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Location Information:
Keauhou Bay is a historic area in
the Kona District of the Big Island
of Hawaii. The name comes from ke au
hou which means "the new era" in the
Hawaiian Language. To the north of
this area is the Kahaluu Bay
Historic District, and uphill (mauka)
is the Keauhou Holua Slide built
under Kamehameha I. The Holua
originally extended into Heeia Cove
just north of the main bay. To the
south is the birth site of the
Battle at Kuamoo, fought in 1819.
In the
Hawaiian language, kona means
leeward or dry side of the island,
as opposed to ko‘olau which means
windward or the wet side of the
island. In the times of Ancient
Hawaii, Kona was the name of the
leeward district on each major
island. In Hawai‘i, the Pacific
anticyclone provides moist
prevailing northeasterly winds to
the Hawaiian islands, resulting in
rain when the winds contact the
windward landmass of the islands -
the winds subsequently lose their
moisture and travel on to the
leeward (or kona) side of the
island. When this pattern reverses,
it can produce a Kona storm from the
west. Kona has cognates with the
same meaning in other Polynesian
languages. In Tongan, the equivalent
cognate would be tonga; for
windward, the associated cognate
would be tokelau.
Kona
is the home of the world-famous
Ironman World Championship Triathlon
which is held each year in October
in Kailua-Kona. The Kealakekua Bay
State Historical Park marks the
place where Captain James Cook was
killed in 1779. Puʻuhonua o Hōnaunau
National Historical Park and
Honokohau Settlement and
Kaloko-Honokohau National Historical
Park are in Kona.
The
volcanic slopes of Hualālai and
Mauna Loa in the Kona district
provide an ideal microclimate for
growing coffee. Kona coffee is
considered one of the premium
specialty coffees of the world.
Local
Weather:
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