Kauai

Make a splash this summer in Kauai at the new Westin Princeville Ocean Resort, where an introductory special offers a nightly rate of $299 for a one-bedroom villa. The deal: The resort, which opens Friday, is offering the rate through Dec. 31, but reservations must be booked by May 31. Rack rates for the one-bedroom villas are normally $800 per night.

The pilot of a twin-engine plane carrying about 4,200 pounds of U.S. mail between Honolulu and Kauai was missing after crashing in the ocean about seven miles south of Kauai. Debris from the Beechcraft 1900, with only the pilot aboard, was spotted in the water by the crew of a 25-foot Coast Guard boat from Kauai. No distress call was received from the pilot. Some of the mail, probably a mix from Hawaii, the mainland and international points, was recovered and will be delivered, U.S. Postal Service spokesman Duke Gonzales said.

The operator of the state's new inter-island ferry, which got the green light to resume trips despite environmental protests that it harms the islands' ecosystems, said the company was delaying service on one route. It won't immediately resume service between Honolulu and Kauai but will instead start a second voyage between Honolulu and Maui starting Jan. 16, said Hawaii Superferry President John Garibaldi.

Map out your trip to Kauai before you leave home with the new Greatest Hits map from the Automobile Club of Southern California. The illustrated laminated map is one in a series that spotlight attractions, tours, dining, night life and shopping. In Kauai's case, the map also highlights the best beaches. It's easier to carry than a guidebook and has directions to the places spotlighted.

The woman in the sun hat wants to crack someone in the jaw. It's been a bad day. Actually, for Kaiulani Huff, it's been a bad few decades. She has watched as her home, the island of Kauai, changed from a wild garden of secret places to -- in her eyes -- an overcrowded amusement park for rich people. "Welcome to Disneyland," she says one day while driving around the island. "See the natives. Watch us dance the hula. Clog up our roads. Buy up all the good land.

Kauai plans to open its first shelter to cope with the rapid growth of the island's homeless population. The Lihue facility will have up to 19 beds for emergency shelter and 20 more beds for those trying to move toward renting or owning their homes. Kauai Economic Opportunity, a nonprofit organization, counted 920 homeless on the island during the last year.

OF course we thought about turning back, but we knew we couldn't. Never mind that the trail had gone from bad to worse and the afternoon was getting on. We were stubborn -- and hopeful. "What's it like ahead?" we asked hikers returning to the trail head. No one could give us the complete picture. Most had given up, discouraged by the slippery clay and the ankle-deep mud that had been with us from the start.

One person was killed and three were seriously injured in a tour helicopter crash on Kauai, the second fatal helicopter accident on the island in four days, authorities say. The crash occurred around 1 p.m., shortly after the pilot heard a loud bang and lost control of the aircraft near the island's north shore, Federal Aviation Administration officials said. The helicopter reportedly then struck some trees with its main rotor blade.

A tour helicopter crashed at an airport on the island of Kauai on Thursday, killing four people, including the pilot, and critically injuring three, officials said. The crash occurred at Princeville Airport in midafternoon, shortly after a Heli-USA Airways helicopter pilot radioed that he was having hydraulic problems, according to a statement from Kauai Fire Chief Robert Westerman.