We spent a long afternoon on Bellows Beach in Waimanalo this weekend. It reminded me that this stunning beach is perhaps the most beautiful in the islands. The backdrop is the purple-green Koolau Mountains and the stark cliffs of Makapu'u and Rabbit Island in the distance. The sand is fine as talc (it gets everywhere, but you don't really mind). The tall ironwood trees and the windward location provide decent shade right down into the water in the late afternoon. The waves are often quite good for boogieboarding and bodysurfing. Oahu is quite underated when it comes to beaches. Bellows is, alas, only open on weekends to the public due to its location on a military base. But the crowds are never oppressive and the water is always fine, a chalky aquamarine blue that just whispers tropical. We're definitely going back out there soon -- it's a beach that's easily as good as the much touted resort beaches on Maui and Kauai with a backdrop that's equal if not better. And then there's the Beard Papa madness at Foodland in Koko Marina on the way out. Mmmmm. Hard to eat just one.

Bellows AFS Site, Flickr Pics

—Alex, 08/28/06