Pauoa Stream: Residential, commercial sight lines

(Adds Iliahi Lane bridge info/photos 5/29/20)

Pauoa was a mystery to me as a kid. We had no relatives there. Booth Park and its gym, totally foreign to me even though Ala Wai Park is only a few miles away.

Our insulated life — no car, only left home for school, sports and grocery shopping, plus the occasional holiday trip to see family — meant that a lot of places on Oahu were completely unknown to me and my brother until we hit high school age.

Pauoa Stream has quite a history. The records show that many springs fed many lo‘i, and there were court cases involving fights for precious water. (See an example at the end of this post.) One spring is completely covered by a road (it appears), and another is deep in the valley. My journey begins at Booth Road, where the stream is vigorous and gushing. I've seen footage of the stream further back, and the strength of this flow didn't surprise me. It is a wonder to watch.

Booth Rd.

Kapulei St.

Kapaloala Pl. (mauka)

Kapaloala Pl. (makai)

Behind Pauoa Elementary School

Behind Hook Chu Cemetery
This wooden pedestrian bridge is nestled behind a garden at the back of the graveyard. The entire area is immaculate and green. A resident nearby told me that students use this bridge as a shortcut route to Roosevelt High School. Another cemetery is on the upper road, and they walk through that one, also.

Some familiar names on headstones here. One was Koki, and when I looked up the name Sam Koki, he turned out to be a famous musician from the 1930s and '40s. He was a premiere steel guitarist who played with Lani McIntire and His Orchestra.

Lusitania St.
Classic 1930s style arched pukas.

Now, a walk makai on Lusitana St. to the entrance of ‘Auwaiolimu Park. The Consulate General Office for the Republic of the Marshall Islands is along the way.

‘Auwaiolimu Park

South Kuakini St. (at corner of Pali Hwy.)

Pauoa Stream goes underground here. I was amazed by the strong flow even here close to downtown. And the water quality seems good. There's a duck that walked into the tunnel before I could get video. Quack!

Iliahi St. (Iliahi Lane) bridge

Here are some interesting info and photos courtesy of a 1978 U.S. Dept. of Interior (Fish and Wildlife) study. The photo was probably taken long before '78. Pauoa Stream was still open-air at Iliahi Lane (now known as Iliahi St.), so to speak, somewhere near the parking lot of Hongwanji Mission School.