Black Sand Beach in Hawaii

By Zatoria Thompson, Madison Schlichte and Matthew Emmanuel
FEB 28, 2019

Of all the black sand beaches around the world, there is a beautiful stretch right here, in the U.S.A.

Honokalani, located on the island of Maui, Hawaii, can be accessed from a narrow and swervy path in Wai’anapanapa State Park. Lauren Monitz of iExplore recommends that tourists, discover a small sea arch, sea caves, and seaside lava tubes in the beach area. Raider Review reporter Madison Schlichte, who visited the area last summer, said that “It is the perfect place to sit down and have a picnic with your family.” She also said that, “Next to the beach, there is a big rock structure and you can take a trail to the top, where you’ll find a blowhole. It’s the perfect place to take a picture, especially if you can time the photo just right and get the water sprayed from the blowhole in the background.”

According to an article by Maarten De Brauwer from Critter Research, when lava flows into the ocean it causes an explosion. This reaction deposits “… tiny fragments of volcanic sand/glass …,” which is how the magnificent Honokalani beach was formed. Madison Schlichte noted that, “The black sand felt like regular sand that you would find on any common beach.”

These beaches show that something beautiful can come from a frightening force of nature. Black sand beaches are an extraordinary example of nature at its finest and should definitely be visited more than once in a lifetime.