Stroll Along A Stunning Black Sand Beach At This Hawaiian State Park

Hawaii, in general, is one of those postcard places that’s almost too beautiful to be real. But perhaps none more so than Waiʻānapanapa State Park, a protected paradise off the famous Road to Hana in Maui. Here visitors will find Pailoa, a black sand beach and matching lava coastline set against a dense green jungle and azure sea. This rare color palette can only be found in areas with high volcanic activity, as the lava and basalt rock are pummeled into pebbles and fine sand by the ocean over millennia, says the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). In other words, it's some of Mother Nature's finest work.