Niʻihau, Hawaii’s Forbidden Island | What’s in it? Find out!

In the world there are numerous places that are prohibited from visiting for various reasons. In the article 5 forbidden places that YOU CANNOT visit we have seen some of them such as the Vatican Archives, Snake Island in Brazil or Area 51 in Nevada, in the USA. On this occasion we wanted to get closer to Niʻihau, Hawaii’s Forbidden Island and discover what is in it so that entry to visitors is prohibited.

Google Earth is a tool that has also made it possible to detect many places in the world that are generally closed to the general public who consult this site for security reasons. computer program that based on satellite and aerial photographs does not provide maps and images of the entire world. If you want to know some of those places that appear pixelated, we invite you to read the post: 5 places that Google Earth does not allow you to see.

Niʻihau, Hawaii’s Forbidden Island

NiʻihaIt is not an uninhabited island nor are its inhabitants prohibited from leaving it. However, you will not find police, driveways or paved roads. The island is a very special place, the result of an engagement between a rich Scottish widow and King Kamehameha of Hawaii, who sold it to her in the mid-19th century.

Niʻihau It is the westernmost island of Hawaii and the seventh largest inhabited. It has an area of ​​180 km2, which, to give you an idea, is more than double that of Formentera in the Balearic Islands. Since 1810 it belonged to the «Unified Kingdom of Hawaii» and in 1864, King Kamahameha V sold the island to Elizabeth McHutchison Sinclair, a wealthy Scottish widow who chose that island among several others that she could have purchased. The island cost him $10,000 in gold and there were about 350 native Hawaiians living there at that time. Niʻihau. Kamehameha agreed to sell it to them with the commitment that everything possible would be done to ensure that Hawaiian traditions remained in force on the island.

In 1915, Elisabeth Sinclair’s grandson, Aubrey Robinson, banned visits to the island and even relatives of islanders living outside needed special permission to access it. Foreign contacts were restricted to a minimum except for a small US Navy base that was established at one end of the island. All of this was to fully respect the terms included in the purchase and sale contract of Niʻihau which forced its new owners to preserve the traditions and culture of the natives.

Thanks to this isolation, in Niʻihau The common language in the families is still Hawaiian, although they also learn English at school. You will not find water or gas pipes in it and the electricity is produced by solar energy. There are no telephones or paved roads and transportation is done by horse or bicycle. The approximately 160 inhabitants who live on the island permanently are mostly native Hawaiians and their method of subsistence is agriculture and state aid. They do not pay any rent for their houses and meat, which is very abundant on the island, is free. The main settlement where virtually all the islanders live is Pu’uwai. There are no hotels and periodically a barge brings everything you may need from the nearby island of Kaua’i. The Robinsons, who are the current owners of the island, have established a helicopter system so that in case of emergency there is a quick transfer to one of the larger Hawaiian islands.

It might seem that the inhabitants of the forbidden island are completely isolated, but this is not the case since the lack of water periodically means that the entire population that wishes to do so has the option of moving to Kaua’i while the drought lasts. Also the students of Niʻihau, When they finish primary school they leave for the larger islands if they wish to continue their studies. Despite this, visits are still very restricted today, which is why it continues to be referred to as a forbidden island. In addition to the owners and their families as well as the natives and their relatives, only the military from the base can stay on the island. To increase your income, there is currently the possibility of taking a half-day excursion to the island to hunt or discover its fauna and flora, but there is no place or possibility to spend the night there and contact with the natives is very scarce. .

Niʻihau It is an island suspended in time and perhaps that is why it was chosen in 1992 to film some scenes of Jurasic Park. Did you know the existence of this mysterious forbidden island? Did you know that by restricting visitors we wanted to preserve a culture that was beginning to disappear? Do you think it is legal to act this way? Share your opinion with us! If you want to know other curious places in the world, we invite you to read:

Images: Polihale