Can you see the Kona Cloud Forest without a tour?
No, guided tours are offered daily but advance reservations are required.The mission of the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary is to foster understanding and appreciation of the cloud forests by educating people on cloud forests’ critical role in our local and global ecosystems, and the impact they have on our community. By helping people comprehend the significance of these delicate ecosystems and the human impact that threatens them, we aim to inspire a sense of collective responsibility for their protection and preservation. Visit www.konacloudforest.com to learn more about guided walking tours offered daily by appointment.
Can you hike Kona Cloud Forest?
The Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary is not a hike. For a knowledge-enriching experience the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary offers guided walking tours that range from 1-2 miles.
When should I go to the cloud forest?
Mornings are most often sunny and clear with mist rolling in around 11a and showers midday.The elevation of Kona cloud forest ranges between 2500-5000 ft elevation. The Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary nestled within the Kona cloud forest offers daily guided walking tours by appointment.
What should I wear to the cloud forest?
When you visit the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary it is recommended to bring a light jacket and sturdy shoes. The sanctuary is located at 3,000 ft elevation and it is common to have light mist or showers midday. Although it is located only 15 minutes from the Kona Airport, the higher elevation temperatures range from 65-75 degrees.
How do I get to Kona Cloud Forest?
Taxis and Uber are readily available for rides up to the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary. Located 15 minutes from the Kona airport, renting a vehicle is also an option. Guided walking tours are offered daily by appointment. If you are looking for a knowledge-enriching experience, this will be perfect for you. To extend your experience, Mountain Thunder Coffee is located next to the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary.
What are the best times of year to go to Kona?
The best time of year to visit Kona is August, September and October if you want to visit when there are less crowds. When planning for a visit to the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary, the summer months are the wet season and the winter months are the dry season.
What is special about the cloud forest?
The Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary is located in the only seasonally dry montane tropical cloud forest in the United States! Rainforests will still get rain if there are no trees where cloud forests are the opposite. Cloud forests also get about half the amount of rain as a rainforest and most of the water comes from horizontal precipitation; mist meandering through the canopy of trees. Cloud forests make up less than 1% of all the forests in the world.
How long do people spend in the cloud forest?
The Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary offers guided walking tours through the privately owned sanctuary that range from 1.5 to 2.5 hours. These tours are knowledge-enriching and provide an excellent opportunity to immerse yourself in a deeper level of understanding and connection with the cloud forest and surroundings.
What is the weather like in the cloud forest?
Typical weather conditions are sunny in the morning, mist rolling in around 11am, light showers midday and sometimes rain in the afternoons. By evening it clears again.
What is the altitude of the cloud forest?
The Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary is located at 3,000 ft elevation.
What is the humidity in the cloud forest?
Humidity in the cloud forest ranges between 80-90%
Are cloud forests rare?
Cloud Forests are VERY rare. Cloud Forests make up only 1% of all forests in the world. Knowledge-enriching adventures through the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary are offered daily. Advance reservations are required.
What trees grow in cloud forests?
High elevation plants and trees can be found in cloud forest. In the Kona Cloud Forest there are areas where you will only find native and endemic plants and trees such as Ohia Lehua, Happu’u Ferns, and Koa. At the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary you will see a diverse collection of plants and trees, native, endemic and global species that include Blue Marble Trees, Rainbow Eucalyptus, Banyans, Kukui Nut, Conifers, Bamboo, Palms and many more.
Why is the cloud forest special?
At the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary you will learn that this delicate ecosystem is not only unique and beautiful but also vital to the health of our planet. Cloud forests serve as essential carbon sinks, biodiversity hotspots, and sources of clean water. It provides habitat for the native birds, cools the ocean through aquifers, and is a reverence for wellbeing.
Are there cloud forests in the US?
The Kona Cloud Forest is the only montane tropical cloud forest in the US. The Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary offers guided walking tours through the privately owned sanctuary that range from 1.5 to 2.5 hours. These tours are knowledge-enriching and provide an excellent opportunity to immerse yourself in a deeper level of understanding and connection with this delicate ecosystem.
Why is it called a cloud forest?
It is called a cloud forest because most of the water comes from the clouds rather than from rain.
What is the best time of day to see the cloud forest?
The best time of day to visit the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary is in the morning. Reservations are required for guided walking tours.
What should I bring to the cloud forest?
When visiting the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary, it is recommended that you bring a light jacket and comfortable sturdy shoes.
Why do I need reservations to visit the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary?
The main reason that a reservation is required to visit the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary is to protect the forest. Monitoring the volume of foot traffic through the forest helps to ensure that people are cleaning their shoes before entering and leaving the forest. This minimizes the risk of disease that could spread and threaten the plants and trees, such as the Rapid Ohia Death (ROD). The second most important reason is that the mission of the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary is to foster understanding and appreciation of the cloud forests by educating people on cloud forests’ critical role in our local and global ecosystems, and the impact they have on our community. By helping people comprehend the significance of these delicate ecosystems and the human impact that threatens them, we aim to inspire a sense of collective responsibility for their protection and preservation.
Does Hawai’i have Cloud Forest?
Yes, Hawaii has a Winter-Dry Tropical Montane Cloud Forest on the leeward side of Hawaii Island, also known as “the Kona side of the island” or “west Hawaii”.
This cloud forest is the only cloud forest in the United States and is a unique ecosystem situated between 2,500 to 5,000 feet elevation on the slopes of Mt. Hualalai.
Cloud forests are very rare to come across and only make up ~1% of all forests around the world.
Historically, the Kona Cloud Forest region has been mismanaged and deforested by ranching, agricultural practices and residential construction.
The Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary is a private Sanctuary situated within the Kona Cloud Forest region. The Sanctuary is a 4 generation family stewarded passion project of reforesting and restoring the damaged and deforested areas of the cloud forest into a dense cloud forest jungle, containing sacred plants and trees to Hawaii as well as sacred plants and trees from all over the world.
It is critical to protect and restore this unique ecosystem as the health and vitality of the Kona Cloud Forest region is fundamental to providing clean water to Kona, protecting the health of the coral reefs, allowing for a thriving coffee and agricultural industry lower on the mountain, and being a home to endemic plants and birds only found in Hawai’i and no where else in the world.
The mission of the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary is to elevate connection, awareness, restoration, and preservation of forest ecosystems.
Can I donate to Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary?
Yes, people can donate to the Kona Cloud Forest Sanctuary.
