Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
To get here take Maile St from Hwy 11, until it turns into Pikake St, and then Route
151 (Wood Valley Rd); the retreat is about 4.5 miles inland. The meander up into Wood
Valley is a great drive with farms and forest and one-lane bridges crossing babbling
creeks.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Punaluʻu & Around
POP 900
Once a major Hawaiian settlement, today Punaluʻu is home to a popular black-sand
beach and the nearby Sea Mountain condo development, the only one of its kind on this
coast - and perhaps the last.
Beaches
Punaluʻu Beach Park
BEACH
Punaluʻu Beach Park provides easy access to a pretty little bay with a black-sand beach
famous for feeding and basking green sea turtles; snorkeling is a real treat here. It's also
one of the few beaches where rare hawksbill turtles lay their eggs, so be careful not to
disturb their sandy nests.
The northern part of the beach is backed by a duck pond and the remains of an old re-
sort, rotting away in testimony to local economics, the anti-development movement, or
both. Most days the rough waters are not good for swimming as there are forceful under-
tows - a lifeguard is posted. The ruins of the Pahala Sugar Company's old warehouse
and pier lie slightly to the north. Follow a trail up the hill past the cement pier to find the
unreconstructed ruins of Kaneʻeleʻele Heiau in a vast field; the trail continues all the way
to Kawa Bay via some secluded coves.
The park has picnic pavilions, rest rooms, showers and drinking water. A concession
stand is run by local aunties who happily talk story, and camping is allowed (with a
county permit). Come morning, the park quickly fills with picnickers and tour buses.
There are two signed turnoffs for Punaluʻu between mile markers 56 and 57.
Kawa Bay
BEACH
Reached via a dirt road between mile markers 58 and 59 (stay straight rather than taking
any lefts), this is Kaʻu's best surfable break (known locally as Windmills; competitions
