The Kohala Mountain Road passes over the dry southwest side of Kohala Mountain. There are several streams running down the side of the mountain toward Kawaihae and the Kohala Coast and they can run anything from dry to flash flood. It all depends on the rain.

This stream, just below the road’s high point around 3,500 feet, is running somewhere in the middle of the flow range. The top photo shows the stream tumbling through a series of pools on its way to the coast. And those black pipes? The photo to the left shows a small dam, built into the stream. Those pipes gather water from behind the dam and carry it to ponds where it’s stored for use during dry times.