Kaunakakai is located in Maui County on the south-central coast of the island of Molokai between Kualapuu and Kamiloloa along Highway 450 near the Kalohi Channel and the Pacific Ocean.Anchored in the center of the 8 major islands, Molokai is 25 miles (40km) southeast of Oahu, and a 25-minute flight from Maui. From the eastern end of the island, it's only 8 miles (13km) across the Pailolo Channel to Maui. The population is estimated at 7,000 residents, half of whom live in or near the principal town of Kaunakakai. Nearly 40% are of Hawaiian descent, thus the nick name, "The Most Hawaiian Island." According to the experts, Hawaiians first came to live on Molokai about 650 A.D. Those first settlers most likely originated from the Marquesas, with later migrations, in double hulled canoes, from Tahiti and other areas in the South Pacific.