Kona Winds

One of the especially fun things about Kauai is that it is made up of lots of microclimates. Because it was formed by a volcano and is remote from other major landmasses the wind and ocean interact with the land in wildly varying ways. Mt. Waialeale, for instance, is the wettest spot on earth with over 430 inches of annual rainfall and dramatic waterfalls in every direction. But just a few miles away, in the shadow of Mt. Waialeale, Barking Sands records an annual rainfall of just 8 inches and has vegetation most often found in a desert.

On the north side of the island, which is known for its lush scenery, the annual rainfall is 78 inches per year. On the south side of the island, where we stay, the rainfall averages 35 inches a year. And this year it seemed to all be falling in early December during a particularly intense Kona storm.

By the way, the south side of Kauai, often thought of as a tropical paradise, has almost exactly the same amount of annual rain as Seattle.

Image: Taken on the south shore of Kauai during a recent Kona storm, December 2008.