Crash Site of Oceanic Flight 815
When we first encounter our group of 48 crash survivors, they are gathered around the wreckage of Oceanic Flight 815 which rests on the beach of an island somewhere between Sydney, Australia and Los Angeles, California. The actual filming location of the plane wreckage and most of the beach scenes in Season 1 of Lost was Mokule’ia Beach on Oahu’s North Shore.
Traveling north from Central Oahu you most likely will be driving on Highway 99, the Kamehameha Highway. As you approach Hale’iwa town you’ll want to look for signs for the Farrington Highway (Highway 930). As you drive west on the Farrington Highway, watch for Dillingham Airfield on your left. You’ll pass Mokule’ia Beach Park on your right. The beaches that follow were the locations for principal shooting of Season 1 of Lost. Season 2 beach scenes were filmed at Police Beach near Haleiwa.
Exploring the Valley of Lost
On their second day on the island Jack, Kate and Charlie head into the valley in search of the plane’s cockpit. Kate mentions to Charlie that he looks familiar. When I first saw the panoramic view of this valley, it also looked very familiar.
This scene and numerous other scenes in Lost were filmed in the Ka’a’awa Valley on Oahu’s Windward Coast. In this photo we look back towards the ocean from a clearing a bit inland and higher up in the valley. This is also the location where in Episode 3, Sayid, Charlie, Kate, Shannon, Boone and Sawyer make camp for the night when they return from hearing the taped broadcast of the French woman.
The Ka’a’awa Valley has been used for location filming for numerous major motion pictures and television productions. Here scenes were filmed for 50 First Dates, Godzilla, Mighty Joe Young, Pearl Harbor, Tears of the Sun, and Windtalkers.
The only way to venture into the valley is with permission of the owners, the Kualoa Ranch. I took a two hour horseback ride from the ranch into the valley. The guides make sure to point out many of these filming locations. For more information on the valley and how to get there see our feature Exploring Kualoa Ranch and the Ka’a’awa Valley of Oahu, Hawaii.
Home of the Monster
While Jack, Kate and Charlie explore the valley, back on the beach the survivors huddle under the plane wreckage in a heavy rainstorm. Suddenly the ominous sound of the „monster“ is heard coming from the valley, leading Claire to say, „there it is again.“ The view Claire sees is actually the view that is seen looking inland from Mokule’ia Beach, the actual beach where the plane wreckage set was built. This same scene forms the background later in the Part 2 of the series pilot when Jack operates on the Marshall who was escorting Kate to the United States.
The jungle in the forefront where the trees collapse one by one as the monster passes was actually superimposed by CGI graphics.
Jin and Sun’s Engagement
One of the most beautiful scenes in Lost takes place in Lost Season 1. Episode 6: House of the Rising Sun. This is the episode which features the first part of the back story of Jin and Sun. As we know Sun is the daughter of a rich and ruthless Korean businessman. When we meet Jin he is a waiter at a party being hosted by Sun’s father. We soon learn that the couple is in love and that Jin intends to ask Sun’s father for permission to marry his daughter.
As a condition of marriage Sun’s father requires that Jim work for him in his „business.“ We later learn that this involves much more than just paperwork. Having obtained permission to marry, Jin formally proposes to Sun on a bridge outside her father’s stately home seen in this picture.
This scene was filmed at the Byodo-In Temple which is located in the Valley of the Temples off of the Kahekili Highway (83) in Kane’ohe. This is actually a bypass road that allows you to travel north to the shoreline of East Oahu. If you take the Likelike Highway from Honolulu watch for signs for the Kahekili Highway (83) north.
Sydney Airport
The Sydney Airport is an important location for numerous scenes in the first season ofLost. It is, of course, from here that Flight 815 leaves on its doomed flight to Los Angeles.
Instead of traveling to Sydney, Australia, however, Lost utilized the beautiful new Hawaii Convention Center as its set for the Sydney Airport.
The glass-front center opened in 1998 and features bold architecture, a $2 million Hawaiian art collection, and features such as a rooftop tropical garden, glass-encased meeting rooms and outdoor function spaces lined with giant palm trees. The architects of the design/build team – Loschky, Marquardt and Nesholm; and Wimberly, Allison, Tong and Goo – gave special attention to the idea of relating the building to its Waikiki environment and Hawaii’s history and culture.
Volunteers conduct tours through the Center for groups of 10 or more by appointment only. One-hour tours can be arranged on Wednesday and Thursday at 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. You can, however, usually walk into the foyer area and escalator area where scenes fromLost were filmed.
The Hawaii Convention Center is located at 1801 Kalakaua Avenue in Honolulu right near the border of Honolulu and Waikiki.
Hurley’s Golf Course
Our next filming location for Lost takes us back to the Ka’a’awa Valley. I’ve received more questions about this location than any other. Everyone wants to know where Hurley builds his small golf course.
