Last week we went to South Point (Ka Lai), which is the southernmost point on the Big Island, and, consequently, the southern most point in the United States. It is vast and windswept. The water at the point itself is calm--you can safely jump off the cliffs--but just a few hundred yards away the ocean surges and waves crash on the rocks.
If you look hard enough, you can see Antarctica in the distance.
A 2.5 mile walk along the rocky coast from Ka Lai brings you to this gem of a spot--Green Sands Beach. The walk is over lava fields and brings you past the most ancient human settlements on the island. Stone structures built first by the original Polynesian settlers 1,300 years ago, and rebuilt by anyone camping along the coast in the many years since. At the beach itself, the sand has been eroded from an outcrop of lava with a high olivine content. This means the sand is green. The waves are perfect for body surfing in this little cove. It is sheltered from the main pounding of the waves that cross thousands of miles of open ocean, but the wind can be fierce.
1 comment:
It looks spectacular! The scale of the cliffs is hard to grasp, even with you guys in the picture!
Ronan loved your post card, and immediately put it up on the fridge (a place of special honor to him).
Post a Comment