Legend has it that in the olden days of Hawaii, being found guilty of nearly all crimes resulted in the death penalty. A criminal found guilty did, however, have one out: if he could make it to Puuhonua O Honaunau Bay, the Place of Refuge, before being caught by his pursuers, then his sins were forgiven and he could return to his village as a free man. The national park at the site will be of interest to history buffs.
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hat makes Honaunau Bay really special, however, is the sea life. The beach by the snorkeling area isn’t covered with beautiful sand, and if you look away from the water, you might think you’re in some rundown hillbilly nightmare rather than one of the best beaches in Hawaii. The black lava rock that reaches to the ocean from the sparse beach becomes tide pools at high tide, with black crabs scurrying around. Without getting into the water, we could look down into the ocean and see turtles, bright yellow tangs and other sea life.
On our recent return to Kona, we arrived early in the morning and spent some time observing the turtles. When we looked up, we noticed some activity about 75 yards off shore: a half dozen dolphins breached the surface in unison.
Putting on mask and snorkel in a hurry, I stroked my best freestyle to get out to the dolphins, and even at a relatively fast pace, I could see the beautiful coral and bright colored fish that make this such a terrific place for skin diving any time. I have to admit that as I swam, I flashed on that Vonage commercial where the girl mistakes shark fins for dolphin fins, but I shook it off and kept going. I made it out to the right general area and found eighteen dolphins frolicking.
About half the time I had my head out of the water, watching dolphins arc beyond the surface, and the other half I watched them swim beneath me. Baby dolphins leaped into the air doing triple axels like Michelle Kwan. Needless to say, it was quite a show. Eventually, they swam away, actually going closer to the shore.
I floated face down to rest. Beneath me, I could see nothing but clear blue water, until I saw what looked like a light shining up from the depths below. Suddenly, dolphins swam beneath me, and there were even more than before, more than I could count. They gracefully broke the plane of the water about eight feet away and played follow the leader in a circle around me. It was a religious experience.
W
hat makes Honaunau Bay really special, however, is the sea life. The beach by the snorkeling area isn’t covered with beautiful sand, and if you look away from the water, you might think you’re in some rundown hillbilly nightmare rather than one of the best beaches in Hawaii. The black lava rock that reaches to the ocean from the sparse beach becomes tide pools at high tide, with black crabs scurrying around. Without getting into the water, we could look down into the ocean and see turtles, bright yellow tangs and other sea life.
On our recent return to Kona, we arrived early in the morning and spent some time observing the turtles. When we looked up, we noticed some activity about 75 yards off shore: a half dozen dolphins breached the surface in unison.
Putting on mask and snorkel in a hurry, I stroked my best freestyle to get out to the dolphins, and even at a relatively fast pace, I could see the beautiful coral and bright colored fish that make this such a terrific place for skin diving any time. I have to admit that as I swam, I flashed on that Vonage commercial where the girl mistakes shark fins for dolphin fins, but I shook it off and kept going. I made it out to the right general area and found eighteen dolphins frolicking.About half the time I had my head out of the water, watching dolphins arc beyond the surface, and the other half I watched them swim beneath me. Baby dolphins leaped into the air doing triple axels like Michelle Kwan. Needless to say, it was quite a show. Eventually, they swam away, actually going closer to the shore.
I floated face down to rest. Beneath me, I could see nothing but clear blue water, until I saw what looked like a light shining up from the depths below. Suddenly, dolphins swam beneath me, and there were even more than before, more than I could count. They gracefully broke the plane of the water about eight feet away and played follow the leader in a circle around me. It was a religious experience.
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