Beach at Hanauma Bay

The beach at Hanauma Bay has been a popular gathering spot... (Tom Wharton/The Salt Lake Tribune )«1»HANAUMA BAY, Hawaii - Few people who snorkel ever forget their first experience with a mask and fins in tropical waters.

Mine came in the late 1980s during my first trip to Hawaii. Famed Utah sportscaster Paul James told me about a reserve where fishing was not allowed called Hanauma Bay (ha-NOW-ma) and said it was one of the best things to do near Honolulu.
Another friend who lived there concurred. So, with rented snorkel gear and bags of frozen string beans and peas, we headed to the beautiful half-moon-shaped bay that is a water-covered dormant volcano crater filled with turquoise water, coral reefs and thousands of tropical fish.

It was, indeed, an amazing experience. Colorful fish of all shapes and sizes swarmed us, eating the green beans out of our bathing trunks or hands. I had never seen anything like it.

We also walked to a famous blow hole called the Toilet Bowl and marveled while watching locals swim into a lava tube and then come out the other side, a claustrophobic experience I would never attempt.

What we didn't think about was the fact that many of the things the millions of annual visitors to Hanauma Bay were doing - feeding the fish, stepping on coral and eroding the sides of hills - were damaging this precious site.

Making a return visit last August, we found a far different place. If the parking lot is full, no more cars allowed. Visitors must see a video and hear interpreters talk about how to protect the park. The beach is far less crowded, and trails on each side of the volcano have been closed for safety reasons.

"This has been a major control measure to prevent overcrowding on the beach," explained Alan Hong, Hanauma Bay manager. "When we had over 3 million visitors a year with no restrictions, it caused a lot of environmental impact. We're trying to reduce the impact by reducing the number of people. Those who come are exposed to an orientation program to know what they can do to minimize the impact to our reef. We have reduced the number of visitors to a million a year on the beach."

In fact, the history of the bay's management is replete with management practices that have changed its ecology and encouraged its human use in different ways.
According to the park Web site, www.co.honolulu.hi.us/parks/facility/hanaumabay

, some of the earliest development on the site came in the 1890s, when an old photo shows a building that was probably used by Hawaiian royalty. In 1928, the city and county of Honolulu established Koko Head Regional Park, which included Hanauma Bay, by buying it for $1 from the estate of Bernice Bishop with a deed restricting its use to public parks and rights of way.

A new paved road came in 1931, and the area was protected with barbed wire after Pearl Harbor was bombed. A road to the beach was built in 1950 along with restrooms and showers. An easement for an undersea trans-Pacific telephone cable allowed a 200-foot-wide swath to be cut through the coral reef with tons of rock removed. That actually created more swimming space and created a new biological zone inside the reef for small invertebrates that fish fed upon.

But, by the 1960s, the area was overfished and few fish could be seen. According to the Web site, the Hawaii Division of Fish and Game declared the bay a Marine Life Conservation District, ending the taking of marine life, shells, coral, rocks and sand.

That led to the Hanauma Bay I experienced in the 1980s but also to overcrowding. The nature center was completed in 2002 and the increased management has, according to Hong, reduced visitation.

"There are in the neighborhood of 200 marine animals in the bay, but the fish are what people focus on," said Hong. "You will probably see maybe two different species when you go snorkeling, but the typical snorkeler will remember the most colorful, biggest ones that swam right in front of them."

Despite the restrictions, Hanauma Bay remains one of Honolulu's biggest attractions. If you are staying in Waikiki, you would do well to sign up for one of the commercial bus tours as opposed to driving a car; parking is limited.

Hong said the busiest times of year are when school is out: June, July and August, March and April spring breaks and the Christmas holiday season.
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* TOM WHARTON can be contacted at wharton@sltrib.com. His phone number is 801-257-8909. Send comments about this story to livingeditor@sltrib.com.


Hanauma Bay basics
* THE BAY is 10 miles east of Waikiki on the Kalaniana'ole Highway.
* NO PETS, alcoholic beverages, fishing, feeding fish or removing or harming marine life are allowed.
* CALL 808-396-4229 for a recorded message with all current fees, times and condition.
* ENTRY FEE is $1 per car and $5 per person 13 years or older.
* VISITORS ARE REQUIRED to watch an educational film before going to the beach.
* LIFEGUARDS are available.
* THERE ARE picnic facilities with tables, a concession stand, restÂrooms, showers, phones, snorkel, mask and fin rental, locker rental and a gift shop.
* THE BEACH is wheelchair accessible via shuttle bus or trolley.



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