November 14, 2000
President Clinton created new protections for the centuries-old Ala Kahakai trail and cleared the way for the expansion of the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, both on the island of Hawaii, by signing the Ala Kahakai (Trail by the Sea) National Historic Trail Act, and the Hawaii Volcanoes National Park Adjustment Act, according to a release from the White House press office.
The Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail Act designates the 175-mile footpath as a National Historic Trail, and directs the U.S. Secretary of the Interior to administer the trail and encourage communities, adjacent landowners and native Hawaiians to participate in the trail’s maintenance and development.
The Ala Kahakai trail circles the Big Island was the major land route connecting 600 or more communities of the island kingdom of Hawaii from 1400 to 1700. It is associated with many prehistoric and historic housing areas of the island of Hawaii, nearly all the royal centers, and most of the major temples. It played a part in Captain Cook’s landing and subsequent death in 1779 and Kamehameha I’s rise to power and consolidation of the Hawaiian Islands under monarchical rule.
The Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail joins the Appalachian, Ice Age, Juan Bautista de Anza, Lewis and Clark, Pony Express, and Trail of Tears national historic trails in the system.
The Hawaii Volcanoes National Park Adjustment Act authorizes the Department of the Interior to acquire land contiguous to the existing park through donation, exchange or purchase with donated or appropriated funds.
The Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, established in 1916, is evidence of 70 million years of volcanism, migration and evolution – processes that pushed a bare land from the sea and clothed it with complex ecosystems and a distinct human culture.
The park encompasses environments that range from sea level to the summit of Mauna Loa at 13,677 feet. Kilauea, the world’s most active volcano, offers scientists insights on the birth of the Hawaiian Islands and visitors views of volcanic landscapes. Over half of the park is designated wilderness and provides hiking and camping opportunities.