49 Black Sand Windstorm

The Wind Blows the Palms at 49 Black Sand Beach

 This morning Sandra and I went to the local civic center to pay our property tax.   The ladies who work in tax offices here in Hawaii are extraordinarily pleasant, but the likelihood of putting a payment in the mail and it being recorded in a timely fashion is unacceptably low.  So like Mary and Joseph going to Nazareth, we repaired to the Kealakehe Civic Center, with our bill and a check.  
     As we were already on the north edge of town , we decided to drive up to Puako and go swimming at Beach 69.  It was at this sandy county park that we saw the Shortnose Wrasse and Yellowstripe Coris last year. It was at this beach a month or so later when the Waika-blowah winds, which are funneled between Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa, almost drove us out to sea.  Sandra had asked me if we should be concerned about the wind and I said, “No.  that’s a winter condition.”

Protective Pinnacles and Beach Erosion

    Of course, about the time we got to Waikaloa there was substantial wind and when we made the turn at Puako the sea was a quilt of whitecaps.  So, like Napoleon, we turned the army around and found somewhere else to wage battle.  In this case 49 Black Sand Beach at the Mauna Lani. 
   We have spoken previously of this beach in the blog.  On the grounds of the resort, it requires a beach pass, but we have never been turned away.  The beach is the south shore of a collapsed cinder cone, quite picturesque.  We had been encouraged to try the beach by a friendly real estate agent and dive master, who said it was accessible in the most difficult of conditions.   We have never failed to get in here, but we have also never found the water very clear. 
    As we made our way from the car to the beach, we encountered a firm north wind of 10 to 15 knots.   The palms were waving in the wind and I was surprised to note substantial erosion at the shoreline.  Could this be the result of the torrential rains we have been experiencing or persistent north winds blowing waves onto  this shore?

White Saddle Goatfish, 49 Black Sand Beach, August 2012

     At the outer edge of the beach, there are a cluster of protective lava pinnacles.  The beach behind them seemed less eroded so we used that area for an entrance.  The water was actually pretty clear.  And straight down was a salt and pepper flounder, just like the one presented in our last blog.  I like flounders…I hope they aren’t getting so numerous that they lose their appeal.
     We swam out among the coral behind the crags seeing a nice variety of the usual suspects.   We got acceptable pictures of Teardrop and Pebbled Butterfly and Cleaner Wrasse.  The best fish had to be the White Saddle Goatfish.  I got two good pictures of this unusual fellow (he has the dubious honor of being the best tasting goatfish, which I believe accounts for his relative rarity).  A bit later we spotted a really big White Saddle somewhat deeper.  Its reassuring to see large fish that are more likely to breed. 

White Saddle Goatfish, Parupeneus porphyreus

       We saw no Achilles Tangs, one of my favorite fish that has become a highly sought after food fish.  I’ve only seen two babies in two weeks since we arrived.  Bummer.  Achilles Tang is found elsewhere in the Pacific.  God wiling, there are pockets where it is not deemed to be a desirable food fish.
     Up on the bluff above the beach, while we made good us of the single shower head beneath the swaying palms, we made friends with Chivy.  Chivy is a pleasant young man, nattily clad, whose family was down swimming on the beach.  His son is apparently interested in fish identification, but on this day, at least, Chivy preferred to stay on the dry.  Better to keep the crease in the Dockers.  He had a bit of an accent, so I asked where he was from, hoping for Cannes.  As it turns out, familia Chivy hails from Santa Cruz, Ca. 

Pebbled Butterfly  49 Black Sand Beach August 2012

     We talked a bit about snorkeling spots and he related that the previous morning his brood had gone to the Mauna Kea.  They went early, hitting the water at about 8:30, and saw nothing!  They swam the south cusp, which if you are a good reader you know is the wrong end of the beach for fish watching (and also possesses strong currents.)  But nothing?  Pay attention, now.  The fish have to sleep, too and expecting to find them on parade before 9:30 is just silly.   The Redoubtable SKG
 and I hit the water at 10:00.  In defense of Chivy, they had been experiencing strong winds every day while staying at the Mauna Lani; they were told that if they went early they might avoid the strong winds.  The wind was already a gale by 9!
    There were more hou’li families at 49 Black Sand Beach today than ever before.  But they were arriving and leaving with regularity due to the strong wind.  Based on today’s experience  I’d work the western edge and hope for clear water behind the pinnacles.  And I'd check the weather report regarding wind conditions before heading north of Waikoloa.  Apparently these strong winds are not just a winter condition.

jeff