On Kauai, we can drive around 3/4 of the island, but there are no roads around the Na Pali Coast.   Cliffs run right down to the ocean for 23 km.   If we drive to the far west side of the island, we can come to the start of the the pali (cliffs) at a 7 mile beach.   Polihale State Park is at the end of the road.   Drive west on the Island Highway.   Near the end of the road, we come to a military base and signage steers us around to the mauka (mountainward) side of the long line of sand dunes.   Some of these dunes are 30 feet high.   One part of this area is called Barking Sands for the sound heard when we walk across the dunes.   The paved road ends and we have to continue along a very rough dirt road for 8 km between the dunes and agricultural fields.   Although all vehicles can drive the road, rental companies will not cover any damage done to the vehicle on this road.   It is flat, but full of potholes and any low clearance car may not be suitable, especially if it has been wet.  Also the sideroads up onto the dunes can be sandy and any wrong turn can be a problem.   On our last trip a 4WD truck was buried in about 2 feet of beach sand.   After many hours of digging and a tow from another truck, they were freed.   To avoid major pools and sand traps, drive slowly and stick to the main road in and out.   Park at the end of the road.

Right away the golden sands of the beach run into the cliffs of the Na Pali catching your breath.

On a sunny day, the sands of the beach heat up, so we head to the edge of the beach where the waves crash to the shore, walking on the west sands.   This part of the beach is not a safe place to swim, except in calm conditions.   The walk down the beach is 7 miles, too far for an out-and-back sand walk so we spend time at the end of the beach exploring and enjoying the breakers.   There is a campground here and picnic areas too, an ideal spot to spend the day.

Farther down the beach is a small ringing reef creating a safe place to swim.   It is sometimes called Queen’s Pond.   This is where we spend our time to sit on the beach and swim.   To find this spot, we drive back down the road to a side track junction at a large monkeypod tree.   We follow the road up to the top of the dune and park (be careful how far you go here).   We crest the dune on foot and walk down the beach, bearing right for 300m.   On most days, it is safe to swim here, but on high surf days, a rip may form, so swimmers should show caution.

To the left of the protected area, the waves curl and come rolling in so surfers can often be seen here.

The Hawai’ans considered Polihale to be sacred place, a spot where the spirits of the dead went to their rest.   Many would describe Polihale as a spiritual place from personal experience.   Over 20 years of traveling to Kauai, we return to Polihale every time for a day of peace at the end of the road.

Waypoints:

• Start of the (rough) Polihale Road = N22 02.218 W159 46.268
• Turn to Queen Pond – N22 04.568 W159 45.932
• Main parking area – N22 05.638 W159 44.884
• Road/turn to the main campground – N22 05.500 W159 44.950