Garden of the Gods Area

Keahiakawelo, better known as the Garden of the Gods, is an otherworldly rock garden on Lanai's remote northwest plateau. Wind and rain have sculpted the arid terrain into pinnacles, buttes, and scattered boulders in shades of red, orange, ocher, and purple, set against sweeping views of Molokai and, on clear days, Oahu. It looks less like Hawaii than like a Martian desert.

The Hawaiian name means 'the fire of Kawelo,' from a legend in which the Lanai priest Kawelo kept a fire burning here to ward off ill omens sent by a rival priest on Molokai. It remains a wahi pana, a sacred storied landscape, and visitors are asked to leave the rock formations undisturbed.

• Fields of wind-carved boulders in red, orange, and purple hues
• Rock pinnacles and buttes shaped by centuries of erosion
• Panoramic views across the channel to Molokai
• Oahu visible on the horizon on very clear days
• The stark, near-lunar high-desert landscape unlike anywhere else in Hawaii

The Garden of the Gods requires a 4WD vehicle and lies about 45 minutes to an hour from Lanai City. From town, head north on Highway 440 toward the airport, then turn onto Polihua Road and follow the unpaved track roughly seven miles. The dirt road is rocky and gets muddy and slick after rain. Download offline maps before you go, as cell service is unreliable out here.

Come at sunrise or sunset, when low light sets the rocks glowing in fiery reds, oranges, and purples and makes for the best photography. Go on a dry day, since rain turns Polihua Road treacherous, and clear conditions reward you with the farthest views to Molokai and Oahu. Midday light flattens the colors.