This remote, two-mile crescent-shaped beach on Kauai where the emerald mountains meet the sparkling sea was selected No. 1 on "Dr. Beach" Stephen P. Leatherman's 2009 list of top 10 beaches, which was released Friday.

Hanalei beat out other shores stretching from San Diego to Cape Cod.

"The sheer beauty of Hanalei Bay is breathtaking," said Leatherman, director of Florida International University's Laboratory for Coastal Research. "It's really an...