Big Island of Hawaii- Day 8: Green Sand Beach

We knew there probably wouldn't be much open on Christmas day so we planned a nature hike. We had heard of the green sand beach in Hawaii and knew we wanted to see it since there are only 4 green sand beaches in the entire world. We were even told by our snorkeling tour guides that if we headed to the big island it was worth the hike since green sand beaches are so rare. 

I enjoyed breakfast on the patio and did my nails.




Made from eroding ash from the volcano and the same minerals that make up the precious gem peridot. The olivine washes out of the ash and is denser so it stays behind on the beach longer giving it a green hue. It was nearly 2 hours away from us and a good hour and half hike out to it-- making it a 5 1/2 mile hike round trip.






It was really windy but the scenery was beautiful! My husband and Ian both downloaded the trail on our AllTrails app so we had some guideline to follow but it was crowded enough that we could have followed the crowd and still found our way. 














We were thrilled to finally see the beach and cliffs we had hiked out to!












The hike down looked more intimidating than it was. 

There was a seal sunning himself on the beach



It's so much greener and sparkly in person!





my husband couldn't resist swimming


sweaty, wind-blown, and disheveled but we made it there!



That's what we hiked down.. but I swear it wasn't that bad.

The walk back felt so long. We were all starving and sandy and a few of us were a bit sunburned. 

We were back at our condo by 2, showered, made some burgers and hot dogs and then my husband and I headed out for another quick grocery shopping. The KTA store near us was open until 4 pm Christmas day. 

mongoose near our condo (we saw lots of them on the islands)

After dinner my husband and I walked around the resort and watched the sunset. 




Comments

  1. Wow! I have never heard of green sand but that is amazing. What a beautiful hike- love that your hubby jumped in- I would do the same!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I debated but really did not want to attempt the hour plus hike back to the car with sandy/wet feet!

      Delete
  2. I've never been to the Big Island or seen green sand but it looks amazing! I know you said that it was busy but your photos are fabulous, it looks like you had the whole beach to yourself. What a wonderful way to spend Christmas Day!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There were only 2 other couples on the actual beach when we arrived but we did pass two full trucks bringing more people to the beach (though it is technically illegal, many locals hang around the parking lot and offer to drive groups out there for a cash fee) on our way back to the car.

      Delete
  3. What a perfect way to spend Christmas! The views are spectacular!

    https://www.kathrineeldridge.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aw, thank you! It did feel unlike any other Christmas, that's for sure.

      Delete
  4. That was quite a hike out to the shore line... I've never been to Hawaii but I hear it is quite worth the trip. Your photos are gorgeuous and looks like a wonderful family vacation.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aw, thank you. It was quite a hike with the wind howling and no breaks from the sun but at least the views were so pretty.

      Delete
  5. That is more green looking than I expected!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I was so relieved because I really thought it was just going to have a slight green tinge and not be worth the trek but, thankfully, that was not the case. In the photos it looks more army green whereas in person the sparkles made it look a bit more emerald.

      Delete
  6. I don't see anyone in your photos, so if it was busy, you did a great job of taking pictures without them. I can imagine how neat it was to see the green sand in real life, even your photos make it look beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Since there are deep ruts in the dunes there are many, many paths you can take. We'd often spot a head or a couple of people here and there but then weirdly we only saw two other families at the actual beach itself.

      Delete
  7. The photos of the cliffs and the water are amazing- the contrast between the rocks and the water, both the colors and the states of the matter (solid vs. liquid!) is so poignant. Part of the trail walk looks like the sand is yellow hued. Very pretty!

    ReplyDelete
  8. What a different Christmas day you had!
    The green beach sounds fascinating! Beautiful photos!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It sure didn't feel much like any Christmas we've ever had but it was lovely.

      Delete
  9. What an incredible Christmas day. I was so amazed at how different the terrain and landscape is on the Big Island compared with the others in the chain.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Right?! We thought it looked remarkably different too. There are actually 8 distinct climate zones on the big island and we could easily spot so many of them. This hike looked like we were walking near a tundra!

