Skip to main content

Ninole Loop Road and Punaluu Black Sand Beach

By

Ninole Loop Road is an approximately 1.5-mile loop of Hawaii Route 11 located between Mile Markers 56 and 57.  Ninole Loop Road is mostly known for being the access point for Punaluu Black Sand Beach.  Said beach is where numerous endangered species (namely sea turtles) can be found.  The black sand beach in modern times was the southern terminus of the Hawaiian Agricultural Company Railroad which was used to ship sugar cane from Pahala.  Following World War II, the eastern segment of Ninole Loop Road would be developed.  The western loop segment would be built in the early 1970s following the opening the Sea Mountain Golf Club  


This page is part of the Gribblenation Hawaii Roads series.  A compellation of all Hawaii-related media from both Gribblenation and RoadwayWiz can be found by clicking here. 




Part 1; the history of Ninole Loop Road and Punaluu Back Sand Beach

Punaluu Black Sand Beach lies on the volcanic southern shore of the Hawaiian Big Island.  The black sand the beach is famous for is made up of ground up basalt rock.  The beach has three pre-European contact heiau (temples) located in the immediate vicinity.  The sands are also known to be the birthplace of Henry Opukanaia in 1796.  Opukanaia is one of the first Native Hawaiians to convert to Christianity and is largely attributed as spurring the missionary movement to the Hawaiian Islands.

During the early 1880s the Hawiian Agricultural Company founded the company town of Pahala approximately 6 miles northeast of Punaluu Black Sand Beach.  A company pier and warehouse facility were established at the Punaluu Black Sand Beach for sugar cane shipments.  The pier was connected to Pahala by way of the short line 2'0 narrow gauge Hawaiian Agricultural Company Railroad.  

Punaluu Black Sand Beach, the Hawaiian Agricultural Company Railroad and Pahala Sugar Mill warehouse facilities can be seen on the 1924 United States Geological Survey map of Honuapo.  


The pier at Punaluu Black Sand Beach was temporarily demolished by the military during World War II out of concerns of it being used by the Japanese to stage a landing on the Big Island.  The Hawaiian Agricultural Company Railroad was rendered obsolete by the development of Mamalahoa Highway which would be assigned Hawaii Route 11 in 1955.  

Punaluu Black Sand Beach can be seen connected to Hawaii Route 11 by way of what is now eastern Ninole Loop Road on the 1966 United States Geological Survey map of Punaluu.  


Modern Ninole Loop Road appears on the 1980 United States Geological Survey map of Hawaii County.   


The 1982 United States Geological Survey of Punaluu map reveals The Sea Mountain Golf Club present at western half of Ninole Loop Road.  The course was constructed circa 1969-1972 by C. Brewer & Company.  The company had larger plans to construct a resort but abandoned their endeavors by 1986.  


The Pahala Sugar Mill would shutter in 1996 which saw the warehouse facility at Punaluu Black Sand Beach abandoned.  The Sea Mountain Golf Club closed in 2018, and the property has been in a state limbo.  The golf course has been proposed numerous times to be repurposed into residential and commercial property.  As of 2024 the Windward Planning Commission has paused any new development on Ninole Loop Road.  



Part 2; a drive on Ninole Loop Road and a visit to Punaluu Black Sand Beach

The western start of Ninole Loop Road can be seen below from Hawaii Route 11.  


The western segment of Ninole Loop Road passes by the former site of Sea Mountain Golf Club.  The site has been partially repurposed as the resort called Colony I at Sea Mountain.  As the roadway swings to the coast the first Punaluu Black Sand Beach can be found.  







Views from Punaluu Black Sand Beach.







A historic plaque regarding the myth the sea turtle Kailua.  Punaluu Black Sea beach is a famous nesting ground for hawksbill and green turtles.  



The pond located behind Punaluu Black Sand Beach.  


The abandoned Pahala Sugar Mill pier can be seen in the background below. 


Portions of what I'm to understand are the abandoned Pahala Sugar Mill warehouse.  





The remainder of Ninole Loop Road back to Hawaii Route 11.  





Labels:

Comments

Anonymous said…
I think those buildings are the remnants of a restaurant that was built down there, not the sugarcane warehouses - they wouldn’t have spent so much time and money designing the cane facilities to look so cool! I think the restaurant was damaged by a tsunami in maybe the 70s and then abandoned.
12:25 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Grand Loop Road of Yellowstone National Park

By
  Grand Loop Road is a 140 mile loop highway which traverses the interior of Yellowstone National Park.  Grand Loop Road connects all of the major attractions and geological features of Yellowstone National Park along with the entrance roads.  Grand Loop Road is a seasonal highway and despite some conjecture never has been part of the US Route System.   Part 1; the history of Grand Loop Road The majority of history pertaining to Grand Loop Road was taken from the below National Park Service article: Historic Roads - Yellowstone National Park (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov) Yellowstone was declared the first National Park of the United States on March 1st, 1872.  The first real highway to access Yellowstone National Park came in 1873 when a tolled facility was constructed from Bozeman, Montana via Yankee Jim Canyon to Mammoth Hot Springs.  Numerous attempts were made to fund construction of roadway infrastructure during the early years of Yellows...
Post a Comment
Read more

The last 1956-63 era California Sign State Route Spade?

By
Along southbound California State Route 170 (the Hollywood Freeway Extension) approaching the Hollywood Freeway/Ventura Freeway interchange a white California State Route 134 Sign State Route Spade can be observed on guide sign.  These white spades were specifically used during the 1956-63 era and have become increasingly rare.  This blog is intended to serve as a brief history of the Sign State Route Spade.  We also ask you as the reader, is this last 1956-63 era Sign State Route Spade or do you know of others?  Part 1; the history of the California Sign State Route Spade Prior to the Sign State Route System, the US Route System and the Auto Trails were the only highways in California signed with reassurance markers.  The creation of the US Route System by the American Association of State Highway Officials during November 1926 brought a system of standardized reassurance shields to major highways in California.  Early efforts to create a Sign State Route ...
Post a Comment
Read more

California State Route 70; the Feather River Highway

By
From 2017 through to early 2019 I drove the majority of the California State Route 70; the Feather River Highway from CA 89 southwest to CA 99. CA 70 is an approximately 178.5 mile state highway which starts at US 395 near the Nevada State Line and travels west through the Feather River Canyon to CA 99.  CA 70 is often referred to as the Feather River Highway" given it's close association with the river.  Historically CA 70 was previously signed as US 40A and CA 24.  The Legislative Routes prior to the 1964 California Highway Renumbering that made up the current route of CA 70 are as follows: -  Legislative Route Number 21 from US 395 westward to Oroville. -  LRN 87 from Oroville south to Marysville. -  LRN 232 from Marysville to the current junction with CA 99.  CA 70 was even dual signed with CA 99 into Sacramento on what was LRN 232 for a time. The change from US 40A/LRN 21/LRN 87/LRN 232 can be seen by comparing the 1963 State Highway Ma...
Post a Comment
Read more