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Waikiki
Waikiki seen from the top of Diamond Head or Lenahi. Green area below is the lawn at Kapiolani
Park.Waikiki is a neighborhood of Honolulu, in the City & County of Honolulu, on the south shore of the Island
of O‘ahu, Hawai‘i. Waikiki extends from the Ala Wai Canal (a channel dug to drain former wetlands) on the west
and north, to Diamond Head or Leahi on the east. The name means fetched water in Hawaiian for springs that fed
wetlands that once separated Waikiki from the interior. Waikiki has long been a place of relaxation. In particular,
the area was a retreat for Hawaiian royalty in the 1800s.
Today it is considered the center of the tourist industry in Hawaii, with an abundance of both high-rise resort
hotels (including the Hilton Hawaiian Village, the Hyatt Regency Waikiki, and the Sheraton Waikiki) and historic
hotels dating back to the early 20th century (such as the Moana Surfrider Hotel and the Royal Hawaiian Hotel).
Waikiki Beach is the shoreline fronting Waikiki and one of the best known beaches in the world. The beach has had
its problems because of groynes built out from the shore. This has led to beach replenishment projects in the past.
In the 1920s and 1930s sand was obtained from Manhattan Beach, California and transported via ship and barges to
Waikiki (source?). One disastrous sand replenishment project involved a man-made sand that the gentle surf turned
into a concrete-like surface.
Diamond Head
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Diamond Head cone seen from Waikiki
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Diamond Head cone seen from Kapiolani Park
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Elevation: 762 ft (232 m)
Location: Hawaii, USA
Range: Hawaiian Islands
Coordinates: 21°15'35.0?N, 157°48'42.3?W
Topo map: USGS Honolulu
Type: Volcanic cone
Age of rock: 200,000 years
Last eruption:
First ascent:
Easiest route: trail and stairway
Diamond Head is the name of a tuff cone on the Hawaiian island of Oahu and known to Hawaiians as Leahi (photograph
at right). Its English name was given by British sailors in the 19th century, who mistook calcite crystals embedded
in the rock for diamonds. It is located on the coast east of Waikiki (in Honolulu) and is a defining feature of
the view known to residents and tourists alike.
A symbol of worldwide recognition, it is not surprising that the name Diamond Head is widely exploited for commercial
purposes (see Diamond Head (film) and Diamond Head (band)). The volcanic cone is a State Monument. A popular trail
and stairway lead from the interior of the crater to lookouts along the rim.
Geology
Diamond Head is part of the complex of cones, vents, and their associated eruption flows that are collectively
known to geologists as the Honolulu Volcanic Series, eruptions from the Ko?olau Volcano that took place long after
the volcano formed and had gone dormant. The Honolulu Volcanic Series is a series of volcanic eruption events that
created many of Oahu's well-known landmarks, including Punchbowl Crater, Hanauma Bay, Koko Head, and Manana Island
in addition to Diamond Head.
Diamond Head, like the rest of the Honolulu Volcanics, are much younger than the main mass of the Koolau Mountain
Range. While the Koolau Range is about 2.6 million years old, Diamond Head is estimated to be about 200,000 years
old.
The eruption that built up Diamond Head was probably very brief, lasting no more than a few days. It was probably
explosive, since when the cone was originally formed, the sea level is thought to have been higher and the vent
burst erupted over a coral reef. Another factor probably contributing to the eruption's explosive nature was that
rising magma would have come into contact with the water table. The eruption's relatively brief length is thought
to explain why the cone today is so symmetrical.
A nearby eruption that took place at about the same time (probably after) as the Diamond Head eruption was the
eruption that built the Black Point lava shield. Since the type of eruptions that built Diamond Head tend to be
monogenetic, geologists don't believe Diamond Head will erupt again.
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