Kāneʻohe Bay, at 45 km², is the largest sheltered body of water in the main Hawaiian Islands. This reef-dominated embayment constitutes a significant scenic and recreational feature along the windward (northeast) coast of the Island of Oʻahu. The largest population center on Kāneʻohe Bay is the town of Kāneʻohe.
The Bay is approximately 8 mi (12.8 km) long and 2.7 mi (4.3 km) broad, with a mouth opening of about 4.6 mi (7.4 km) and maximum depth of 40 ft (12 m) in the dredged channel. Features unique in the main Hawaiian Islands include one of only two barrier reefs (the other being the 27 mile barrier reef of Moloka'i) and extensive development of shoaling coral reefs within a large lagoon. Two navigable channels cut across the northern and southern ends of the barrier reef. The deeper, northern channel, located off Kualoa Beach Park, provides entrance from the North Pacific Ocean to a ship channel dredged the length of the lagoon between 1939 and 1945. The lagoon contains extensive patch and fringing reefs and its southern end is partly enclosed by the Mokapu Peninsula. This peninsula is occupied by Marine Corps Base Hawaii (21.445 N , 157.765 W)
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There are fived named islands or islets within Kāneʻohe Bay. A sand bar (Ahu o Laka or locally, the sand bar), Kapapa, and Kekepa (Turtleback Rock) are all exposed features (islets) on the barrier reef. Two islands within Kāne'ohe Bay are prominent: Mokoliʻi (Chinaman's Hat) and Moku o Loʻe (Coconut Island), the largest of the five. Mokoliʻi is a volcanic remnant at the very north end of the Bay (see Kualoa). Coconut Island is an isolated volcanic remnant located in the southwest part of the bay. Coconut Island is owned by the State of Hawaiʻi and home to the University of Hawaiʻi, Hawaiʻi Institute of Marine Biology (HIMB) and Pauley-Pagen Laboratory (SOEST). Coconut Island was immortalized in the opening sequence of the television program Gilligan's Island.
External links
- Kāneʻohe Bay
- Chinaman's Hat
- Kaneohe Bay A World-Class Estuarine Area!
Coordinates: 21°27′35″N 157°48′15″W / 21.45972°N 157.80417°W
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