A look down Queen Ka’ahumanu Highway

Queen Kaahumanu Highway on the Big Island, Hawaii, as seen from the air

The Queen Ka’ahumanu Highway was built in the 1970s to connect Kailua Kona to Kawaihae and Waimea along a coastal route. This also opened up the south Kohala coast for resort development that had been led by the Mauna Kea Resort, which opened in the late 1960s. Mauna Kea Resort is in the foreground of this image.

14 thoughts on “A look down Queen Ka’ahumanu Highway”

    1. Graham's avatarGraham Post author

      I doubt they contributed much at all, but the highway paved the way for further development and a huge leap in growth on this side of the island. We have a 1971 USGS map on the wall and Kailua Kona is represented by a dot on it. This means it was a tiny village at that time. These days it’s the second largest town on the island behind only Hilo, all due to the highway and growth of the resorts – for better or for worse!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. bushboy's avatarbushboy

        I guess everyone has to live somewhere. There are towns here much the same. Used to be nothing but fishers thrown together from whatever they could find shacks, grown into large seaside towns due to popularity of holiday makers over the years

        Liked by 1 person

        1. Graham's avatarGraham Post author

          There are places here also where ramshackle houses sit side by side with luxury homes. Slowly but surely the former are purchased and bulldozed to make way for the latter.

          Liked by 1 person

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