Big Island of Hawaii- Day 8: Green Sand Beach

We knew there probably wouldn't be much open on Christmas day so we planned a nature hike. We had heard of the green sand beach in Hawaii and knew we wanted to see it since there are only 4 green sand beaches in the entire world. We were even told by our snorkeling tour guides that if we headed to the big island it was worth the hike since green sand beaches are so rare. 

I enjoyed breakfast on the patio and did my nails.




Made from eroding ash from the volcano and the same minerals that make up the precious gem peridot. The olivine washes out of the ash and is denser so it stays behind on the beach longer giving it a green hue. It was nearly 2 hours away from us and a good hour and half hike out to it-- making it a 5 1/2 mile hike round trip.






It was really windy but the scenery was beautiful! My husband and Ian both downloaded the trail on our AllTrails app so we had some guideline to follow but it was crowded enough that we could have followed the crowd and still found our way. 














We were thrilled to finally see the beach and cliffs we had hiked out to!












The hike down looked more intimidating than it was. 

There was a seal sunning himself on the beach



It's so much greener and sparkly in person!





my husband couldn't resist swimming


sweaty, wind-blown, and disheveled but we made it there!



That's what we hiked down.. but I swear it wasn't that bad.

The walk back felt so long. We were all starving and sandy and a few of us were a bit sunburned. 

We were back at our condo by 2, showered, made some burgers and hot dogs and then my husband and I headed out for another quick grocery shopping. The KTA store near us was open until 4 pm Christmas day. 

mongoose near our condo (we saw lots of them on the islands)

After dinner my husband and I walked around the resort and watched the sunset. 




Others in this series:

Maui:

Days 1 & 2 here: Arrival and Haleakala 

Day 3: Road to Hana

Day 4: Snorkeling

Day 5: Kula Botanical Gardens 

Big Island:

Day 6 & 7: Volcanoes National Park


Linking up with:








Comments

  1. HollyJanuary 22, 2025 at 6:22 AM

    Wow! I have never heard of green sand but that is amazing. What a beautiful hike- love that your hubby jumped in- I would do the same!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sammie @ The Annoyed ThyroidJanuary 22, 2025 at 6:33 AM

    I've never been to the Big Island or seen green sand but it looks amazing! I know you said that it was busy but your photos are fabulous, it looks like you had the whole beach to yourself. What a wonderful way to spend Christmas Day!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Kathrine EldridgeJanuary 22, 2025 at 6:55 AM

    What a perfect way to spend Christmas! The views are spectacular!

    https://www.kathrineeldridge.com

    ReplyDelete
  4. JudeeJanuary 22, 2025 at 7:51 AM

    That was quite a hike out to the shore line... I've never been to Hawaii but I hear it is quite worth the trip. Your photos are gorgeuous and looks like a wonderful family vacation.

    ReplyDelete

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