Day 6 and we are finally getting used to the hours and recovering from our jet lag. We actually woke up at 10am today which is three hours later than usual! After getting ready to head to the beach, it was already noon.
Our guidebook mentioned that the Waimea River is the only black or volcanic sand in all of Kauai. The photo in the book looked amazing enough so we drove to the west coast all the way from the east to see it for ourselves. It's not really the black sand we thought it would be. Where the river meets the ocean, a strong current whipped up the sands beneath to give the water an overall turbid appearance.
Waimea River Black Sand Beach
Highway 50
Waimea, HI
We drove away from the black sand of the Waimea River determined to find our beach for the day. The road runs past a military base and ends where the beach is. Driving up there was like being in a ghost town--everything around us was dry as if we'd all of a sudden arrived at a desert. There was no sign of the lush valleys and commanding cliffs ahead of us. We kept driving anyway past the Pacific Missile Range Facility and the unpaved roads of Barking Sands. It was like driving to the ends of the earth. There were no signs and no directions leading to the beach. There was no sign of water as the dried tall bush covered our view of the road ahead. We bounced up and down inside our cars, thankful for the first time that we rented an SUV.
The sun was intense but we finally made it to the beach. We parked our car by the facilities and walked down the dunes to get a glimpse of where we wanted to spend the rest of our afternoon. We immediately changed our minds as soon as we felt how hot the sand was. Our slippers seemed to be melting! Even if we had umbrellas, I think that would have melted, too. There were no trees and no respite from the sun.
Barking Sand Beach
off the Pacific Missile Range Facility |
