Ka Lae and Punaluu

The south end of the island: the last cliff in the fifty states, and a black sand beach an hour up the coast where the turtles come out of the water.

Southernmost point • Canoe moorings • Basking honu

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Ka Lae

The southernmost point of the fifty states

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Punaluu

About an hour north east along the coast

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Honu

Green sea turtles bask on the sand. Twenty feet, always

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Wind

Constant at the point. There is no shelter

Why Visit

Ka Lae is the southern tip of Hawaii Island and therefore the southernmost point of the fifty states. Rose Atoll in American Samoa lies further south, which is the sort of caveat that makes the fact better rather than worse. It is a cliff, deep water hard against it, wind, and almost nothing else. An hour back up the coast, Punaluu is a beach of black sand with green turtles asleep on it.

A Little History

The lava shelf at Ka Lae is drilled through with square holes. Fishermen ran ropes through them and tied off their canoes so they could work the current offshore without being carried away; the current has a name, the Halaea. The area is a National Historic Landmark District, the South Point Complex, and is thought to hold one of the earliest settlement sites in the islands.

Worth Knowing

Punaluu is black because lava met the sea and shattered as it cooled, so the sand is ground basalt rather than anything organic. The honu that haul out on it are a threatened species and the rule is twenty feet, which people ignore constantly. It is also not a swimming beach whatever it looks like.

Where to stay nearby

Hilton Waikoloa Village

On the Kohala coast, which is where most people base themselves for the island.

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The point

The Point

The cliff, the moorings, and the water that runs past it.

A dark lava cliff dropping into deep blue water at Ka Lae, the southern point of Hawaii Island — **The Last Cliff**The cliff at Ka Lae, the southernmost point of the fifty states. Rose Atoll in American Samoa lies further south, so this is the end of the states rather than the end of the country.

A square mooring hole cut in a lava shelf above deep blue water at Ka Lae — **Canoe Moorings**A square hole cut through the lava shelf at Ka Lae. Ancient Hawaiians drilled these to moor canoes, running a rope through the rock so a boat could drift out into the fishing grounds without being carried off by the current that runs past the point.

A fishing rod propped upright on lava rock at the edge of a cliff above the sea — **Still Fished**A rod propped on the rock at the south point. People have fished this water for as long as anyone has been on the island, and the ground behind the cliff is thought to hold one of the earliest settlement sites in Hawaii.

The black sand

The Black Sand

Ground basalt, and what sleeps on it.

Three green sea turtles resting on black sand at Punaluu with lava rocks and surf behind — **Honu on the Black Sand**Honu hauled out on the black sand at Punaluu. Green sea turtles are a threatened species and they rest here through the day, which is why the rule is to keep twenty feet back and leave them alone.

A green sea turtle resting on black volcanic sand at Punaluu — **Close Up**One of them close up, out of the water on sand that is ground basalt. The beach at Punaluu is black because lava met the sea here and shattered as it cooled.

Wind-bent coconut palms above green naupaka under cloud at Punaluu — **Wind Off the Water**Coconut palms bent over the naupaka behind the beach at Punaluu, with the weather coming in off the water.

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Where We Stay on the Big Island

Hilton Waikoloa Village

On the Kohala coast, which is where most people base themselves for the island.

Check rates →

Some links may earn us a commission at no cost to you. We only recommend places we would stay.

Go to the point for the moorings, not just the sign. The drilled holes in the shelf are the reason the place matters and most people photograph the cliff and leave
Give the turtles twenty feet at Punaluu. It is the law and the fines are real
Do not swim at Punaluu. It looks inviting and it is not a swimming beach
Both are a long way from anywhere. Put them on the same drive or neither

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Ka Lae really the southernmost point of the US?

Of the fifty states, yes. Rose Atoll in American Samoa is further south, so the precise claim is the fifty states rather than the United States. The distinction is worth making because the loose version is everywhere.

What are the holes in the rock?

Canoe moorings. Ancient Hawaiians drilled them through the lava shelf and passed ropes through so a canoe could be tied off while they fished the current running past the point. The National Park Service documents them; they are not folklore.

Will there be turtles at Punaluu?

Usually, hauled out on the sand during the day. They are wild animals so there is no guarantee. Stay twenty feet back and do not touch them.

Is the green sand beach nearby?

Papakolea is close to Ka Lae and it is not on this page. It is a hike from the point and we have not photographed it.

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Ka Lae and Punaluu

Ka Lae

Punaluu

Honu

Wind

Why Visit

A Little History

Worth Knowing

Hilton Waikoloa Village

The Point

The Black Sand

Live Prices & Availability

Where We Stay on the Big Island

Hilton Waikoloa Village

Frequently Asked Questions

More in The Big Island

Kealakekua and the Uplands

Waikoloa

The Kohala Coast and the Road Inland

The Big Island

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Waikoloa

Waimea Canyon

Wailea

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