Wildlife· Hawaii (Big Island)· Hawaii
Kiholo Bay Green Sea Turtles and Wainanali'i Pond
19° 51.5′ N · 155° 55.3′ W
Wainanali'i Pond, the 'Blue Lagoon' at the north end of Kiholo Bay, is the surviving piece of a royal fishpond Kamehameha built around 1820 before the 1859 lava flow buried most of it. Green sea turtles swim in through the channel every day to graze and haul out to bask on the black lava.
Practical
Coordinate is the OpenStreetMap position of Wainanali'i Pond. Turtles are protected under state law and may not be disturbed; give basking honu plenty of room. Guides describe the pond as on private property and not accessible, so watch from the public shoreline or the water at the channel mouth; Luahinewai freshwater pool at the south end is also private. Part of the Kiholo Bay Fisheries Management Area (Nawaikulua Point to Hou Point, including the pond): no gill nets, no fish feeding. The Nature Conservancy, which received much of the land from Angus Mitchell in 2011, and Hui Aloha Kiholo work on restoration. Weekend camping ashore has been allowed by state permit; no motorized vehicles, smoking or alcohol.
Best for
Reliable close-up looks at basking green sea turtles
Nearby
- Kiholo Bay Anchorage1.1 NM away
- Lava Lava Beach Club (Anaeho'omalu Bay)3.8 NM away
- Anaeho'omalu Bay (A-Bay)3.9 NM away
- Ala Kahakai National Historic Trail4.2 NM away
- Kuki'o Beach5 NM away
- Kikaua Point Beach Park5.1 NM away
- Kua Bay (Manini'owali Beach)5.7 NM away
- Winter North Swell on the Kona-Kohala Anchorages5.7 NM away