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Black Rock
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15 reviews for Black Rock
We first ventured to Black Rock to see the torch lighting ceremony put on by the Sheraton hotel at sun down. A man dressed in a loin cloth runs from the grounds of the Sheraton with a fire-lit torch, runs up the rocks of the Black Rock and proceeds to light each torch one by one until he gets to the last torch. All the while, there is a narrative of the story behind it.
When he is done, he will make an offering to the gods and then dive into the water -- I'm guessing he swims back to shore, but no one sees him do it.
We then returned back to Black Rock a few days later to snorkel. Sunday is NOT a good day to come here as it is just piled with tourists and the beach is full and the shallow waters are just packed with people. We swam out further and although the fish life in the visible vicinity wasn't all that great, I was lucky enough to have two Honu turtles swim right up to my face, and that alone was a treat enough!!
If you are brave enough to swim around the bend, the water is clearer and it is like a fishbowl there with tons of fish life to see.
Be careful if you are not a strong swimmer or are afraid of the current. The shallow waters are very deceiving and the currents are very strong. Upon swimming back to shore, it took me 3 tries before I managed to get back onto dry land as the currents kept pulling me back in -- as I was trying to get my flippers off -- and ended up with a butt full of sand. Gross!!
If you are looking for free snorkeling this is a great place to give it a go. If you prefer something more civilized, hire one of those snorkeling packages where a boat or catamaran takes you out onto calm waters where you can snorkel and if you get tired, you can just get back onto the boat again.
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Best snorkel spot in maui. Go at sunset. So rad. Saw oodles of turtles and spotted eagle rays.
One fish?
Two fish?
Red fish ?
Blue fish?
More like
1000 fish
2000 fish
A rainbow of fish
and sea turtle...fish
Ok, the rhyming is not so good. This is seriously one of the best spots for snorkeling right off the beach. Everyone knows it though, so get here early!
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If you just have to step outside your hotel and step into the ocean to go snorkeling i'm all for it. I'm sure taking a boat out into the ocean to see fish is pretty awesome, but being able to do it for free is by my opinion even better.
You can see fish just yards out into the surf, and if you get out around the bend you can see a lot more fish just hanging out. Depending on the sun light the you can see a lot of color, but on gloomy mornings everything is kinda gray. We saw some humuhumunukunukuapua, and schools of other fish.
Watching the locals jump from the top of Black Rock from the beach is also pretty cool.
Its pretty freaky but you can even hear whales and dolphin talking out further in the ocean. Be sure to wear fins because only a few yards out and you're in deep water, and the slightest distraction can make you panic out there.
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Amazing. This is the BEST SNORKELING spot in MAUI. Tons of different fishes. Im not a pro on fishes but make sure you bring your water camera.
Make sure you snorkel early morning. around 7am till 9am. For the noobs, this is the best time since the water is clear and less people snorkeling.
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I love Ka'anipali beach. The water is perfect, and the sand is soft on your feet. But, the parking here is awful! Unless you are staying at one of the hotels in Ka'anipali, you need to pay for parking ($2/ 20 minutes, no more than $20/day) or drive in circles looking for one of the 30 free spots. I guess sea turtles are known to frequent this area. Hoping I would be lucky enough to see one, I rented snorkel gear from Snorkel Bob's, but did not see any sea turtles. Bummer!
If it's your first time in ka'anapali ... 5stars because everything is awesome.
Live here, meh... too many tourists, lol.
Blackrock was cool until tourists kept getting hurt because booze and sun don't mix.
Basically, you can swim out there and climb up the black rock and jump into the warm ocean water ... or walk out there but it might be blocked off since of the dumb ppl that get hurt walking there drunk in the middle of the night. IDIOTS.
If you can swim it's great, if not, don't bother since you'll probably feel left out when you see tons of ppl jumping into the water.
Great article in the SF Chronicle about Black Rock. I'll also post it at the bottom ...
http://www.sfgate.com/...
If, or when, you ever go to Maui and decide to stay in the Ka'anapali area, you just have to strap on the goggles and fins and snorkel at the Black Rock. If you don't know where it is or how to get there, just ask any local, they all know about it. Black Rock sticks out of the beach about a quarter mile like a big black lava knob and during the day it is filled with happily swimming tourists just floating and looking.
We just happened to find it by accident as we parked our car illegally in a hotel parking lot, walked through the lobby like we were staying there, onto the Ka'anapali beach and then down to the right until the end of the trail, Black Rock. What a pleasant surprise of a day.
It's not that the fish love people, they don't, but people bring them food like frozen corn, peas and bread like pigeons in the park so they flock here for all the free grub.
There are two levels of fish viewing; one if you just walk out on the rocks and plant yourself and two, if you swim out and paddle near the end of the exposed lava. The farther out, the better fish and you will probably see the king of all sights, a beautiful sea turtle. I personally did not see one when I was there but I did see more fish that I could believe. It was amazing and free.
Plus, you are right off the best walking beach in Maui, Ka'anapali Beach with a dozen huge, expensive hotels all along it. Just snorkel, then walk, then stop in and get some food at one of the many hotel eating places.
And finally, don't be afraid of the water, it is very calm and safe because the lava blocks off the wave action. And remember to wear a T-Shirt because when you swim, you will lose track of time and get your back all burned. How do I know that? It happened to me.
