This panorama was taken in fading daylight one rainy evening. Despite the poor lighting, the grandeur of the "Valley of Kings" still shines thru. Waipio means "curved river."
The cliffs are over 2000 feet tall and the valley is about one mile wide at its widest point. This is the largest of the deep valleys on the Big Island.
At the height of its occupation by native Hawaiians prior to Captain Cook's arrival it is estimated that between 4-10,000 individuals lived here in a flourishing community.
More recently the valley was a thriving agricultural area until the tsunami of 1946 destroyed much of the community.
Since then only a few live here and enjoy its splendor every day.