Hālona Blowhole is a rock formation and a blowhole on the island of

Oahu Oahu () (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering place#Island of Oʻahu as The Gathering Place, Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over t ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

off of

Hanauma Bay Hanauma (; ) is a marine embayment formed within a tuff ring and located along the southeast coast of the Island of Oahu in the Hawaii Kai neighborhood of East Honolulu, in the Hawaiian Islands. Hanauma is one of the most popular tourist destina ...

at Hālona Point overlooking the Pacific Ocean. In Hawaiian ''hālona'' means "lookout".

Description

On windy days when the tide is high, the ocean breeze sends the waves rolling on to the shore where the rock formation then shoots sea spray high into the air through the cave acting like a

geyser A geyser (, ) is a spring characterized by an intermittent discharge of water ejected turbulently and accompanied by steam. As a fairly rare phenomenon, the formation of geysers is due to particular hydrogeological conditions that exist only in ...

. The blowhole is most active when the

tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravity, gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide t ...

is high and the winds are strong, and it can shoot sea spray up to thirty feet high in the air. Hālona Point is a tourist spot, with visitors coming for the scenery, the beach at the cove, and in the winter as a spot to go to see

humpback whale The humpback whale (''Megaptera novaeangliae'') is a species of baleen whale. It is a rorqual (a member of the family Balaenopteridae) and is the only species in the genus ''Megaptera''. Adults range in length from and weigh up to . The hump ...

s (whose blowholes are not to be confused with this formation) or Honu turtles (Hawaiian Green Sea Turtles). The blowhole is perhaps the most popular rock formation of its kind found in Hawaii.

Formation

The Hālona Blowhole was formed thousands of years ago during the period of volcanic activity in Oahu, with

Koko Crater Koko Crater (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ''Kohelepelepe'' or ''Puʻu Mai'') is an extinct tuff cone located on the Hawaiian Islands, Hawaiian island of Oahu near Hawaii Kai, Hawaii, Hawaii Kai. It is northeast of Hanauma Bay and south of the Ko� ...

's lava flowing into the ocean.The Halona blowhole. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.discover-oahu.com/halona-blowhole.html The lava tubes extend into the ocean which are narrow at the top. There is also a narrow rift along the base of the cliff which was formed by a large section of rock that broke away from the land.

Hālona Cove

Hālona Cove, called "Cockroach Cove" by the local population, is the small pit of sand close to Hālona Blowhole, visited by tourists and locals for swimming when the surf is calm. In a large wedged shape area next to the cove is a reef coated with Sinularia Leather Coral, with different species of fauna like

echinoderm An echinoderm () is any member of the phylum Echinodermata (). The adults are recognisable by their (usually five-point) radial symmetry, and include starfish, brittle stars, sea urchins, sand dollars, and sea cucumbers, as well as the sea ...

slug Slug, or land slug, is a common name for any apparently shell-less terrestrial gastropod mollusc. The word ''slug'' is also often used as part of the common name of any gastropod mollusc that has no shell, a very reduced shell, or only a smal ...

coral Corals are marine invertebrates within the class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact colonies of many identical individual polyps. Coral species include the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and sec ...

s, and

eel Eels are ray-finned fish belonging to the order Anguilliformes (), which consists of eight suborders, 19 families, 111 genera, and about 800 species. Eels undergo considerable development from the early larval stage to the eventual adult stage ...

In popular culture

This was the site of the sex scene between

Deborah Kerr Deborah Jane Trimmer CBE (30 September 192116 October 2007), known professionally as Deborah Kerr (), was a British actress. She was nominated six times for the Academy Award for Best Actress. During her international film career, Kerr won a G ...

and

Burt Lancaster Burton Stephen Lancaster (November 2, 1913 – October 20, 1994) was an American actor and producer. Initially known for playing tough guys with a tender heart, he went on to achieve success with more complex and challenging roles over a 45-yea ...

in the 1953 film ''

From Here to Eternity ''From Here to Eternity'' is a 1953 American drama romance war film directed by Fred Zinnemann, and written by Daniel Taradash, based on the 1951 novel of the same name by James Jones. The picture deals with the tribulations of three U.S. Arm ...

'', and also between

Drew Barrymore Drew Blythe Barrymore (born February 22, 1975) is an American actress, director, producer, talk show host and author. A member of the Barrymore family of actors, she is the recipient of several accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a ...

and

Adam Sandler Adam Richard Sandler (born September 9, 1966) is an American comedian, actor, screenwriter, producer and singer. He was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1990 to 1995, before going on to star in numerous Hollywood films, those of wh ...

in the movie ''

50 First Dates ''50 First Dates'' is a 2004 American romantic comedy drama film directed by Peter Segal and starring Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore with Rob Schneider, Sean Astin and Dan Aykroyd in supporting roles. It follows the story of Henry, a womanizing m ...

''. In 2012, the beach was featured in the music video for

Nicki Minaj Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (; born December 8, 1982), known professionally as Nicki Minaj ( ), is a Trinidadian-born rapper based in the United States. She is known for her musical versatility, animated flow in her rapping, alter egos and accent ...

's "Starships". The blowhole was the location for a scene in '' Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom''.

Dangers

Below Hālona is one of the most dangerous ocean currents in the world due to the Ka Iwi channel.Halona blowhole. (2010, December). Retrieved from https://web.archive.org/web/20160229223653/http://www.aloha-hawaii.com/oahu/halona-blowhole/

References

External links

Secrets of Hawaii – Blowhole
{{DEFAULTSORT:Halona Blowhole Landforms of Oahu Lava tubes Blowholes Tourist attractions in Honolulu County, Hawaii