Go, enjoy and make some great memories by bringing an underwater camera.
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Black Rock (Pu'u Keka'a in Hawaiian), by the Sheraton Maui at the northern end of Kaanapali Beach, is hands-down the easiest site to snorkel with the widest variety and number of fish. If you're not staying at a hotel or condo in the Kaanapali resort, go early in the day and park in the free public-access garage near Whalers Village (or pay for a spot in the Whalers Village lot). Follow the boardwalk to Black Rock (an old lava flow that has burnt-orange tones to it) and step into the usually calm, clear waters. (If you forgot your snorkel gear, the nearby beach hut rents gear for $8 an hour.)
On a recent visit I saw many-hued parrotfish, convict (striped) and yellow tangs, bluespine unicornfish, Hawaiian sergeants, black durgons (called humuhumu'ele'ele in Hawaiian), needlelike trumpetfish, Moorish idols and a spotted trunkfish -- and those were just the ones I could find on my inexpensive "Guide to Hawaiian Reef Fish" plastic card. Just past the rock, where you should only go if you're comfortable with swimming and if the waves are small, a spotted eagle ray glided several feet underneath me -- an amazing highlight of any snorkel trip. Schools of small silvery bait fish accompanied me as I reluctantly swam back to shore.
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Amazing snorkeling with a plethora of fish ... every time we've snorkeled here, we've seen sea turtles ... this last time, one came pretty close to shore ... plenty of fish + easy snorkeling = crowds .. recommend coming early not only to snorkel in peace (plus snorkeling early is better for fish activity), but also to get a good spot on the beach ... yesterday this family literally laid their towels on top of my buddy's - all that square footage on the beach and they decide to camp out so close ... Black Rock is also good beach for the kiddos ... fyi - my pics were taken around 11 local time and as you can see already crowded ...
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On our first trip to Hawaii a couple years ago, we snorkeled at a handful of locations off the coast of Maui, and Black Rock was the best (it was too windy the day of our snorkel boat trip, so we didn't get to see Molokini). Tons of really cool fish. Almost as many people, but I personally don't mind too much because I get freaked out when there's no one else around in the water.
It's also just a really pretty setting. I recommend snorkeling out from the main Ka'anapali Beach below the rock, not the one on the other (more northern) side. The northern half of the beach is actually still really nice (and WAY less crowded), but apparently the water is rougher on that side.
There's also a torch lighting on top of the rock each evening at sunset, and the guy cliff dives into the water.
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Black Rock is the nickname for Puu Kekaa.
Head to the swarm of tourists near the rock. I like to snorkel in the waters when not too many people are there. There's something about bumping fin to fin with another person that just doesn't feel natural and that's how crowded this area can get. But I also feel safe in numbers. So, the more the merrier! Just watch your flailing arms please, I hate getting hit in the face. (Yes, sis, I'm talking to you.)
We decided to swim out further (curiosity got the better of us) and this guy told us there was a marlin up ahead. We couldn't see it, got scared, and swam back. It could be a little scary if you swim outside of the shelter of the rock since currents could be unpredictable.
The highlight of our snorkeling expedition was swimming with two turtles! It was near the shallow side of the rocks. I almost stepped on one while fiddling with my mask; I looked down and freaked out. One of the turtles was massive and when it popped his head out of the water, it looked like a human head. Next time you're talking to your buddy, make sure it's not a turtle.
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To be honest I don't remember the snorkeling to be very amazing here. Most of the coral in the area under Black Rock appears to have been killed (probably due to stupid tourists trampling all over the stuff). There were some fish near the coral fortunate to still be relatively intact at the foot of Black Rock. There were people doing backflips and other stupid stuff off the tip. Apparently it is a sacred place for real Hawaiians. The water was clear, but then, it's like that in most areas of Kaanapali. I had an amazing time in the water above Black Rock, right off the Royal Lahaina Resort. Much fewer tourists and great coral and fish (not too deep, too). The area below Black Rock seems to be the "resort area" where tourists immediately go to. Go above Black Rock for a better bet if you want to relax (probably have to huff it or drive).
Crazy good snorkeling!!! I had never been before and this spot was amazing!! I read all about it online before we left and was stoked to learn that I could easily walk there on the beach from our hotel (The Westin). You have to swim out and around the rock to get to the good stuff, but on a normal day it's no sweat. We saw just about every creature possible, including an eel, and felt super safe all the while. Unfortunately, we missed the turtles, but apparently they were out and about every time we weren't. We did see one poking his head out of the water on our walk on the way back to the hotel one day though. So much fun!! For all of you scaredy cats out there... get over it and you'll have a blast!!
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Great snorkeling, but not as good as Honolua Bay. This is mainly because the place is PACKED with people who have trampled all over the reef. That said, we still saw a plethora of fish and a sea turtle. Black Rock is a great spot if you're not a very strong swimmer, since you can stand waist-deep in water and still see incredibly colored fish. Watch out for the fishing lines and divers if you go out to the end of the rock.
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One of the most amazing beaches that we spent time at on our honeymoon in Hawaii. Beautiful crystal clear sand and water, great waves for a casual swim or stroll.
