Akaka Falls, Big Island, Hawaii
Akaka Falls plunges 442 feet, in a lush rainforest along the northeastern Hamakua Coast, near the town of Hilo on the Big Island of Hawaii. A small Hawaiian fish, the o'opu, climbs this 442 foot waterfall, by using its pectoral fins and a special suction disc. The o'opu fish hatches in the stream above Akaka Falls and drifts downstream until it ends up in the ocean, where it remains for several months before swimming upstream and climbing the wet, rocky sides of Akaka Falls to continue its life cycle.