The Keauhou Hōlua Slide is located in Keauhou on the island of Hawaiʻi. It is the largest and best-preserved hōlua course, used in the extremely dangerous toboggan-like activity restricted to the aliʻi class of men, the nobility of ancient Hawaii. The remains are about 1,290 feet (390 m) long, of the original that was over 4,000 feet (1,200 m) long. When in use, it was covered in dirt and wet grass to make it slippery.
This particular site was connected to the Makahiki games, which were considered equivalent to the Olympics of ancient Hawaii. It can be seen from Aliʻi Highway, across from the Kona Country Club golf course clubhouse. The slide originally went into Keauhou Bay, but the part below the road was destroyed and is now used by a golf course and vacation homes. The preserved parts above the road are best viewed from the air, such as by following the coordinate link: 19°33′44.43″N 155°57′30.5″W / 19.5623417°N 155.958472°W / 19.5623417; -155.958472Coordinates: 19°33′44.43″N 155°57′30.5″W / 19.5623417°N 155.958472°W / 19.5623417; -155.958472 This area was used by the royal families such as the King Kamehameha III and King David Kalākaua.
By the 1950s trees and shrubs were encroaching on the sides of the slide, and sections had settled due to earthquakes. It was added to the list of National Historic Landmarks in Hawaii on December 29, 1962, and added to the National Register of Historic Places listings on the island of Hawaii on October 15, 1966 as site 66000290. A small museum at the nearby Keauhou Shopping Center includes a reproduction of a hōlua sled and more information about the other historic sites in the area.
Famous quotes containing the word slide:
“We can slide it
Rapidly backwards and forwards: we call this
Easing the spring. And rapidly backwards and forwards
The early bees are assaulting and fumbling the flowers:
They call it easing the Spring.”
—Henry Reed (1914–1986)