The Kauai Marathon and Half Marathon will take place on Sunday, Sept. 4.
The race begins at 6 a.m. in Po‘ipū. According to the marathon website, the courses follow the contour of the scenic coastline, offering magnificent views of the island’s beaches, volcanic peaks, and tropical rain forests.
“As dawn breaks, runners experience lush green vistas as they approach the shade of the century-old Tunnel of Trees before winding through misty Omao where the half marathoners enter the Kukui‘ula Resort offering spectacular ocean views for the last few miles,” the website describes. “The full marathon heads out to Lawai before climbing to reveal stunning ocean views at the top of Kalāheo.”
The remaining miles are a gradual descent back to the finish line in Po‘ipū.
On race day, there will be traffic in and around the Kōloa, Po‘ipū, Lāwa‘i and Kalāheo areas. However, there will be some lane and road closures between 5 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.
The Kaua‘i Police Department and Garden Island Security will monitor traffic flow throughout the course. Road closures include the following:
- Access into Kōloa and Po‘ipū will be limited to Koloa Rd until 6:30 a.m. From 6:30 till 8 a.m, there will be no inbound traffic other than emergency vehicles into Kōloa and Po‘ipū.
- Po‘ipū Road will be closed from the Po‘ipū Round About to the Kōloa Bypass, (Ala Kinoiki) from 5:15 till 6:30 a.m.
- Ho‘onani Road will be closed from 5:15 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. from Lawai Road to Kapili Road. Traffic will continue to flow in and out of the Sheraton Kauai Resort via Kapili Road.
- Kōloa Road inbound and outbound lanes from Highway 50 will be closed from 6:30 am until 1:30 pm.
- Lauoho Road, Waha Road and Pu‘u Roads will be closed to thru traffic from 7 a.m. until 12:30 pm. All residents living in this area are advised to use extreme caution.
- Omao Road from Highway 50 to Kōloa Road will be closed to thru traffic from 6 till 9:30 am. All residents living in this area are advised to use extreme caution.
- The Kōloa Bypass, (Ala Kinoiki), will be closed from 5:45 till 7:45 a.m.
- Maluhia Road both inbound and outbound to and from the Kōloa Bypass through to Highway 50 will be closed to traffic from 6 till 8 a.m. All traffic on Maluhia and the Kōloa Bypass (Ala Kinoiki) will return to normal shortly before 8:30 am.
Partial closures include the following:
- Highway 50 from Maluhia west to Omao Road will be restricted to alternating one-way traffic in the mauka lane from 6 till 9 a.m. Traffic flow will be monitored by KPD at both Maluhia and Omao Roads.
- Papalina Road from Waha to Pu‘u Road will be restricted to alternating one-way traffic in the mauka lane from 7 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. Traffic flow will be monitored by KPD at both ends.
- Kukui‘ula Bypass (Ala Kalanikaumaka) will be closed from 6 a.m. till 2 p.m. Outbound traffic from the Po‘ipū roundabout to Kōloa Road will remain open.
- The Po‘ipū Roundabout will be heavily impacted, and traffic will be slowed considerably from 6:45 a.m. until 2 p.m. as runners enter the roundabout from Kukui’ula Bypass.
- Westbound Lawai Road and Spouting Horn traffic will be re-routed through The Shops at Kukui‘ula.
As runners retrace their steps via Papalina, Waha, Lauoho and Kōloa Roads, the roads will re-open as indicated above once all of the runners have passed. While there will be some traffic flow in and out of all the Southshore regions, race officials recommend travel delimited in these areas from 5 a.m. till 2:30 p.m.
visitors and residents needing to reach Līhu‘e airport from the south or west side, are advised to plan at least 1.5 to 2 hours of travel time.
For more information click here.
