It is a sure bet that
visiting Hawaii would include a trip to a beach and none of these tropical
islands will ever disappoint. What sets the Big Island apart from the others
though are the varied colors of her beaches. On the north and west of the
island are the Kona and Kohala coasts. These are the oldest parts of the island
and the beaches here are beautiful white sand. Most of the tourist resorts are
in this area.
The beaches of the east
coast and around Hilo are comparatively new and black.
In the extreme southern
point of the island, which is also the southernmost point of the United States,
there is a rare green sand beach called Papakōlea..
WHERE TO GO?
It is sunnier, warmer
and drier on the Kona and Kohala coasts where many tourist resorts are clustered.
The combination of pleasant weather and white sand beaches may convince you to
travel there, especially since it rains a lot on the Hilo side of this massive
island and temperatures there are cooler.
Hapuna Beach
On our recent visit to
the Big Island, we split our time between the two coasts. We stayed for a time
in Kailua-Kona and then spent a week at the Hilton property in Waikoloa. We
then spent another week at a vacation rental in the Hawaiian Paradise Park
(HPP) development.
HPP is about 15 miles
from Hilo and 7 miles from Pahoa on the Puna coast. There are rainforests on
this side of the island and just 30 miles from Volcano National Park making this
must-do destination an easier trek than from the Kohala coast. The beaches on
the Hilo side are all black sand and there is a more Hawaiian feel in this area
as opposed to the glitzy resorts.
FIND YOUR BEACH
Depending on what
you’re looking for on a trip to the Big Island will determine your beach
destination. Don’t worry though, you can’t go wrong wherever you alight. First,
let’s explain the colors of the sand and to appease this geeky arenophile who
delights in collecting sand.
WHITE SAND
Anaehoomalu Bay
The sand on the beaches
of the Kohala coast are white, but it may not be the minute quartz crystals
that usually comprise a beach, say in New Jersey.
Instead, the sand is
mostly shells from marine life and coral fragments pulverized by the incessant
Pacific waves. Because this type of sand tends to have rounded edges it doesn’t
stack well and is not suited to building sandcastles.
Here are just a few of
the white beaches on the Kohala coast:
Hāpuna Beach
Regularly voted as one
of the best beaches in Hawaii, Hāpuna is a mile long and tree-lined offering
shade with a lifeguard and a pavilion. It can get crowded. Residents have free
entry, but supposedly $10 per car for non-residents. Our recent trip there had
a booth, but it was empty.
Anaehoomalu Bay or
A-Bay
In the Waikoloa beach
area. There’s a lifeguard and free parking, an ancient fish pond and most
importantly the Lava Lava Beach Club is nearby offering drinks and food.
Near Hapuna. Named 69
because of the utility pole marked near the parking entrance. In a small
residential community. During the winter months the white sand disappears
because of the stronger waves but returns in time for summer. Good snorkeling.
Mauna Kea Beach
Great for sunbathing.
During the summer months when the waves are calmer, it is a good place for
snorkeling.
Protected from high
surf by an offshore coral reef, this beach park is great for families. Camping
is allowed with a permit. There are BBQ facilities, a picnic area and a bathing
pavilion.
Kua Bay
Kua Bay
Secluded white sand
beach with beautiful crystal-clear water. Very popular with locals and
tourists. Such a great place that Kona Brewing Company named an IPA after it.
BLACK SAND
All black sand beaches
on Hawaii are tiny fragments of lava that have reached the ocean. Molten lava
cools down quickly when it hits the cold water, solidifying and then shattering
into large rocks or big sand granules so to speak. Over time this solidified
lava is ground down by the waves into smaller and smoother grains of “sand”.
Newer beaches that have
not been ground down can be difficult to walk along barefooted because of the
sharper edges and because black sand retains heat very well. Sea turtles often
choose black sand beaches to lay their eggs because of the heat retention.
Some of the black sand
beaches on the Hilo and Puna side.
