On our second day in Hawaii, we woke to the undeniable reality that we were burned. Being faired skinned and a veteran of many sunburns, I wasn't in the least bit surprised. Abby, however, who is fairly dark complected, was astonished at the degree of burn she received. During the course of the week, she would mention many times how surprised she was that she got that burned.
Having a car at our disposal, we had initially planned to spend a day or two touring the island. Given the condition of our skin, we decided that day 2 would make a perfect day to spend in the car. Destination - South Pointe.The southern tip of the big island is the southern most point in the United States. There isn't a whole lot down there, it's just one of those places to go to say "I've been there."
The drive from Waikoloa to Kona is largely a barren, lava desert. The only exception are small, itermittent sections of palm tree lined beaches, visible from the main road. Several of these beaches are the center point of resorts such as Waikoloa. Many others are a mile or so from the road and marked only by the cars of a few local surfers die hard enough to hike out.
Once through Kona, the scenery takes a noticeable change. The southern half of the western coast is much greener than the northern half. Thick vegetation covers the landscape in between a sprinkling of small communities. Windy roads, low speed limits, and interesting sights make this a perfect lazy day drive. If we had more time, we would have liked to explore some of the little store fronts scattered along this section of the highway. Restaurants, thrift stores, and coffee shops nestled in a cool, jungly part of the island made this seem like a perfect retreat for some sun burnt vacationers. But alas, time was limited.
As we passed one of many small rural properties advertising authentic Kona coffee, Abby and I both did a double take as we spotted what we believed to be.....a zebra? We both looked at each other in astonished confusion right before I swerved off the road, made a quick u-turn and headed back to confirm that we did in fact see a critter that one would only expect to see in a zoo. Or Africa.
By the time we got back to where the zebra was, there was another couple of cars doing the same thing. We all kind of exchanged a "yeah, we had to see it too," and then we took some pictures. Zebra - yes, but in Hawaii? Weird.
Another 45 minutes and we arrived at the turn off for south pointe. A twelve mile gravel road winds through mostly pastures with unbelievably green grass. Pictures can't describe the color. We stopped and said hi to some horses and cows.The actual bottom tip of the united states is mostly lava beaches. There is a large stretch of cliffs that are probably 30-50 feet above some very blue water. Fish nets are scattered near the bottom of the cliff and several decrepit platforms are present, presumably for hoisting fish nets.
The wind at south pointe was incredible. So strong and constant, that we left our hats and sunglasses in the car to prevent them from blowing off our heads. So strong that even tightly squinted eyes were constantly infiltrated by blowing sand. There were a couple of women selling beaded jewelry and a handful of people sport-fishing from the cliffs. We walked around for an hour or so and then decided to get out of the wind.
Based on the recommendation of a coworker, we decided to make the 2.5 mile hike from south pointe to the green sand beach. The beach is a very isolated stretch of olivine sand. Rumor has that it is one of three in the world. It was a good day for a walk, so we figured why not.
The hike is fairly flat, winding along old jeep trails through grass and light brown, hard packed dirt. Despite the relative ease of the hike, we were both eager to get the beach. The sun burn had really zapped our energy. That, and also, we were hiking in pants and long sleeves to limit any further exposure.
The green sand beach is probably only 100 feet in length. It sits about 60-70 feet below the surrounding area, requiring descent along a steep trail so heavily used that foot steps have been worn in the rock.
There seems to be a constant crowd mix of tourists and locals. A handful enjoying beers and playing in the waves, while others taxi tourists back and forth the 2.5 mile trail for a small fee. We stayed on the beach about 45 mintues, enjoying the bittersweet experience of crystal blue waters that we were too burned to enjoy and knowing that we had a hot, dusty walk back. Overall, the place was as cool as we were told. Just make sure you are able to enjoy the water!!
