Waianapanapa State Park - Black Sand and a Royal Legend
Photo: Christoph Strassler, CC BY-SA 2.0 (cropped)
A stop on Maui: The Road to Hana, a free self-guided tour.
Waianapanapa means glistening waters, and the park is named for the freshwater caves near the parking lot, not the beach. Still, the beach is what most people come to see. Pailoa Bay is a small cove of jet-black sand made from lava that flowed from Haleakala, ground down by the waves into smooth pebbles and grains.
The park also holds lava tubes, sea arches, blowholes and a coastal trail across rough lava fields.
The caves come with a famous legend. The story tells of a princess named Popoalaea who fled her cruel husband, the chief Kakae, and hid in a cave pool. A servant fanned her with a feathered standard, and its reflection on the water gave her away. The legend says that on certain nights the water turns red with her blood. The red has a natural cause too: tiny native red shrimp sometimes appear in the pool in great numbers.
The swimming at Pailoa can be rough. Watch the waves before you go in, and stay out of the sea when the surf is up.
Getting here: Continue about 13 miles to just past mile marker 32, then turn left on Honokalani Road and follow it to the park entrance. Visitors need an advance reservation, so book before you set out.
Did you know?: The red shrimp that tint the cave pools, called opaeula, live in cracks in the rock where fresh water meets the sea.
Photo op: From the trail above Pailoa Bay, frame the black sand beach with the turquoise water and green vegetation around it.
Nearby: Restrooms and picnic areas. Check the state parks website for current reservation details and hours.
More on Wikipedia: Wai?anapanapa State Park · Halocaridina rubra · Haleakala
Stops on this tour
- Paia - The Last Big Stop Before the Curves
- Hookipa Beach Park Lookout - Windsurfers and Sea Turtles
- Twin Falls - A Farm's Gift to the Road
- Garden of Eden Arboretum - Where Jurassic Park Took Off
- Kaumahina State Wayside - Restrooms With a View
- Keanae Peninsula - Taro, Lava and an 1850s Church
- Halfway to Hana - Banana Bread Checkpoint
- Upper Waikani Falls - The Three Bears
- Waianapanapa State Park - Black Sand and a Royal Legend
- Hana Town - Birthplace of a Queen
- Hamoa Beach - A South Seas Crescent
- Wailua Falls - A Waterfall You Can See From Your Seat
- Kipahulu and Oheo Gulch - The End of the Road