Punaluʻu
Punalu'u
Popular beach for Honu
or turtle watching, both Hawaiian green sea turtles and the rarer Hawksbill
often sun themselves on the hot lava sand. Do not disturb Honu. It’s against
the law.
Lifeguard, facilities.
Snorkeling visibility can be poor. Only go in the water when the surf is calm.
It’s quite striking to
see the blue Pacific, the black beach and the verdant green palms all
juxtaposed.
Here’s a nice video of
Punnalu views.
Kaimū beach
Lava covered much of
the town of Kalapana and Kaimu Bay when Kilauea began erupting in the late 80s
creating a young black beach 50 feet over the old beach. Not a place for
swimming, but instead to marvel at the power of nature. We did see some locals
surfing when we visited. The road ends where the lava carved a path to the sea
and located there is Uncle Robert’s Awa Bar and market. On Wednesday nights it
is a lively party with music and dancing. Here's a glimpse at the revelry there.
Isaac Hale (Pohoiki)
In 2018 lava covered
the Isaac Hale Beach Park and added acres to the shoreline. A road was carved
through the ominous lava after it cooled to reach Isaac Hale. Though quite
majestic and with a lifeguard on duty when we visited we were not brave enough
to swim.
Isaac Hale Beach
Beach art Isaac Hale
Kehena Beach
Supposedly nude bathing
is illegal, but Kehena Black Sand Beach it is “overlooked”. I guess authorities
have more on their hands than grabbing up nudists. Kehena is on the same road
as Isaac Hale, McKenzie State Park and Kalapana.
…gone…
Ahalanui Beach Park and
Hot Springs
Ahalanui Beach park...gone
This once popular
destination did not survive the 2018 eruption. Fed by the cooler ocean water
and the thermal warming made this place a unique visit. Ahalanui even had a lifeguard.
Black sand beaches in the Hilo area:
Richardson Beach Park
There are several small
beaches around Hilo, but none have any great expanse of sand. Mostly rocky and
tide pools, but a great place to see turtles. I once put on my goggles and went
under only to come face-to-face with a turtle.
Richardson Beach Park is
just one of several in the area.
Richardson Beach Hilo
Richardson Beach, Hilo
GREEN SAND
Papakōlea beach is a 49,000-year-old
collapsed cinder cone near the South point of the island that is also called
“Green Sand Beach”. Glassy olivine crystals are what make up most of the sand
on this rare natural display. Other materials like ash, lava and shells are
less dense and tend to be washed out to sea, though there are still some found
in the sand.
Evidently there are
only three other beaches in the world
Green sand (Olivine)
that can claim they have green sand. One is on a
Galapagos Island, another in Guam and a third in
Norway. None of them though has the grandeur of
Papakōlea with the collapsed cinder cone tilting
towards the Pacific.
Known locally as
Hawaiian diamonds olivine is in the same mineral family as the semi-precious
stone Peridot though the latter has a slightly different chemical composition
that gives Peridot high-clarity transparent crystals.
Yeah, I know… blah blah
blah.
You can get there from
here…
It is a commitment to
reach the green sand beach, but worth the effort. There are no facilities here,
no lifeguard or concessions, the water can be rough, and to help you reconsider
a visit, it is a 2.5-mile hike from the parking lot at South Point.
cliff jumping at South Point
After pondering your
life choices by watching brave souls leap 40 feet off the cliffs at South Point
(which is an activity enjoyed by native Hawaiians and fearless individuals),
follow the windswept trail to the beach. You can’t get lost, just keep the Pacific
on your right. There are locals who will offer a ride to the beach for $20 pp, and
there were some people maneuvering their 4x4 rentals along the rutty track, but
evidently this is frowned on by the Department of Hawaiian Homelands (DHHL). We
walked to the beach but hitched a ride with a local and a pickup truck to get
back.
Janet thinking about jumping
There are some
makeshift steps that lead down to the beach once you arrive and after hoofing
in the hot sun or even riding in an open pickup the water is a great reward for
your efforts. When we went the water wasn’t that rough and we even had a sea
turtle cruise across.
