Located between Maha'ulepu and Nawiliwili lies Kipu Kai. Kipu Kai is a rare coastal valley on the seaward side of the Ha'upu Range. The Ha'upu Range is a huge mountain that stands alone on the southeast end of Kauai. It is made up of hard lava flows that once piled into a large pit crater. The erosion, over the years, has removed the loose lava flows that surrounded the crater and is now the mountain range.

The valley contains many archeological interests, including springs, petroglyphs, and temple sites. One such site is the Waiakapua'a (water used by the pig), a spring where the Kamapua'a (demi-god) once slept.

Kipu Kai has been privately owned and operated as a cattle ranch for many years. There are Beefmasters and Black Angus cattle residing on the property. The last owner was John T. Waterhouse who died in 1984. Mr. Waterhouse, prior to his death, made an extremely generous gift to the State of Hawaii in 1977 deeding the entire ranch to the state. There was one stipulation, in which the ownership would not go into effect until the last of his nieces and nephews ceased to exist.

By making this gift, Mr. Waterhouse expressed his hopes that Kipu Kai would be used as a nature, animal, and wildlife preserve. In keeping with this idea, he introduced a small flock of nene to Kipu Kai. The nene is the endangered Hawaiian goose, our official state bird. The nenes were found in limited numbers on the other islands but had died out on Kauai. Nowadays, you can be fishing or sunbathing on one of Kipu Kai's pristine beaches and the nene will fly overhead giving you a friendly "honk". They have since successfully reestablished themselves in the wild.

The Kipu Kai shoreline is two miles long and consists of four beaches divided by low points of rock. The first and longest of the beaches is located between Kawelikoa and Molehu points, known as "Long Beach". Long Beach is a great place for a wide variety of activities like swimming, snorkeling, bodysurfing, bodyboarding, surfing, fishing, and beachcombing. The southern end is a beachcomber's paradise; the currents sweep a treasure trove of items into this area. Shoreline fishing has been known to bring up moi, toau, papio, oio and taape.

The waters are so clear and blue and the beaches, being private, are so well liked by the monk seals and sea turtles. It's a wonderful but scary experience to be swimming in the water and all of a sudden a monk seal is right alongside you. It is against the law to be within twenty feet of these majestic creatures but they look so sad when you have to leave them to swim by themselves.

The second beach at Kipu Kai is on the eastern side of Molehu Point. It is a small storm beach. The water's edge is bordered by beachrock, so no swimming here, just fishing and sunbathing.

The third beach is located inshore of Kuahonu Point. It is crescent shaped and sandy and borders a small bay. A beachrock shelf borders the water's edge for most of the beach and on shallow days it's only good as a kiddy pool. Fishing is very good here also. The ranch house is located on a grassy knoll overlooking this beach.

The last beach at Kipu Kai is located below Hokulei peak. It is a narrow storm beach made up of coral rubble and some pockets of sand. It is a great place to explore for small sea creatures, picking limu kohu, and serious beachcombing.

Lastly, Kipu Kai is not accessible to the public by land. The single lane road that leads over the high ridges of the Ha'upu Range is private property and blocked by several gates. The only uninvited guests are those that come by boat or kayak. The tour operations are confined only to Long Beach, and only up to its high water mark not inland. This is a mutual agreement between the tour companies and the Waterhouse Estate.