Gary, the owner of Anini Boat House, wears many hats. He is a USCG Merchant Marine Officer, Master 100 Ton Power or Sail, who fell in love with Kaua’i after visiting from Maryland in the 1970s. He completely remodeled the Boat House (circa 1925) in 2018, making it into the quaint and cozy beach cottage it is today. Gary has enjoyed hundreds of hours windsurfing, sailing, and kiteboarding in the waters just feet from Anini Boat House.
Although the exact age of the boat house is unknown, the Kaua’i County tax office has a drawing of the floor plan from 1928. The home is built mostly of redwood from the Pacific Northwest.
To the left of the Boat House was an old home known as Wades Glass House. The surf break just outside the offshore reef is called “glass house” due to its location in front of the glass-fronted home. The owner of Wades Glass House hired Gary to tear down the decaying structure in 2005 and build the new house, now known as Wade House. Gary remolded the old home on the opposite, right side of the Boat House in 2017 and enjoyed it as his primary residence for several years.
Ancient Hawaiians once lived all along Anini Beach, accessing water from streams. As recently as the late 1970s, the houses along this stretch of beach still accessed water from a nearby stream. There are varying explanations for the name of the beach. One account contends that the original name was “Wanini” Beach, and the name was changed when the “W” was accidentally left off the sign when it was replaced. According to the 1986 University of Hawaii Press Hawaiian Dictionary, “Anini” means:  1. Dwarfish, stunted, tiny. Rare.  2. To vary, as great and small waves. Rare. The word “Wanini” is not listed in that dictionary.