The Paniolos have herded
cattle on the vast open land of the Big Island of Hawaii since 1832. The first
Hawaiian cowboys learned how to ride horses and deal with cattle from Mexican
Vaqueros invited to the island by King Kamehameha III.
The cattle population
was booming after all, and they were getting out of hand.
Six cows and a bull
were gifted to King Kamehameha I in 1793 by the English Naval Captain George Vancouver
and because the cattle were protected with a kapu from killing them, their
numbers grew to 25,000 by the time the “Espanol” arrived. They were a nuisance,
trampling crops and gardens and even eating the thatched roofs of homes.
Kamehameha III lifted the kapu and the cattle industry of Hawaii began.
“Paniolo” is the
Hawaiian pronunciation of “Espanol”. In Mexico the cowboys are called Vaqueros.
THE PANIOLO WAY
hanging on
Today there are several
cattle ranches on the Big Island and the beef industry is still important
economically and historically.
The Parker Ranch was
founded in 1847 and is the oldest working ranch in the United States and at
130,000 acres one of the largest.
The Paniolo
Preservation Society is located on the grounds of the Parker Ranch and is free to
visit if interested in exploring more of the rich Hawaiian Paniolo history. It
is also possible to see the skills of Paniolos showcased at the Parker Ranch Fourth
of July rodeo, but if you can’t wait until then, then giddy up and visit the Ponoholo
Ranch where you can ride horses with Paniolo Adventures.
The 11,000-acre Ponoholo
has the second largest cattle herd after the Parker Ranch at around 7,000 head
and is operated with strict rotational grazing, limiting damage caused by
erosion from overgrazing. For the past 25 years Paniolo Adventures has been
taking haole Paniolos on 2.5-hour morning and afternoon rides through the fields.
The elevation at the Ponoholo
ranch is around 3,800 feet so it was a bit cooler than the coast. I wore a
light jacket, but Janet just wore a T-shirt and brought along a sweatshirt just
in case. We were fitted with cowboy boots and offered helmets and there were
Australian dusters to wear for especially inclement weather, but despite the
capricious weather there was no need.
horse riding lessons
Our guides were two
young women, and they gave us a quick onceover on how to deal with our horse,
how to mount by gripping the mane and not the saddle horn, and how to attempt
to get the horse to move in the proper direction with the reigns and gentle
nudging with the heels. By and large though, Renegade, my horse was a bit feisty
and did what he wanted to do. I just hung on.
For this humble scribe who has
spent more time on merry-go-rounds than the actual critter I was not going to
tempt fate and try to impose my will. Forget about cantering. We just loped
along in line with the others, admiring the land, pausing enough to take
pictures at times or have a wrangler open an electric fence for our group to
pass through. We never saw a head of cattle, but we were graced with brilliant
sunshine, clouds, light rain and at times brisk winds. We saw majestic views of
the blue Pacific Ocean and the clouds clinging to Kohala Mountain.
Paniolo Adventures was not
that far from our Waikoloa resort. The ride is $155 pp not including a
well-deserved tip for the wranglers.
THEY GOT THE BEEF
So, it’s not just Ahi
Tuna or Ono on the menu. Locally produced beef is available.
Paniolo Sunset BBQ
About a mile down the
road from Paniolo Adventures. On Wednesdays they serve a BBQ prime rib dinner.
There’s live music and entertainment. Enjoy the sunset view.
All their animals are
raised in Hawaii and only from farmers and ranchers who follow strict standards
for animal welfare. That means no antibiotics or added hormones.
This craft brewer and
restaurant is nearly next door to the Waimea Butcher Shop. They serve the best
hamburgers! Great beers too, some are dangerously strong.
How big is the big
island you may ask? Well, the land mass of all the other islands in the Hawaiian
archipelago can comfortably fit inside the big island.
There are 5 volcanoes
on the island and two of them, Mauna Loa and Kilauea, are extremely active. Mauna
Kea is considered “active” although it last erupted 4,000 years ago. Hualālai is
another volcano. It last erupted in the early 1800’s and volcanologists think
it is just a matter of time for another eruption. Kohala is the oldest and
considered extinct. It last erupted 60,000 years ago.
