The town of Kalapana, at the end of the road in Puna on the Big Island, was mostly destroyed by an eruption from Kilauea in 1990. Kalapana was a Hawaiian fishing village with a beautiful palm tree covered black sand beach called Kaimu. The lava flow covered the beach with 50 to 75 feet of lava and destroyed most of the village and nearby Royal Gardens. In 2008, lava began to flow again, destroying the remaining structures in Royal Gardens and doing additional damage to Kalapana.
Kalapana has a place at the end of the road to park and walk in for viewing the lava flowing into the ocean.
The path through the lava is about a 1/3 mile to the new black sand beach. The active Kilauea emission are visible from the path in the distance.
A while agao, local resident in Kalapana started a campaign to plant new coconuts. Her efforts may ultimately result in a transformation of the beach and returning it to its previous greatness.
The black sand beach, at the end of the walk, is Kaimu Beach. It has a treacherous surf, too dangerous to swim, but beautiful to see.
Here is a video of our recent walk to the black beach.
If you get hungry after all the walking, there is a cafe next to the parking lot in Kalapana.
We had some great burgers and a huge fish sandwich. And ice cream!
