Haloa Point

Parking is just a few yards to the Palauea Beach. You can tell there is quite a lot to explore, so take your time, and watch the current.

The diving location at the beach is to the far Left. Fairly easy entry and exit, due to small waves and nice sandy beach. On the dive there were many different coral and rock formations that extended out from the beach/point. Didn't see too many fish as at some other locations, but did see quite a few green sea turtles. Max depth is 35ft. With an average of 22ft. There are no amenities such as a shower or bath room at the beach, so be prepared to rinse your gear off at another location. Overall, I would rate this a 6/10.

Sept.24,2006. 31FSW/81*/30'vis. A beautiful, sandy beach entry with reef to your left. Surface swam to the 2nd point of lava across a sandy bottom where we saw 2 Blackside Razorfish. Took a heading of 180* to follow the reef and anchored a dive flag in 18'FSW. There's a lot of broken coral here, but also goodies hidden in the rubble like Snowflake and Zebra Moray Eel and Cowrie shells. There are many Honu (Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle) getting cleaned by Lavender Tang and Milletseed Butterfly, and Juvenile Dragon (Rockmover) Wrasse drifting with the surge near the shore. No facilities.

This is a nice site with a huge reef. Popular site for boats to visit as a second dive. It is fun to swim off shore and reach the spots the boats are at, bur just be careful where you surface. Visibility was good. The reef was fun to explore and easy to get lost in.

There is a south swell hitting right now so the vis was horrible today. But that isn't always the case. What was fantastic today was a large pod of spinner dolphins came up to us and spent the entire dive messing with us. In 40 years of diving I have never had dolphins spend more than a minute or so with us; but 60 minutes? Amazing. Parents with young ones would come up to within 10 feet of us. A dive I'll never forget, even though the vis sucked. One of the best ever.

Haloa Point is on the South side of Palauea Beach. The county of Maui has purchased 2 lots here, to ensure public access, but houses are planned on the rest. Entering at the south side of the beach, swim out on the surface past the lava rocks sticking up out of the water. Nearby, there is a shallow cave that often has green sea turtles and reef white tip sharks inside. Farther out, there is a small arch with a buoy. To the south, the reef is extensive, and is filled with lots of interesting critters. There are often manta rays cruising by in the daytime.