Despite all these
volcanoes the Big Island is a very popular tourist destination but depending on
what you are interested in, and if you have limited time, you must decide between
the Kona coast or the Hilo side. They are vastly different.
First, a bit more about
the volcanoes which are all considered mountains.
Kilauea is the youngest volcano
on the Big Island and the most active volcano in the world. Kilauea has been
erupting since 1983.
Here’s a link to a 24/7
livestream of Kilauea caldera:
Mauna Loa is a massive shield
volcano that last erupted in December 2022.
Mauna Loa from our Waikoloa resort
Mauna Kea is also a shield
volcano.
If measured from its
base on the ocean floor Mauna Kea would be the tallest mountain in the world.
At 33,500 feet in elevation this summit surpasses Mt. Everest by approximately
4,450 feet. Mauna Kea rises 13,796 feet above sea level and near the summit
there are several international observatories.
Kailua Kona with Hualalai in background
Mauna Kea is considered
a spiritual place by native Hawaiians. To read about Mauna Kea:
Hualālai is the western-most
volcano and looms over the thriving Kona coast. Kailua Kona is the main “city”
on the western side of Hawaii (the actual name of “the Big Island”) and it is
where the Ironman Triathlon is held. Most of the Kona coffee plantations are
found in this area of the island.
Mauna Kea observatories
Kohala is the oldest volcano
on the Big Island and last erupted 60,000 years ago and is considered extinct. The
mountain extends out from the island like a finger. This area is called the
Kohala coast and some of the best beaches on the island are here.
Shield Volcanoes
The volcanoes on the Big
Island are shield volcanoes. They are large broad mountains with gently sloping
sides that look like a warrior’s shield on its side. This shape has been built
up by repeated eruptions where the lava, either Pahoehoe or A’a, oozes out of
the craters and rifts and solidifies atop the older lava flows slowly adding to
the height of the mountain.
Pahoehoe is a smooth billowy
lava while A’a is rough and jagged. I first visited the Big Island in 1988 and photographed the Pahoehoe flow that was covering the town of Kalapana at the time. That picture is featured at the beginning of this entry.
In 2018 the lower rift zone erupted and added a full square mile to the island and the Isaac Hale Beach. Here are two pictures from our recent visit to that area and you can see the difference in A'a lava:
Now all this yammering
about the volcanoes of the Big Island may not seem important, but they do
impact the weather on the island. The Kona / west side is leeward and is much
drier than the Hilo side. On the east side of the Big Island the prevailing
trade winds from the northeast carry moist air from the ocean and encounter the
two mountains of Mauna Loa and Mauna Kea and rise, cools and condenses and there
is a lot of rain. When the winds descend, they become drier as they reach the
leeward or Kona side. Kona is the Hawaiian word for leeward.
Many of the resorts on
the island are on the Kona and Kohala coast and some of the best beaches are
located here. Some of the best snorkeling spots are on the Kona coast and it is
possible to go swimming at night with Manta Rays.
Kua Bay, Kohala coast
Lush rainforests and
waterfalls are on the Hilo side, which is much closer to Volcanoes National
Park. The beaches here are black lava sand and turtles are everywhere.
swimming with Manta Rays
We were on both coasts for
this last trip, spending time at the Waikoloa Hilton resort and then a vacation
rental outside of Hilo where it rained nearly every day.
As it is a huge,
wonderful world out there and there’s so much more to see, we are loathe to
return somewhere. We are mere mortals after all with an expiration date. Time
is always fleeting, but as we age one becomes hyper aware of the fleetiness of
time. Think of a roll of toilet paper, as it nears its end it goes around and
around quicker and quicker.
Until it stops.
So, we here at VFH
Central will always opt to visit other places and see new promontories and
experience new experiences.
Except for one destination.
For Hawaii I’ll always
make an exception.
