A sprawling expanse of reef—1,600 feet at its widest and one of Hawaii’s longest spanning two miles—looms just off the thin strip of white sand at Anini Beach. Parrotfish, moray eels, trumpet fish, needlefish, pufferfish and much, much more color the clear waters, popping against the drab coral rock. A thin sandbar beyond the residential area on shore often hosts fishermen and waders searching for seashells within view of the lighthouse and offshore Island at Kilauea Point in the east.

Despite steady winds that whip up light action for windsurfers that sometimes cruise its length, the coral acts as a protective barrier for the shallows making Anini one of the calmest and best snorkeling beaches on Kauai’s North Shore.