Lava is prominent all along the Big Island’s west side thanks to some major Mauna Loa and Hualalai eruptions that occurred over the last few hundred to few thousand years. Lava flows around Kailua-Kona mostly originated from Hualalai and are mostly 200+ years old (to much older). Flows to both the north and south of Kona mostly came from Mauna Loa and some are much newer. We set out to explore some of the coast south of Kona, particularly near Keauhou Bay. There are very few beaches here, and the shoreline immediately north of the Bay is rocky and steep and mostly bordered by the Kona Country Club Golf course or residential developments. The wave action daily can produce some impressive surf explosions:
South of Keauhou Bay, the first and best real public access to the coast is via the “End of the World Trail”, one of the few in this area documented by Alltrails and others. This trail is T-shaped, with entry (on foot only) from a short side road off of Ali'i Drive about 0.3 miles south of Kaleiopapa Rd. There is a locked gate on the side road that leads to the trail. Parking is on the shoulder of this dead end road. Enter around the gate (at the bottom of the “T”). Beyond the gate is a gravel road that heads straight west to the top of the “T” and then turns south for access to a ranch at the end of this road, only about a 0.3 mile walk. The ranch is private, but you can turn right just before the ranch entrance and walk along the rocky lava cliffs. You will have to find a path across the sharp rocks and among the spike-covered keawe trees:
Go slow and watch your step!
At the top of the “T”, you can instead turn left (north) and walk along the coast. Just inland from this section is an ancient Hawaiian burial ground where warriors are buried from an epic 1819 battle between King Kamehameha II and his cousin Kekuaokalani, that spelled the end of the severe Kapu legal system that had been in place for many years.
We explored this trail over two different days. On the first day, a Sunday, we arrived at the top of the T in mid-afternoon. Looking south we saw a large group gathered on a cliff near the ranch entrance. This is a well-known cliff jumping spot and it was very popular that day. The highest jump is ~30 feet. We watched a lot of dives, but this tandem flip was the most impressive and probably dangerous:
There is a life belt attached to a tree there for rescue, and a chain hanging down to the water to aid in climbing the cliff after a jump. For many people this jump is the only reason to come here.
We returned the next morning to fully explore the trail in cooler and calmer weather. There were no divers and very few other hikers or dogwalkers around. We headed to the ranch gate and turned right to head to the cliff diving spot. The water is clear, deep and gorgeously turquoise at this point.
Unlike the rocky coast on the north leg of the trail (and continuing to Keauhou Bay and beyond), this section is mostly cliffs that rise above the bay from just a few feet to 30-40 feet.
This mix of cliffs and rocky shores continues well to the south also. We made our way out along these cliffs towards Kona Point. Some beautiful tiny coves are hidden here creating constantly changing coastal cascades as the ways flow in and out:
Around the point, there is an expansive view looking south towards Captain Cook, with the farthest visible point being Shoreline Park and the pu'u just beyond.
We went no further in this direction, and returned to the top of the “T” and headed north along the shore, for another few tenths of a mile. There are many signs warning of the burial grounds lying a few feet inland:
We continued north along the shore, finding again some beautiful small coves and gorgeous turquoise water:
We found large piles of big, water-smoothed lava boulders along the craggy lava shore and wondered how these came to coexist.
Carved into smooth lava surfaces were round bowl-shaped holes, known as Kanoa, that were used by native Hawaiians for a variety of purposes. but that now just collect various colors of salt deposits.
Once we were confident that we had passed the burial ground, we turned inland and found a parallel trail bordering the inland side of the burial ground and made our exit that way.
Overall, we found this to be a beautiful coastal trail, one of the few readily accessible in the area. A morning visit on a calm day will reward with marvelous views into the crystal clear water and a serene setting for a picnic. Or wait until a big surf day to see huge waves crashing against these cliffs. Either way, good shoes, preferably hiking boots, will make the short walk across the rocky lava a lot safer and easier!
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