Hawaii, April 1st, Green Sand & South Point

For my first adventure, I decided to hike to a green sand beach. It's located off South Point, the most southern spot in the US, and 12 miles off the highway.

On the way there, I drove through the middle of nowhere, and thought I was lost many times. It was partially a two-lane road, then a one-lane road. Typical driving adventure for me, however. I also saw my first Hawaiian rainbow. Maybe next time I'll get a better shot.

When I arrived at the parking lot (unmarked, of course), there were only fishermen around. Of course, it was 8:30 am and raining slightly, so that may have deterred the rest of the crowds. The path was through lava rocks and across fields, for about 2.5 miles. Gradual undulations, and not a hard hike. The rain was the most annoying aspect.

The view of the beach from above - check out the color of the water!

The beach itself was gorgeous. I'm sure I'll be saying that a lot about Hawaii, though. There was cinder cone, with a steep path down. Being my new, more adventurous self, I was undeterred and hiked all the way down. Thank goodness for hiking poles!

Cinder cone above the green sand beach, and the start of the path. Where?

Another view of the cinder cone

 The sand itself was olive green since there's olivine (periodot) mixed in from the cinder cone: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papakolea_Beach

The hike back to the car was warmer, and much sunnier. It was also much more crowded. Glad I went early.

Since I was already at South Point, I decided to stop at the actual southernmost point of the US. I'm not a big one for hitting geographical landmarks, but why not?  It's another desolate, windswept point, mostly full of fishermen. Apparently the fishing is great where the currents meet each other.

On the way back to the highway, there were some dramatic cliffs. I was wishing for a better zoom lens at that point!