Keanae Peninsula
Keanae, HI
Keanae Peninsula juts out into open ocean along the Road to Hana, a flat finger of black lava rock dotted with taro patches and a historic stone church that's weathered a century of waves crashing against the shoreline. There's no sand beach here, and the surf slamming into the rock is exactly the point for most visitors who stop.
A genuinely stunning, historic stop that locals still bring visiting family to, with the only real caveat being that it's a lookout, not a beach, and the ocean here deserves real caution.
How we score beachesWatch the waves explode against the rocks from a safe distance back. Rogue waves have swept people off this shoreline before, and locals give the water's edge real respect.
A small county park lot at the end of Keanae Road serves the peninsula, free and usually available outside of Road to Hana tour bus hours.
A flat, paved road leads out onto the peninsula, easy walking, though the lava shoreline itself is uneven and not safe to approach closely.
Winter swells make the wave action even more dramatic and dangerous, while summer is somewhat calmer though never genuinely safe for swimming.
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