      Delete
  10. What a great activity for the day and how interesting that it was somewhat crowded!
    Xoxo
    Jodie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We had read on many of the tourism sites that most places are getting overrun with tourists but I think we did a great job navigating crowds the entire trip and feeling like we still had most places to ourselves (or at the very least room to spread out).

      Delete
  11. HI Joanne, looks like a lovely trip. We've never visited Hawaii but I feel it has quite a bit more to offer than just surf. Looks like a great hike! Sue L #TeamWWWhimsy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It definitely has a lot more to offer than just surfing and swimming!

      Delete
  12. I’m sitting here with temps outside in the teens. Coming to this post was so warming. Beautiful photos.
    Lisa

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Our temps are in the negatives this week (at least in the morning anyway!).. and these memories are helping to keep me warm.

      Delete
  13. Joanne that is really interesting, I'd not heard of a green beach before. Great photos and great memories for you all I'm sure.
    Deb #Teamwwwhimsy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! We thought it was really neat too.

      Delete
  14. Hi Joanne, I'd never heard of green sand before so I've learned something new today! Fabulous photos and it looks like an amazing hike. I bet that food & drinks went down well when you finally got back! Thanks for linking up with #WWWhimsy xo

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They sure did! We were all so hungry after our morning hike.

      Delete
  15. I honestly had never heard of green sand! It really is green. I think this is going to be a trip you will remember forever! I also think you're going to need more than one scrap book for it! Thanks for sharing the photos with us!

    https://marshainthemiddle.com/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It really is green! We weren't sure what to expect either; the whole hike out there I kept muttering "this better be worth it." And it definitely was!

      Delete
  16. Wow, to have the beach all to yourself! I like volcanic islands. We went several times to Lanzarote, which had black sand!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. By the end of our trip we had been on black sand, green sand, red sand, and typical tan/beige sand beaches!

      Delete
  17. Wow! That green sand is amazing, and what a thrill to see a seal sunning himself on the beach.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It was so unexpected to see the seal and very neat to see the green sand in person.

      Delete
  18. What a wonderful way to spend Christmas Day, Joanne. And that beach is fantastic. This looks like a most wonderful holiday!

    ReplyDelete
  19. It's amazing to see those monk seals on the beach. I just loved Hawaii. So much extraordinary nature - lovely photos. It's such an amazing place. So different to anything we have with the volcanoes and their impact on the sand etc. #WWWHimsy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It really is so very different looking from any other tropical place we've been. It was really neat to see the volcanoes and all the different climate zones too.

      Delete
  20. Such beautiful pictures and you picked a fabulous spot for a family photo. Always so nice to see wildlife. The sunset looks so beautiful too!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aw, thank you! We were happy there were other people on the beach to ask; it's the only family photo of the whole trip!

      Delete
  21. I've not heard of the green sand either, how neat!

    ReplyDelete
  22. What a cool, unique, beach! It doesn't look at all crowded so hopefully you found some moments of peace among the people.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It wasn't super crowded once we started hiking; in fact I feel like most people probably don't make it all the way out to the beach since we never saw the large group that started out of the parking lot with us again!

      Delete
  23. Very interesting, never heard of the green sands - seems like you had a great time.
    Thanks for participating and sharing your post at ES #WW #60 (Words welcome). See you again Wednesday at #61 https://esmesalon.com/tag/wordlesswednesday/

    ReplyDelete
  24. I've never heard of the green sand beaches. Now I might have to google where the others are. Looks like quite the hike. Does anyone complain or do they just get on with it. I feel like I might have been whining a little on the hike back lol.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My boys didn't gripe or complain at all; I think they are well used to us dragging them on hikes galore. I had to bite my tongue on the way back to not be the one complaining.

      Delete
  25. You have the best nails!! I just did mine two days ago and thought of you and how perfect your manicures always look.
    Girl, what fun you are going to have scrapbooking this amazing trip. Can't wait to see the pages you create. I bet there are so many pretty papers and embellishments to buy and create for Hawaii. Just wow!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aw, thank you! I just started some layouts yesterday and it is a lot of fun; even if I am having a hard time picking what photos to use.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Favorite TV Shows Growing Up in the 80's and early 90's

Things That Make Me Laugh

What I Read in December & January and Share Your Shelf #10

Gratitude and Highlights Each Day in January

Old Fort Niagara