Hurley’s golf course is located within the Ka’a’awa Valley quite close to the location where Dr. Alan Grant (Sam Neill) and the two children encounter a large herd of duckbills and hadrosaurs fleeing from a ferocious T-Rex in Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park.
House That Hurley Bought For His Mother
The character of Hurley (Hugo Reyes) is one of the most popular with the fans of Lost. Hurley is a much more complex character than first appears. In many ways he is ill-fated. Bad things happen to him and those around him.
In Lost Season 1, Episode 18 – Numbers, Hurley has won the lottery and decides to surprise his mother with a new house. He blindfolds her and drives her to the new home, only to watch it burst into flames right before his eyes.
The home used for this scene is located in the Kahala neighborhood of Oahu, just east of Diamond Head. This area is home to some of the most luxurious homes on the island.
Pond and Waterfall Where Hurley and Kate Land from Ajira Flight 316
The Oceanic 6, once eager to leave the island are persuaded or forced to return. They board Ajira Airlines flight 316 en-route to Guam only to once again pass through the anomaly that transports several of them back to 1977.
In Lost Season 5, Episode 6 – 316, Hurley and Kate arrive back on the island in the pond near the waterfall first seen in Lost Season 1, Episode 12 – Whatever the Case May Be. Jack arrives nearby in the jungle and rushes to their aid, diving into the water from the top of the waterfall.
This waterfall and pond are located in Waimea Valley, one of last partially intact ahupua‘a on Oahu which consists of 1,875 acres and has been a sacred place for more than 700 years of Native Hawaiian history. It is open to the public.
The Beach Camp
Ever since the end of Season 1, the second beach camp of Lost has been the scene of many of the series’ most exciting moments.
It has long been rumored that when Lost became an instant hit in 2004 the original beach set at Mokule’ia suddenly became a mecca for Lost fans, hence the need to move the camp to a more remote location.
The location which was chosen was Police Beach or Papailoa Beach, just east of Haleiwa off of the Kamehameha Highway. In order to reach the beach camp, you’ll need to park at the small parking area at the end of Papailoa Road and take the narrow public access path to the beach. You’ll then make a left on the beach and hike for about 15-20 minutes to the set location.
The set itself is on private property and is marked by yellow tape. You can, however, get close enough to take photos. How much you can do there all depends on the security guard on duty.
Mr. Eko’s Nigerian Village
The character of Mr. Eko joined the cast of lost in the show’s second season and for many fans his tenure on the show was much too short.
Mr. Eko grew up in Nigeria in a small village. He looked after his younger brother Yemi. When a gang of guerrillas raided their village, Eko came to his brother’s rescue when his brother was ordered to shoot an old man. Eko took the gun and shot the man himself, sparing his brother from the task. The guerrillas took Eko under their wing and soon he became their leader and drug lord. His brother grew up to become a priest.
Featured in Lost Season 2, Episode 10 – The 23rd Psalm, the Nigerian village was actually located near Oahu’s North Shore in the town of Waialua at the site of the former Waialua Sugar Mill.
When I visited this site as part of the 10-hour Kos HUMMER Circle Island Lost Location Adventure, our guide told us that several months before he had a man from Nigeria on the tour. The man was amazed as how closely this area of Oahu, especially the color of the dirt, resembled Nigeria.
Dharma Initiative Processing Center
Of all of Lost‘s filming locations none is more popular than the Barracks also known as the village of the Others. It is here where the Dharma Initiative made its home on the island and where, after the Purge, Ben and the Others lived.
Season 5 of Lost made extensive use of this site for most of the episodes featuring the Dharma Initiative. It is here where in Episode 5 – Namaste, Hurley, Kate and Jack were taken by Sawyer to join the Dharma Initiative. The Processing Center is where the new Dharma recruits receive their work assignments and uniforms. It is where Jack learned that his aptitude test determined that he was best suited to be a janitor – clearly a mean trick on the part of Sawyer, now known as LaFleur, the head of security.
The Dharma Processing Center is actually the Assembly Hall for YMCA Camp Erdman located near Mokule’ia Beach on Oahu’s North Shore. If you visit this Lost filming location, please note that it is private property. If you wish to walk onto the property, please stop by the camp office and ask permission. A small donation to the camp will usually help ease your way.
Burned Fuselage of Oceanic Flight 815
Our first filming location in Part 3 of our ongoing coverage of Lost filming locations on Oahu, takes us to the North Shore and Dillingham Airfield.
Dillingham Airfield is a general aviation joint-use facility on the north shore of Oahu near the community of Waialua. The airfield has one 5,000′ by 75′ runway, a State-operated UNICOM (air traffic advisory) facility, several hangars, and a tie down area for recreation aircraft.
Here behind a fence you’ll find what remains of the plane that was used as Oceanic Flight 815, the ill fated flight that crashed on the mysterious island of Lost.
