Big Island Snorkeling Guide
Puako Bay
Puako Boat Ramp
Puako Bay Big Island snorkeling may or may not be to your liking. This expansive reef area is normally focused on as a diving destination. But in calm weather you can access the reef for snorkeling, from many different shore access points.
You can kind get a good sense of how long and abrupt this reef is in the overhead picture below.
Site Snorkeling Details - Puako Bay
Big Island Snorkeling
We are not really sure what to think about Puako as a snorkeling destination. It is a huge reef that goes for miles along the coast. The initial attractions to this location are that there are ton's of shoreline access points and oodles of green sea turtles.
(The picture is at pole #120 described below.)
But we found that in order to get to any interesting coral and fish we first had to swim a long ways through very shallow, cloudy waters that were uninteresting. We had to wind our way through murky water over rock and sand, working our way through little channels around rock formations (not much more then tide pools). And then once we finally got into some coral and a little deeper water, the reef suddenly ends at a wall that plunges into a blue abyss.
It actually kind of freaked us out a bit, to be swimming in such shallow waters, and then to have the world suddenly drop away below you at a vertical wall into the deep blue. Both of us felt a little unnerved even swimming over the edge, silly as that is given how much deep water we have swam over in the past.
We checked out several of the shore access points and the water appeared shallow, rocky, and uninviting at all of them.
There were tons of sea turtles, but it was not the best environment to view them in. We found our way blocked several times by sea turtles.
So, all and all, it was not the best Big Island snorkeling by any means. There could be much better areas than we found. If you are staying in the area it might be worth checking out. But it would be best only in calm conditions because of how rocky and shallow the access is.
We have also heard that there may be some good snorkeling to the south and north sides of the Puako Boat Ramp. And the satellite picture shows some potential for this. But it looks like a long swim to get to anything worth snorkeling, and through boating waters. So we did not do it.
We also thought that if you want to snorkel Puako it would be much better from a boat. There may be kayak snorkel tours that leave from the boat ramp, and there are many diving boats that visit Puako.
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Driving Directions & Access Points - Puako Bay
Big Island Snorkeling
From Kailua Kona, Take highway 19 (Queen Kaahumanu Hwy) north out of Kona. Follow it north through Waikoloa Resort Area, turn left onto Puako Road. If you come to the 70 mile marker on highway 19, you've gone too far. Follow Puako Road. Choose your access to the reef, either at the Puako boat ramp, or along side Puako Road at on of the many telephone pole entrance sites.
The access points from the road are by telephone poles 106, 110, 115, 120, 127, and 137.
You can also drive all the way to the end of Puako Road (about 3 miles). Near the end of the road there is a dirt road turn off to the right. Drive down that a short ways for easy water access.
We explored two access points specifically. At telephone pole #120 (south of the boat ramp), across the street from the Church of Ascension (a little over two miles from the highway), park alongside the road. The unmarked public access route is the dirt road across the street.
We chose not to go in the water here because we could see no clear swimming path.
At the next access point (before mailbox number 102), we entered the water in a pool to the left hand side.
Next go to A Bay ('Anaeho'omalu Bay)
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