provides First Class air-conditioned comfort (including a Bose Noise cancelling headset and 2-way direct communication with your personal tour guide/pilot). A Molokai and Kalaupapa air tour with Big Island Air departs daily from the Kahului or Kapalua airports on Maui. Flight time is approximately 30 minutes each way with a tour time at the peninsula of about 4 hours.