I recently went through Hawaii on my way home to Guam. We were only on Oahu for a few days, but Electric Beach at Kahe Point was one of the best things I saw.
You park across the street from the Power Plant, and then walk past the bathrooms onto the small strip of beach.
There are a lot of signs on the cliff side as you walk down, warning you of the dangerous water conditions.
There are also signs on the little strip of beach, telling you not to go in the water in front of the power plant.
The signs have a point. What you want to do is go to the ramp, and swim straight out from the ramp for about 200 feet. Then, bear to the right just a little.
There are pipes (that are buried) with some coral on top. Follow those out.
You can see the bubbles from where the pipes let out.
The water from the power plant is warm, and it attracts a lot of different sea life.
It’s important to be careful. If you get down in front of the pipes, the rushing water will push you out to sea and you will have to swim back.
The best place to be is right before the opening of the pipes, so that you can watch the animals that come to hang out.
We saw lots of amazing things, including a black trigger fish and several schools of baby fish.
Of course, the best thing we saw was a sting ray, which hung around and played in the water with us.
However, there were all kinds of things to see. The are pillow star fish, sea urchins, trigger fish, and much more.
If you stick your head out of the water facing shore, you can see the power plant. This is what it looks like.
And the best part?
When you get out, they have showers!
If you snorkel often, you know how awesome that is. I hate having to drive home salty.
Again, I should caution you about the dangerous waters.
We saw some people get caught in a rip tide and pulled into a rocky area. They had to be rescued.
Make sure you are a strong swimmer before you try Electric Beach.
Safety First!