Level: Free shore access This spot have a free shore access: you can go snorkeling there freely and without having to book a tour or pay an entrance fee.
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Last updated on August 7, 2023
Along with Two Step, Captain Monument is considered one of the most beautiful snorkeling spots in Hawaii. Visibility is excellent, the seabed is rich in coral and teeming with fish. It is not unusual to come across green turtles, and dolphins are regular visitors to the bay, even though they generally stay a fair distance from the shore. Although the spot suffers from excessive visitor numbers and access on foot is not easy, it is a spot that any snorkeler visiting Big Island should see.
To reach the spot free of charge, you need to go down a very steep path (a 500-meter descent) with few amenities for visitors, below the main road. It takes 45 minutes to go down, and an hour to go back up again.
Walking up in the middle of the day in the hot sun can be difficult, particularly after a snorkeling session. Wear some good shoes and take a lot of water with you. To get to the beginning of the path, take Highway 11 from Kailua-Kona and head south for about 12 miles.
Soon after arriving at the Captain Cook monument, turn right at the Napo’opo’o Road sign. The path begins a few hundred yards after the crossroads, on the right. The signpost is hard to spot. There are a few parking spaces on either side of the road near the path. In any case, to escape the heat and the crowds, you should arrive very early.
There are other ways to reach the spot. Tours leaving from Keauhou Bay, Honokohau Harbor or Kailua-Kona Pier, by canoe or by boat, are organized by many local guides.
If you opt to reach the spot by canoe, you should be aware that only three companies are authorized by the National Park to be moored in the bay (more information here).
From the monument, the only option is to take to the water from the concrete platform that runs along the shore. Sit down on the platform and put on your gear, then jump into the water. Getting out of the water is trickier.
The best option is generally to climb up the little ladders that the tour guides set up for their clients. Otherwise, climb up on the platform the best you can and take care not to hurt yourself.
The area to explore extends along the shore on either side of the monument. You don’t need to move too far away from the shore since the water soon gets deeper. Make sure you explore the areas to the right and to the left of the monument (when facing the ocean) in turn, with a preference for the area to the left.
The first five yards from the shore are stony, shallow (↕2-7ft/0,5-2m), full of light, and teeming with fish. This is the ideal place to take close-ups of a yellow longnose butterflyfish or a Hawaiian sergeant major (native to the area), even though the sea can be a bit rough due to the waves.
If you swim away from the shore, you will soon come to the colorful, varied and well-preserved coral beds (↕7-16ft/2-5m), hosting red pencil urchins. Parrotfish, triggerfish, wrasses, bluespotted groupers and shoals of yellow tang complete the picture.
Move towards the deepest areas (↕14-26ft/4-8m), with a deep blue color, to see if you can catch sight of a green sea turtle resting on the seabed or swim along with a shoal of raccoon butterflyfish.
If you are lucky, you might get a glimpse of a group of spinner dolphins, although there is less likelihood of this here than in Two Step. When visitor numbers are high, this is also the area where most of the tour guides moor their boats, so watch out for them.
In general, visibility is excellent and the sea is calm, with almost no current. Watch out for other snorkelers, who can be numerous in the water in mid-morning. The west coast of the Big Island is one of the archipelago’s richest in coral. Don’t touch it and be careful not to break it with your swim fins.
The Captain Cook Monument is an unspoiled site, and you will find neither water on sale or restaurants. If you are on an organized tour, drinks and snacks are generally included in the price (ask your tour guide for details). If you go to the spot under your own steam, make sure you take enough water and food, particularly because you will have to go back up to your car on foot.
Sea turtles are a very familiar sight on many snorkeling spots in Hawaii, including Captain Cook Monument. In order to be a responsible snorkeler, be sure to respect the following rules when observing them:
If you love snorkeling with sea turtle, Two Step is also an excellent snorkeling spot to encounter them on the Big Island.
These spots are accessible to anyone with basic snorkeling skills, and feeling comfortable in the water and with his snorkeling gear. You will enter the water from the shore (beach, pontoon, ladder, rocks) or from a boat. The water height in the sea entrance area is reasonable, but you will not necessarily be within your depth. Moderate currents can occur in the area, even when the sea conditions are good. The distance to swim to reach the most interesting snorkeling areas of the spot does not exceed 200 meters. This level only apply when the spot experiences optimal sea and/or weather conditions. It is not applicable if the sea and/or weather conditions deteriorate, in particular in the presence of rough sea, rain, strong wind, unusual current, large tides, waves and/or swell. You can find more details about the definition of our snorkeling levels on our snorkeling safety page.
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Snorkeling spots are part of a wild environment and their aspect can be significantly altered by weather, seasons, sea conditions, human impact and climate events (storms, hurricanes, seawater-warming episodes…). The consequences can be an alteration of the seabed (coral bleaching, coral destruction, and invasive seagrass), a poor underwater visibility, or a decrease of the sea life present in the area. Snorkeling Report makes every effort to ensure that all the information displayed on this website is accurate and up-to-date, but no guarantee is given that the underwater visibility and seabed aspect will be exactly as described on this page the day you will snorkel the spot. If you recently snorkeled this area and noticed some changes compared to the information contained on this page, please contact us.
The data contained in this website is for general information purposes only, and is not legal advice. It is intended to provide snorkelers with the information that will enable them to engage in safe and enjoyable snorkeling, and it is not meant as a substitute for swim level, physical condition, experience, or local knowledge. Remember that all marine activities, including snorkeling, are potentially dangerous, and that you enter the water at your own risk. You must take an individual weather, sea conditions and hazards assessment before entering the water. If snorkeling conditions are degraded, postpone your snorkeling or select an alternate site. Know and obey local laws and regulations, including regulated areas, protected species, wildlife interaction and dive flag laws.
