| Coastlines are continuous features and it is difficult to subdivide them into polygons except for administrative purposes. Coastlines contain some distinct features that can be considered point features (rock outcrops, small beaches, small bays, etc), but others are continuous (long beaches, rocky shores). Rocky coastlines have low intensity of use (fishing, hiking, board surfing, development) because of difficult access and usafe conditions. Most people visit beaches when they seek aquatic activities along the coastline. |
Airphotos of selected sections of Maui coastlines
| photo |
|
| 5WJX3895.gif | NW Maui near Mokuleia Bay and town of Honolua |
| 5WJY4131.gif | SW Maui near town of Makena - Makena Big Beach |
| 5WJY4009.gif | Hana to Hamoa area - Hana Beach, Red Sands Beach, HamoaBeach |
| 5WJX3909.gif | N Maui along Hana highway coast line from Ho'okipa Beach to Baldwin Beach |
| 5WJX3943.gif | Lahaina area |
| 5WJY4133.gif | La Perouse Bay - rocky coastline |
| 5WJY4127.gif | Ma'alea Beach (north of Kihei) - sandy beaches |
| 5WJY4129.gif | city of Kihei area and Kamaole beaches |
| Beaches are always bounded by rocky shore, are variable in size,
and are usually named. Names correspond to entire beaches or to sections
of long beaches (sandy coastline),
but usually the name refers to entire beach bounded by rocky shore.
Some beaches have multiple names (one Hawaiian, one English, and others),
but most are named with Hawaiian descriptions. Sometimes the same
beach may be subdivided by type of use (e.g. Little Beach / Big Beach at
Makena; one is nude beach and the other is not – only a small rock outcrop
separates the two). On island of Maui, all coastlines are rocky except
for beaches and most beaches are small (small enough to be considered point
features) relative to entire coastline on Maui, due to volcanic origin
of the island and basaltic rocks that form the island. Beaches are
depositional features where sand and larger clasts (up to pebbles) are
preferentially deposited.
Sand quality is correlated with climate and geographical location: the larger the waves (and winds – also correlated to rainfall from storms) the less sandy the beach – more pebbles and gravel due to higher energy environment of deposition. So, sandy beaches tend to be in drier coasts where waves are smaller (usually where most tourist resorts are located on all Hawaiian islands). All large beaches in Hawaii have public access, and most beaches are on government lands. Each beach “serves” an area around it, and the coastline could be subdivided by proximity to nearest beach. However, some beaches are more popular or are better quality than others so proximity to beach may not determine who goes to what beach and from where. In ranking beaches, some qualities may conflict with others (e.g. board surfing vs. snorkelling, beach amenities vs seclusion), so it is impossible to develop unbiased ranking for beach quality for all people to agree on. Coastlines may be characterized according to different sets of beach qualities that do not oppose each other. |
What are beach resources?
1) natural resources:
- sand quality, bottom quality (determine quality of most beaches for swimming) |
2) artificial resources:
- coast development (resorts, hotels, dive shopts, surf shops, campgrounds) |
3) values
- seclusion or popularity |
