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It is surrounded by pasturelands and is
only accessible on foot or by using a vehicle equipped with
four-wheel drive. To actually reach the beach, an
additional climb down the cinder cone is required. Papakolea
is located at the base of Pu'u O Mahana, an old littoral cone
in a wild, undeveloped terrain. Access involves a three-mile
(4.8 km) hike through lava fields.
Strong
currents.
Swimming; Diving; Body-boarding; Fishing.
This is one of only two green sand beaches
in the United States, the other being in Guam.
In
the words of Dr. Beach
Green Sand
Beach is one of the most interesting beaches in the world and
the southernmost beach in the United States. The sand is
volcanic glass that is tinted green by the presence of olivine
grains. Individual nuggets of olivine can be picked up by the
handfuls on the beach or eroding sea cliffs. While the grains
are usually too small to be valued as a gemstone, the rare
green sand is prized by collectors. I am a member of two sand
collectors societies which have worldwide membership, and a
sample from Green Sand Beach is a biggie in any collection.
Green Sand Beach is located in a desolate part of the coast
near the Kaulana boat ramp; there are no facilities, food or
water available. You must drive through wind-swept grassy
plains to the end of the road; then take an invigorating,
two-and-a-half-mile walk along the sea cliffs until you reach
the ocean-breached volcanic cone that provides the source
material and pocket for the accumulation of the volcanic sand
beach. To reach the beach itself, carefully climb down the low
sea cliff on the south face where the footing is sure. Some
people attempt to climb down the crumbling cliffs backing the
beach itself, but this route is not safe. On calm days, a
quick dip into the sea is very refreshing. The water is clean
and clear, but the dark sand on the underwater beach makes it
more foreboding and less appealing to most people for
swimming. On the return journey to your car, notice the piles
of stone and other fortifications that were constructed by
early Hawaiians on the cliff top. These waters contain some of
Hawaii's best yellowfin tuna, which is the finest fish in the
sea for sashimi. From these towering cliffs, schools of these
large fish, growing to over 300 pounds, can sometimes be
spotted.
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