To reach Dillingham Airfield head north through Central Oahu on Highway 99 (Kamehameha Highway). As you approach the town of Haleiwa, bear left on Kaukonahula Road (Highway 930 spur) and then shortly thereafter right onto Highway 930 (Farrington Highway). Dillingham Field will be on your left about a mile or so past the Mokuleia Polo Field which will be on your right.
Cockpit of Oceanic Flight 815
If you’re looking for the cockpit of Oceanic Flight 815, you won’t find it at Dillingham Airfield. Since the cockpit was found deep in the rainforest of the island of Lost, the cockpit was taken to the other side of the island near Kane’ohe.
Here, somewhere in the rainforest of Windward Oahu, the plane was hung in a tree for the scene in the Lost Pilot in which Charlie, Jack and Kate stumbled across the cockpit – only to find the pilot still alive. Suddenly „the monster“ pulled the captain out by the window and both disappeared into the rainforest. The cockpit of the plane is being stored in a fenced in lot on the mauka or mountain side of the Kamehameha Highhway (836) just north of the He’eia Kea Boat Harbor in Kane’ohe.
The Wreckage of the Nigerian Drug Plane
Dillingham Airfield is also where the wreckage of the relief plane is stored. Eko used this plane to smuggle his drugs out of Nigeria in the Virgin Mary statues, but he was not on board. His brother was dragged onboard after being shot.
The plane later mysteriously crashed on the island. Eko’s brother was killed. The Virgin Mary statues filled with heroin survived. It was this plane the fell when being explored by Boone in Season 1, Episode 19 – Deus ex Machina. This resulted in Boone’s death shortly thereafter. It is also this plane that covered the entrance to the hatch known as The Swanin Season 2, Episode 21 – ?.
To reach Dillingham Airfield head north through Central Oahu on Highway 99 (Kamehameha Highway). As you approach the town of Haleiwa, bear left on Kaukonahula Road (Highway 930 spur) and then shortly thereafter right onto Highway 930 (Farrington Highway). Dillingham Field will be on your left about a mile or so past the Mokuleia Polo Field which will be on your right.
The Beach Where the Survivors Moved Midway Through Season 1,
Survivors Campsite or Tent City,
Mr. Eko’s Church,
Graves of Boone, Shannon, Ana Lucia and Libby
One of our proudest location finds was the site of the new beach camp where the survivors moved midway through Season 1 in Episode 12 – Whatever the Case May Be. As you may know beach scenes for the first half of Season 1 were filmed at Mokuleia Beach off of the Farrington Highway west of Haleiwa and Waialua.
Because of the combination of the show’s popularity, fan interest and heavy winter waves, the production had to relocate to a less public location. The production chose Papailoa Beach northeast of Haleiwa. The beach is better known as Police Beach because the Honolulu Police Department has a lease on the beach for recreational activities.
Police Beach can be accessed from the end of Haleiwa Beach Park, but our crack photographer and Lost expert Ryan Ozawa found that it is easier to drive past Haleiwa on the Kamehameha Highway (Hwy 83) and take the first left on Papailoa Rd. Drive until you see a public beach access on the right and a dirt parking area on the left. Take the access and go left on the beach.
When I suggested to Ryan that he check out this location in May 2006, neither of us expected that he’d find anything but an abandoned beach since filming had pretty well completed for the season. We were both shocked when Ryan found the entire „tent city“ or campsite of the Lost suvivors including Sawyer’s tent, Eko’s church, the grave area where Shannon, Boone, Ana Lucia and Libby are buried and even some DHARMAcanned goods!
The Beach Where the Survivors Moved Midway Through Season 1
Survivors Campsite or Tent City
Mr. Eko’s Church
Graves of Boone, Shannon, Ana Lucia and Libby
Camp of the Others
Early May 2006 I received a tip from a visitor to Oahu that a village had been constructed near Makapuu Point in Southeast Oahu. This fellow had posted a few photos one of which clearly included a door into a cliff with a DHARMA logo on it. I emailed Ryan Ozawa and he headed our to Makapuu Point.
Once again, I don’t think either of us expected that the village would still be there, yet indeed it was. Ryan hiked down to the village and with no interference from the guard snapped quite a few photos of what we soon learned was the Camp of the Others featured in Season 2, Episode 22 Three Minutes and the Season 2, Season Finale Live Together Die Alone.
This is the camp where Walt and Michael were held captive for much of the Second Season. It is also the camp that Sayid discovered towards the end of the Season 2 Finale but which appeared to be abandoned. We also learned that what appeared to be another hatch door was a fake. There was merely rock behind the door.
To reach Makapuu Point take the H1 east from Waikiki until it turns into the Kalanianaole Highway (Hwy 72). Stay on this road past Hamauma Bay and Sandy Beach Park. Makapuu Point will be on your right. It’s about 12 miles and 30 minutes from Waikiki.
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