A place in a small cove next to
Haunama Bay on the hawaiian island of
Oahu. It's basically a big hole in the ground in a rocky area, worn away by the incessant motion of the
waves over the
passage of time. The cove itself is above the water line but the
ocean somehow managed to create a
pipe through the rock and then reach the surface through a rocky
orifice which is now about the
volume of four
hot tubs and with a shape vaguely similiar.
When a
wave hits the rocks down by the
shore, water surges up the line and fills the hole completely, spilling onto the ground around it, thus the name.
For years,
people have been enjoying this treat of
nature. You can sit in it and enjoy the rise and fall with the water as it rushes in and out like watery
breath.
Unfortunately, last time I went to
Hawaii, I found that the area had been proclaimed forbidden by the park service which runs the main beach of
Haunama Bay. Although the area isn't fenced in, there is a sign around the general path people take to the
cove, proclaiming the area
off-limits. Supposedly the toilet bowl had been
deemed too dangerous in the name of
protective deprivation of freedom. True, the place could be dangerous and people had been hurt there. If you leave the bowl and swim in the area where the water enters, it's likely that you'll be sucked into the pipe where you'll get your
brains dashed out on a rock or
drown, but if you've got just a dash of
common sense you can simply stay out of that area and you'll be fine. There are perfectly legal areas to go in
Grand Canyon National Park with no railings.
Just in case anyone failed to recognize this
authority, I noticed, they'd stationed a
state trooper above at a lookout point to watch for
those who
disobey. We watched for a while and noticed that many people tried to get in, regardless. This must have been going on for some time as the
authorities were using a
golf-cart to carry disobediant
souls back to the main parking area. We waited until it could be seen coming up the path with the latest
interlopers and made a break for it, sneaking along
guerilla style, using the cover of dense but dead
shrubbery and crouching next to small ridges. Eventually we made it and were able to
enjoy the place for at least twenty minutes until the trooper showed up and
escorted us back.
If you ever go to
Haunama Bay, look to the left of the entrance area to the main
beach, there you'll see the lookout area and beyond that the
wastelands leading to the toilet bowl. Wander off in that general direction and it's pretty easy to find, provided that you don't get snapped up by
the Man first.