Hawaii Belt Road - Route 19

Route 19

Tucked away at the gates to Hilo Wharf on Kūhiō Street is the mile Ø marker for Route 19. One block later, it then turns right onto Kalanianaʻole Avenue, running between the waters of Hilo Bay and the Runway 8/26 of Hilo International Airport, before crossing Kanoelehua Avenue (Route 11) and Banyan Drive where the name changes to Kamehameha Avenue. Flanking the Wailoa River (Hawaii) Bridge is the 1960 Tsunami Memorial Clock with its hands frozen at the moment the killer waves struck early morning on May 23, 1960.

The highway continues along Kamehameha Avenue, paralleling a closed section of Bayfront Highway (constructed but never opened, it is used as access and parking for Hilo Bayfront Park), then turns right onto Pauahi Street before quickly turning left onto the open section of Bayfront Highway. Bayfront Highway, which serves as a bypass for the downtown business district of Hilo, is often closed to traffic by the Hawaiʻi County Police Department in times of high surf.

Past the intersection with Waiānuenue Avenue (Route 200, known as the Saddle Road), Route 19 crosses over the Wailuku River. The "Singing" or "Whistling Bridge" a converted railroad plate girder bridge with a metal grate roadway that causes tires to “sing” as vehicles pass over it. Leaving Hilo, the route assumes the name Hawaiʻi Belt Road, leaving Māmalahoa Highway to the older decommissioned portions of the original thoroughfare. Many former sugar plantation towns dot the highway, including Wainaku, Paukaʻa and Pāpaʻikou.

Shortly after the mile 7 marker, part of the old Māmalahoa Highway crosses Hawaiʻi Belt Road. The road to the right leads down the “Onomea Scenic Drive,” a four-mile (6½ km) loop road that crosses several one-lane wooden bridges and past the Hawaiʻi Tropical Botanical Garden overlooking Onomea Bay before returning to Hawaiʻi Belt Road at mile 10 in Pepeʻekeō.

Hawaiʻi Belt Road meets the rugged Hāmākua coastline near mile 12. A left turn onto Honomū Road (Route 220) leads to ʻAkaka Falls State Park, home of the namesake 442-foot (135 m) tall waterfall and the slightly shorter Kahūnā Falls. These waters empty in the Pacific Ocean at Kolekole Beach Park past mile 14.

The Hakalau Bridge carries Route 19 from the South Hilo District to North Hilo District. A number of cascades are visible from the road on the “mauka” side of the highway. Umauma Falls lies inside the World Botanical Gardens, but two other falls are viewed from the Umauma Bridge (between mile 16 and mile 17). Between mile 18 and mile 19 is Nānue Stream with another picturesque waterfall.

The highway negotiates three sharp curves: Maulua (mile 22), Laupāhoehoe (mile 26) and Kaʻawaliʻi (mile 28). Maulua Gulch has a small waterfall emptying into the ocean (visible from the Hilo side by looking across the gulch) and another in the back part of the gorge near the base of the radio tower. Also, an abandoned railroad tunnel is sometimes visible from the Hāmākua side). The Laupāhoehoe Railroad Museum is located on the “mauka” side past mile 25. On the other side of Laupāhoehoe Gulch, an access road leads down to Laupāhoehoe Point Beach Park where the victims of the 1946 “April Fool’s Day” tsunami are memorialized. Past Kaʻawaliʻi Gulch lie the much-welcomed passing lanes as Highway 19 goes by the old sugarmill town of ʻOʻōkala.

The Hāmākua District begins on the opposite side of Kaʻula Bridge (mile 30). Highway speeds are now the norm but caution must be observed when crossing the narrow “Curved Bridge” near mile 32. This bridge was replaced in May 2010 by a new bridge with less curvature. This area is rich in history from the days when sugar was king. Hamlets with names like Kūkaʻiau, Paʻauilo, Kalōpā and Pāʻauhau were once homes for sugar plantation workers from places like the Philippines, China and Japan.

Māmane Street (route 240, mile 42) spurs off to the right to become the main street of Honokaʻa before providing access to Waipiʻo Valley. Old Māmalahoa Highway branches uphill to wind through rugged hills of Āhualoa and is a scenic but slower route to Waimea. Meanwhile, Hawaiʻi Belt Road makes its way through fog-shrouded eucalyptus stands.

The Old Māmalahoa Highway rejoins Route 19 near mile 52 where they cross into South Kohala District. Now again called Māmalahoa Highway, Route 19 continues into the town of Waimea (known as Kamuela by the Post Office), the headquarters for Parker Ranch and the heart of paniolo (Hawaiian cowboy) country.

At mile 57, the route turns right onto Lindsey Road (see Route 190). One block down, Route 19 spurs left onto Kawaihae Road, past a row of restaurants and before starting downhill towards the coast. Just beyond mile 59 is a “Y” junction with Kohala Mountain Road (state route 250) in front of Hawaiʻi Preparatory Academy.

Queen Kaʻahumanu Highway begins at the "T" intersection with Akoni Pule Highway (Route 270) past mile 67 outside Kawaihae. Completed in 1975, “The Queen K” connects the resort properties of Mauna Kea Beach (mile 68), Mauna Lani (mile 73), Waikōloa Beach (mile 76) and Kaʻūpūlehu (mile 87) with the Keāhole-Kona International Airport (mile 83) and the town of Kailua-Kona. Some beaches include Hāpuna, 69 and 67-Beach, Holoholokai, ʻAnaehoʻomalu, Makalawena, Kekaha Kai State Park and Kaloko-Honokōhau.

The terminus of Route 19 is at the crossroads of Palani Road (Route 190) at mile 100 where Queen Kaʻahumanu Highway continues as Route 11.

• Total miles = 100.0 (160.9km).