It’s not every day that a person gets to swim from a black sand beach to a white sand beach, but that’s exactly what we did today. Kahalu’u Beach Park is a shallow bay filled with coral and fish, like an open-air aquarium, and that was our starting point. Ryan has spent a lot of his career here and at Magic Sands, our destination. They’re busy places where both tourists and locals come to enjoy the water, but they’re not easy to manage for a lifeguard. Heavy surf, currents, sharp rocks, and ignorance all play a role in making this a dangerous place for those who don’t respect it.

This point to point swim takes a bit of coordination with the dropping off of cars and guides but we made pretty quick work of it, having done this many times over the decade we’ve been swimming here.

We all made it out through the shallow entrance to the bay with no trouble, as the waves weren't even breaking today. The coral along this stretch of coastline is really healthy as it gets very little traffic so it’s protected from flippers, boat anchors, pollution, and a lot of the other stuff that can kill a coral reef. I spied a white-tipped reef shark about 35 feet beneath us, minding his own business. Heather and Kekau swam through some deep tunnels, a testament to their lung capacity.

Once at Magic Sands Beach we hung around the lava rock wall at the parking area and drank fizzy water and ate some snacks. I just love this spot, it was and still is a spiritual place for the Hawaiians, and you can feel an energy here that hits you from the ocean and the mountains.

Back at the Hale, some power naps then an asian noodle salad. We swam again in the afternoon. An easy swim to our home reef and back. I spied a spotted eagle ray on the way out.

The hens are getting bold….Thanks for the pics Melinda!

Our massage therapists Amanda and Daniel kneaded our muscles while the waves crashed on the shore and the birds sang, and the cheese and crackers came out and the wine flowed.

A mini dance party broke out, and Dan and Clare put out sashimi made from the very Ono that we had caught yesterday, which also appeared as our main course at dinner, along with local broccoli, and pesto mashed potatoes. Mango crumble put us over the top, and everyone hit the hay early in anticipation of a big swim tomorrow morning.

Hopper

Amanda has brought a few of her babies to work with us each year. What a lovely surprise to get to see her 4 girls tonight.