Waimea Canyon State Park
{{short description|Protected area of Kauai County, Hawaii, United States}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}}
{{More citations needed|date=September 2011}}
{{Infobox park
| name = Waimea Canyon State Park
| photo = Waimea Canyon mar 2010.jpg
| photo_width = 250
| photo_alt = Waimea Canyon
| photo_caption =
| map = United States Kauai#USA Hawaii
| map_width = 250
| type =
| nearest_city = Waimea
| coords = {{coord|22|03|22|N|159|39|55|W}}
| area =
| created =
| operator = Department of Land and Natural Resources - Division of State Parks
| visitation_num =
| status =
| designation =
| open =
| website = [http://dlnr.hawaii.gov/dsp/parks/kauai/waimea-canyon-state-park/ Hawaiʻi State Parks]
}}
Waimea Canyon, also known as the Grand Canyon of the Pacific, is a large canyon, approximately {{convert|10|mi|km|spell=in}} long and up to {{convert|3,000|ft|m}} deep, located on the western side of Kaua{{okina}}i in the Hawaiian Islands of the United States. Waimea is Hawaiian for "reddish water", a reference to the erosion of the canyon's red soil.Pukui, Mary Kawena. Place Names of Hawaii. University of Hawaii Press. {{ISBN|0-8248-0524-0}}. The canyon was formed by a deep incision of the Waimea River arising from the extreme rainfall on the island's central peak, Mount Wai{{okina}}ale{{okina}}ale, among the wettest places on earth.
Geology
The canyon is carved into the tholeiitic and post-shield calc-alkaline lavas of the canyon basalt. The lavas of the canyon provide evidence of massive faulting and collapse in the island's early history. The west side of the canyon is all thin, west-dipping lavas of the Napali Member. In contrast, the east side is very thick, flat-lying lavas of the Olokele and Makaweli Members. The two sides are separated by an enormous fault along which a large part of the island moved downwards in a big collapse.
The canyon has a unique geologic history as it was formed not only by the steady process of erosion but also by the catastrophic collapse of the volcano that created Kaua{{okina}}i.
Like the other Hawaiian islands, Kaua{{okina}}i is the top of an enormous volcano rising from the ocean floor. With lava flows dated to about 5 million years ago, Kaua{{okina}}i is the oldest of the large Hawaiian islands. Roughly 4 million years ago, while Kaua{{okina}}i was still erupting almost continuously, a portion of the island collapsed. This collapse formed a depression which then filled with lava flows.
In the time since, rainwater from the slopes of Mount Wai{{okina}}ale{{okina}}ale have eroded Waimea Canyon along one edge of the collapse. On the east side of the canyon, the cliff walls are built from thick lava flows that pooled in the depression. Over time, the exposed basalt has weathered from its original black to bright red.{{Cite web |date=2003-12-21 |title=Waimea Canyon, Kaua‘i |url=https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/4067/waimea-canyon-kauai#:~:text=Over%20time,%20the%20exposed%20basalt,original%20black%20to%20brilliant%20red. |access-date=2023-02-19 |website=earthobservatory.nasa.gov |language=en}}
Geography
Waimea Canyon State Park encompasses {{convert|1,866|acre|km2|abbr=on}} and is a popular tourist attraction on the island. It provides a wilderness area with numerous hiking trails. It can be accessed from Waimea on Hawaiʻi state road 550, which is 18 miles long and leads up to Kōkeʻe State Park. The island of Niʻihau, only a short distance west of Kauaʻi at that point, can be clearly seen from the highway.
{{Wide image|Waimea Canyon Panorama (bryce edwards).jpg|600px|A panoramic view of Waimea Canyon}}
Gallery
File:Waimea Canyon State Park Hawaii (32406013018).jpg|Waimea Canyon State Park, Kauai, Hawaii
File:Red sand Waimea Canyon Park Kauai, Hawaii (45365032885).jpg|Red sand in Waimea Canyon Park Kauai, Hawaii
File:Waimea Canyon State Park Lookout, Hawaii (45365003255).jpg|Waimea Canyon State Park Lookout, Kauai, Hawaii
File:Helicopter tour Waipo'o Falls Jurassic Parc Kauai, Hawaii (44460880410).jpg|Helicopter tour to the Waipoo Falls, Kauai, Hawaii
File:Waipoo Falls Waimea Canyon Park Kauai, Hawaii (45554242114).jpg|Upper Waipoo Falls, Waimea Canyon Park Kauai, Hawaii
File:Waimea Canyon lookout Kauai, Hawaii pano (45365115955).jpg|Canyon Trail to Waipoo Falls, Waimea Canyon Park Kauai, Hawaii
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category}}
- [http://www.geology.yale.edu/~reiners/tour/wc.html Yale University: Geology of the Waimea Canyon]
- [http://dlnr.hawaii.gov/dsp/parks/kauai/waimea-canyon-state-park/ Hawaii State Parks: Waimea Canyon State Park]
- {{cite web | url=http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=16399 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031230125702/http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NewImages/images.php3?img_id=16399 | url-status=dead | archive-date=2003-12-30 | title=Waimea Canyon, Kauaʻi | publisher=NASA Earth Observatory | access-date=2006-05-30}}
{{coord|22|03|22|N|159|39|55|W|display=title}}
{{Protected areas of Hawaii}}
{{authority control}}
Category:Canyons and gorges of Hawaii