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Mākena State Park comprises in Makena, south of
Mākena State Park comprises in Makena, south of Wailea
Wailea is a census-designated place (CDP) in Maui County, Hawaii, United States. As of the 2020 census, it had a population of 6,027. Prior to 2010, the area was part of the Wailea-Makena census-designated place. The community was developed in 1 ...
on the island of Maui
The island of Maui (; Hawaiian: ) is the second-largest of the islands of the state of Hawaii at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2) and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is the largest of Maui County's four islands, which ...
, 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 ...
. It contains three separate beaches and a dormant volcanic cinder cone
A cinder cone (or scoria cone) is a steep conical hill of loose pyroclastic fragments, such as volcanic clinkers, volcanic ash, or scoria that has been built around a volcanic vent. The pyroclastic fragments are formed by explosive eruptions o ...
.
Big Beach, also known as "Oneloa Beach" and "Mākena Beach", is a popular spot for sunbathing and bodyboarding by both tourists and locals. Big Beach is long and more than wide. The shore is fairly protected from wind. The "Makena cloud" that stretches from the top of Haleakalā
Haleakalā (; Hawaiian: ), or the East Maui Volcano, is a massive shield volcano that forms more than 75% of the Hawaiian Island of Maui. The western 25% of the island is formed by another volcano, Mauna Kahalawai, also referred to as the West ...
to Kahoolawe
Kahoolawe (Hawaiian: ), anglicized as Kahoolawe (), is the smallest of the eight main volcanic islands in the Hawaiian Islands. Kahoolawe is located about southwest of Maui and also southeast of Lānaʻi, and it is long by wide, with a total ...
is often overhead, cooling the sand.
Little Beach, also known as "Puu Ōlai Beach" is a small beach just north of Big Beach separated by a steep lava
Lava is molten or partially molten rock (magma) that has been expelled from the interior of a terrestrial planet (such as Earth) or a moon onto its surface. Lava may be erupted at a volcano or through a fracture in the crust, on land or un ...
outcropping (the tip of Puu Ōlai) and a 5-minute hike. On Sunday afternoons/evenings Little Beach is host to celebratory drumming and fire dancing
Fire performance is a group of performance arts or skills that involve the manipulation of fire
Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material (the fuel) in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various ...
. The beach is only long and can be crowded at peak times. Little Beach is regarded as a nude beach
A nude beach, sometimes called a clothing-optional or free beach, is a beach where users are at liberty to be nudity, nude. Nude beaches usually have mixed bathing. Such beaches are usually on public lands, and any member of the public is allow ...
and nude bathing is common there, although it is ''de jure'' illegal due to being in a state park.
Oneuli Beach or Naupaka Beach is a black sand
Black sand is sand that is black in color. One type of black sand is a heavy, glossy, partly magnetic mixture of usually fine sands containing minerals such as magnetite, found as part of a placer deposit. Another type of black sand, found on ...
beach on the northern end of the park, closest to Makena.
Puu Ōlai is a dormant volcanic cinder cone in the center of the park with a height of .
It is located on Mākena Road at .
Just to the south is the Ahihi Kinau Natural Area Reserve.
References
External links
* Beaches of Maui Protected areas of Maui State parks of Hawaii Black sand beaches {{Hawaii-geo-stub