Between work, travel
and marathons I’ve been to Hawaii so many times that I’ve lost count. Whenever Hawaii
comes up as a topic of conversation, my ego kicks in and I think of myself as a
Kama’āina or child of the land, and this guy from New Jersey breathes easier with
the pervasive Aloha spirit.
Janet and I traveled to
Hawaii in 2014, visiting Oahu, Maui and the Big Island and we had crossed that
off our “to-visit” list and we never expected to return, but then we received
an offer to return to the Big Island that was too enticing to refuse.
TWIST MY ARM…
This past September we
needed to travel to Las Vegas for a wedding and Janet, and her infinite ability
to find deals, booked us at the Hilton Grand Vacations Club for a few nights at
a relatively cheap price. The one catch for the lower rate was we had to sit in
a timeshare spiel for 2 ½ hours.
NO MEANS NO?
Now we have enjoyed
vacations at timeshares before, but they have always been gifted to us, and the
connection has taken us from Spain to New York City, to Viginia Beach to Sedona
to Maui. The Maui visit was part of our last trip to Hawaii.
As travel moochers the
connection was very lucrative, but no longer accessible. We were on our own but
determined to save some money in Las Vegas and so, we willingly went into this
meeting.
The Hilton people required
we sit through a 2 ½ hour presentation or face a penalty surcharge on our room.
For 2 ½ hours we were subjected to their mind tortures telling us it will all
be honky dory if we start up a second mortgage for a room. They told us we were
so lucky. The world was ours to select from, for so many points and yearly maintenance
fees that of course will rise.
Janet had to slap me
into lucidity twice when I began frothing at the mouth and despite the head
wagging and “NOs” uttered through our drooling maws they droned on and on and
on.
Somehow, we held firm
though Janet had help with a hidden flask. Before we were finally freed they
passed us off to one more timeshare worker.
He was an “exit
interviewer” and Hawaii happened.
VIP EXPERIENCE
This f*ker dangled one
more ort in our face. It was for a 7-day stay at any number of Hilton properties
which normally we (I) could easily overlook. EXCEPT, they offered a “VIP experience”
at their Waikoloa resort on the Big Island. I immediately got a surge of Aloha
spirit and handed my credit card over for the right to stay at a two-room condo
overlooking the golf course for the nominal fee of just $1,695 and 1 more hour
of my life to be wasted listening to their spiel once we got to the Kohala
coast resort.
We split the cost with
friends, and despite having to give the devil his due once more we had a great
time on the Big Island and the heart of this New Jersey Kama’āina swelled with
joy.
It was the best of times.
It was the wurst of times.
Thailand and Phuket
Had we not traveled
extensively through the northern reaches of Thailand with the Overseas
Adventure Travel company (OAT) and only went south to the ‘vacation’ areas of Thailand
we would have come away from our trip to this Southeast Asian country with a
completely different view.
Our ‘Discover Thailand’
tour with OAT had us visit historical places like Kanchanaburi where the “Bridge
Over the River Kwai” was erected and where we toured the Hellfire pass of the
Siam/Burma railway, colloquially called the “Death Railway” and cruised along the
River Kwai in long boats. We got up close and personal with elephants at Eco Valley.
We experienced the night markets in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai when we visited both
cities. We stood at the pinnacle of the Golden Triangle where Laos, Burma and
Thailand meet and learned the dubious history of this once major opium
producing area of the world. In Sukhothai we gave alms to monks on their daily
Bindabat walkabout.
Had we NOT had these
wonderful and lasting experiences in our back pocket of memories and traveled
only to Phuket, a large Thai island just off the Malay peninsula, renowned for its
beaches and nightlife, our memories would have been consumed by visions of
overweight Germans wearing barely there speedos displacing water in the Andaman
Sea and bulging over the edges of their coveted and fought over pool-side
chaise lounges at the resort.
Now, do you get the “wurst”
reference? Russians and Asian Indians and Koreans too were there.
All along the strand of
the Kamala Beach where we stayed for one more week after our tour of northern
Thailand the restaurants displayed their menus in several languages. There was
no Thai culture here, but there were a lot of beach activities.
