ONELOA BEACH: TROPICAL DREAMS

 During my brief stay in west Maui, I spotted at least three mongooses. Those aren’t good statistics for an invasive species in an island ecosystem. Like the cane toad was imported from the Americas to control insects in Australia, so the mongoose was brought over from India to the cane fields of Hawaii to exterminate rats. Both species failed in their intended mission and instead created a biological nightmare in their host countries; the mongooses devastating indigenous bird species far more than it made a dent in rat populations. 

The impact was made more significant that all the sightings were during my drive to Oneloa Beach, an inviting paradox of a place, curiously calming as it is thrilling, secluded as it is popular, small as it is expansive. A place that can only exist in a closed environment like Mākena State Park. This is the ecosystem at stake.

In less than a week, I visited the beach three times, that is how much it encapsulated for me everything I went to Hawaii for. It tells even more about the unique experience it offers. In many ways, Oneloa Beach is what you make of it. If your idea of a tropical getaway is simply to bask in the sun and take in the soothing sound of the waves, you could easily spend hours on the sand taking in the surrounding beauty. You can also swim.

About a week before leaving for Hawaii this past January I spoke to colleagues experienced in travel to the Hawaiian islands and the much of the talk was a promise that I would love it. The one word of caution was the strength of the current. I found it a warning not to be taken lightly. Once crossing the entrance to Mākena State Park and making your way through the shaded sandy paths to the beach, a sign warns swimmers and surfers that Oneloa has the reputation as the most dangerous beach for spinal injuries due to a combination of the speed of the waves throughout Hawaii (35mph compared to 15mph in Floria and 20 mph in California) and the unpredictable shortbreak waves. 


I had to swim. I could not be in Hawaii and ignore the allure of its crystal blue water. The quintessential experience of Hawaii, after all, is for the waves. As with most places that bare a reputation for danger three things proved essential. Take warnings seriously, use common sense and, the one most often overlooked, know your own limits. 

Once in the water I realized how quickly the water runs deep. With the rapidity it pulled the sand from under me in the current, the Pacific itself made recognition easy for me, marking clearly how deep into the waters I was willing to swim and how high the waves I could take. As in all places in which we are guests of nature, visiting on nature’s terms and taking nature’s instructions makes for the most rewarding experience. 

Ultimately, I decided to experience both the exhilaration offered by the waves and the tranquility of the beach. In Oneloa one can take in the natural harmony of the tropics at once. Even the more courageous swimmers (and I saw a few breath-stroking their way from one end of the beach to the other with admirable determination) work with the environment. In the distance one can see the crater of Molokini laying in the waters like a majestic green monarch. In the right season at least, Oneloa is one place I can almost guarantee spotting humpback whales; on each visit I spotted them in the distance if only by the massive tail. 



Oneloa Beach was for me the heart of west Maui and everything I thought Hawaii would be. It is a place where nature invites you on her own account and shows you everything it can be, everything it can offer you, and everything it can teach you. A microcosm of a world worth saving.  



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