Kaua'i, known as the "Garden Isle" for its abundance of tropical flora, is the oldest of the main Hawaiian islands and sits 105 miles West of O'ahu. The island is about 32 by 25 miles, and its highest point is Mount Kawaikini at 5,243 feet. Second highest is Mount Waialeale, which is one of the wettest spots on earth, averaging over an inch of rain per day. All that rainfall has eroded magnificent valleys all over the island: West of the two peaks is Waimea Canyon, featured on another TinyMtn model, and to the North are the dramatic cliffs of the Na Pali Coast Wilderness, featured in Jurassic Park and many other films. Most of the island's population of 66,000 live on the coasts in small towns like Lihue, Kapa'a, Koloa, Hanapepe, Princeville, and Hanalei, and together they host over 1 million tourists annually who come for Kauai's white sand beaches, waterfalls, and tropical rainforests.
TinyMtn's model of Kauai is the first in our Navigator Series---scale models of beautiful and storied islands from around the world. Each Navigator model is the most accurate recreation of the terrain of a real island that is possible with today's technology, though some particularly large or flat islands have had their terrain elevations exaggerated to reveal more detail. There is a small v-shaped hook on the back of each model, precisely placed so that when hung on a small nail, North will always be directly up. The flat bottom, rugged edge, and v-hook make this model suitable for hanging on a wall or window or livening up your coffee table, and the unique material and intricate topography are sure to attract guests' attention. We hope that when you bring this model into your house, you will be forever inspired by this magnificent island.
Model scale is 1:174700
Model covers an area approximately 31.9 by 25.2 miles
Altitudes covered: 0' to 5245'
This model was built with vertical exaggeration of 1:1.5.
This means that the elevation is more steep and rugged in the model than in real life.
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TinyMtn models are most affordable in the "White Strong and Flexible" and "Sandstone" materials. This model is in "White Strong and Flexible." When you receive the model, there may still be Nylon dust on it from the printing process. Use either an airbrush, canned dust blower, or a soft old toothbrush to remove this dust. Do not get the "White Strong and Flexible" material wet, and don't prime it or use any oil-based paints on it. You can safely seal it with Polycrylic or a similar water-based clear spray sealant. Read more about this popular material here.
These models have been optimized for the above materials, and are not offered in other materials for strength or cost reasons. If you need one in another material, please contact us and we'll do our best to fulfill your request.
(C) 2015 TinyMtn (TM)
Model created using GDAL, NetPBM, Gmsh, Carve, MeshLab, and other custom software
Source of digital elevation data: U.S. Geological Survey
The USGS home page is https://www.usgs.gov/