There were so many
tourists that whenever I offered a Wai as a thank you or greeting to a Thai,
they nearly jumped out of their skin to return this gesture of respect, so
unexpected was it.
People came to Phuket
to loll about and work on their tan and to party.
Mind you, it was
beautiful, but it wasn’t the Thailand that we had experienced for the previous
two weeks.
WHITE LOTUS, LADYBOYS
AND GOLDILOCKS
We stayed at the Sunprime
resort at Kamala Beach in Phuket. Adults only at our resort. It was nowhere
near the opulence of the Four Seasons Resort in Koh Samui where “White Lotus”
was filmed, and it was not even close to the frenetic party scene in the nearby
city of Patong. It was just right, quiet with no kids allowed at the resort,
but still with plenty of families on the strand and beach.
Bangla Road, Patong
Down the road from Kamala is the party town of Patong. We took a day trip down there and walked the Bangla Road, the center of nightlife in Patong. At night Bangla with bars, clubs and "other" entertainment venues, is frenetic. During the day this raucous strip was still open with shills and ladies of dubious chromosomes beckoning us to enter, but we sheepishly kept walking.
We were too old and Kamala Beach was more relaxed for us.
The beaches and the islands are very beautiful, but it would be ludicrous
for us to travel so far to just come to a beach town, but for the Europeans,
Indians and Koreans it was a great destination.
Phuket was always a
dream destination for me. I can’t say I was disappointed, things are much cheaper
in Thailand, and Kamala Beach was beautiful, but it is a long way to come,
especially since we have the Caribbean in our backyard.
Patong Beach, Phuket
It was great being
there for a relaxing week instead of living out of our suitcase. After a while,
we even learned to avert our eyes from the banana hammock parade around the pool.
Speaking of wurst… there
were several restaurant options along the strand, which is a concrete sidewalk
edging the beach, and in town with menu displays in several languages. Foods
ranged from Thai to wiener schnitzel to pizza. We tried all three during the
week whenever we ventured off the resort grounds. Here are our recommendations:
Bella Vista Kamala - Beachfront – pizza.
Comfort food. Sometimes Pad Thai doesn’t satisfy. Sit inside in the air conditioning.
They take credit cards
Blue Manao – Na Hat Road - Thai to
European. We went for the Weiner Schnitzel. Crowded. Recommended by the Scuba
Quest Dive Shop across the street. They should know they are German. The restaurant takes credit cards.
Sweet Dreams
Sweet Dreams
Sweet Dreams Restaurant – Na Hat Road - Thai.
Monique and Andy, the owners of Scuba Quest recommended Sweet Dreams next door.
The exterior of this second flood restaurant was enveloped by vines, making the
atmosphere as lovely as their food. Cash
only.
NUDIBRANCHS
We are scuba divers and
Scuba Quest had a dive shop on the Sunprime Resort. They were apologetic when
they found out most of our diving has been in the Caribbean. The water clarity
in Thailand doesn’t come close, but the crew took us on a two-tank dive where
we had a school of fish swirling around us, and we got to see several Nudibranchs
which are sea slugs.
Diving in Phuket
I had told Andy my dive guide I was interested in seeing
this elusive and colorful creature and he made sure to point them out each time
he saw one. Don’t see Nudibranch in the Caribbean.
Over saturation of
tourism can be detrimental to an environment and after “The Beach” came out in
2000, starring Leonardo DiCaprio people flocked to Maya Bay to such a degree
that the coral reefs were dying. Now, Thailand charges visitors who wish to travel
to this majestic bay and there are still hordes that come for the 20-minute
thrill of seeing Maya Bay.
Maya Bay
We did, as part of a
full day tour that took us by speedboat to the Bay, where we couldn’t swim,
Pileh Cove where we did swim in the turquoise waters, Bamboo Island where we
snorkeled and Phi Phi Island that brimmed with kids ready to party. Island
Dream Exploration was the outfitter and lunch was included.
Bamboo Island
So, in the same trip to Thailand we went from one extreme of experiences to another. Both were rewarding, but only because we experienced both.
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