Hale o Lono Beach
Maunaloa, HI
Hale o Lono is a working harbor before it's a beach, the launch point every September for the Na Wahine O Ke Kai canoe race across the channel to Oahu. The drive out is half the experience, seven washboard miles of dirt road past land Molokai Ranch still owns, ending at a small beach beside the breakwater.
The history and the sheer remoteness make it worth the drive once, but there's little to do beyond looking around, and the road out is rough enough that most locals only make the trip for the race itself.
How we score beachesAir down your tires a little before the dirt road starts. It smooths out a genuinely bumpy seven miles, and a compact sedan will have a rough time of it either way.
The dirt road ends at open, informal parking right along the harbor, free, with plenty of room since almost nobody drives out here on an average day.
Flat ground connects the parking area to the sand, but the road getting there is rough enough that low clearance vehicles should think twice.
Summer generally brings calmer water for swimming near the harbor, while winter and any south swell can make the rocky nearshore area rough and better left alone.
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