Hawaii - Jeff Campbell [192]
To get to Puako and the tide pools, turn makai down Puako Beach Rd between the 70- and 71-mile markers and keep going straight. For Beach 69, take the first right turn onto Old Puako Rd. An access road from Hapuna Beach State Recreation Area leads to both Puako and Beach 69.
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HAPUNA BEACH STATE RECREATION AREA
It’S one thing to be popular, but when Condé Nast Traveller names you one of the world’S best beaches, it can be the kiss of death. Thankfully, Hapuna Beach (gate 7am-8pm) has shoulders broad enough to handle it. A long, wide swath of fluffy golden sand caressed by clear waters and fringed by palms, Hapuna is the movie brought to life – the one popular culture placed in your head, entitled ‘Hawaiian paradise.’
Hapuna’S surf changes dramatically with the seasons. In calm summer, swimming, snorkeling and diving are excellent (though fish populations have declined). When the surf’S up in winter, bodysurfers and bodyboarders get their turn. High winter surf can produce strong currents close to shore and a pounding shorebreak; numerous tourists unfamiliar with the water conditions have drowned here. Lifeguards are on duty.
With drive-up access and a legendary reputation, Hapuna is extremely popular; arrive early to score parking and stake out your spot. However, with so many people (and perpetually strained state budgets), park facilities are run-down. Up from the beach is a shaded, scrabbly hillside picnic area with covered tables, two pavilions, showers, drinking water and grungy rest rooms. A concession stand sells snacks and rents boogie boards, snorkels and umbrellas. Don’t leave valuables in your car.
Equally famous among campers are the park’S six A-frame cabins ($20), up the hill from the park, with fabulous views. The cabins are little more than dilapidated wooden teepees with screened half-walls that let in the breeze (and highway noise); they have electricity, drinking water, a picnic bench, and two sleeping ledges. There are shared bathrooms with showers and a cooking pavilion with a stove and fridge (but no pots, pans, plates or utensils). Yet, for self-sufficient folks with their own bedding, this is heaven. An advanced permit is required (Click here), but the camp host (on duty 8am to 4pm) will issue a same-day, one-night permit after 2pm if space is available. Tent camping is not permitted, but you can always beg.
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MAUNA KEA RESORT AREA
The granddaddy of the Kohala Coast resorts, the Mauna Kea Beach Hotel was built in 1965 by the late Laurance Rockefeller and was the first luxury hotel on the Neighbor Islands. Naturally, other resorts followed, and they eventually surpassed Mauna Kea in size and luxury. But no money in the world could buy or build its beach, which is just as Hollywood gorgeous as neighboring Hapuna. Now, in 2009, after closing due to earthquake damage in 2006, the Mauna Kea has been renovated and reopened, ready to restake its claim. The turnoff is just north of the 68-mile marker.
Sights & Activities
Take Hapuna Beach and ever-so-gently bend it like an archer’S bow and you have Kauna′oa Bay (aka Mauna Kea Beach), a stunning crescent-shaped cove with silky sand and a gradual slope that fosters excellent swimming conditions most of the year. On the north end, snorkeling conditions are good during calm waters.
Just north of Mauna Kea Beach is delightful Mau′umae Beach, with soft white sand, shady trees and protected blue waters with good snorkeling. Locals are proprietary about this beach,