Kite Surfing Oahu
Wave riding Oahu
Oahu has great wave riding. We get more swell than Maui, have better breaks, and the wind is not so fierce. Bring a 8-10m and a 11-14m kite and you will be good to go in 95% of conditions. Personally I have an 8m and 10m and that keeps me ripping waves year round. A review of the several spots for wave kiting are given below.
North Shore Locations
The swell season runs Sept-May, with largest waves in Nov-March (it gets huge 20-30ft faces weekly which overload most wave kiting spots). However, the Dec-Feb months of winter are typically are the least windy months of the year, often with 1-2 weeks lulls of no wind. For visiting the shoulder seasons Sep-Nov and March-May provide the best combination of wind and waves. The wind is most consistent in summer, Jun-Sept but all trace of swell dies out and there’s only 1 ft of wind chop breaking.
South Shore Locations
The swell season here runs from April – October, with typically 2-3ft of southern ocean swell hitting the South Shore breaks. The largest the waves will get is 4-6ft, and these conditions will occur 3-5 days after a large swell hits Tahiti or Fiji. This is the windy season as well with the consistent trades blowing 15-20knts daily.
East Side Locations
The predominant swell here is wind swell, so there are consistent waves year-round, however you do get wrap from large NW swells, and these often offer the best conditions with high quality long period swell hitting the reefs, but not as large as the North Shore locations. Wind is best in the summer for this side.
North Shore Wave riding Oahu
Kite Surfing Spots
Mokuleia – North Shore location, Great walling running righthand reef break, wind is perfect cross onshore and the most consistent on the island. World class local crowd who are pretty friendly. Large area of inner lagoon for people who want to freestyle it up and intermediate riders. Due to shallow reef, especially at low tide we do not recommend this spot for beginners. Check out the spot guide!
Laniakea – North Shore location. Needs northerly winds which do not happen very often (handful of times per season) Great long righthander breaking down reef, can get very large in winter. Look for a low pressure system passing by Oahu and centered NE from the island, this will provide the Northerly winds required. Can be great spot for Winging!
Backyards/ Revelations – North Shore locations. Located just north of Sunset beach, these spots are truly experts only, having fearsome large powerful barreling righthand waves breaking onto sharp shallow coral. The wind here is also difficult, with the NE trades typically very gusty and then dying out on the inside, northerly aspect winds improve the situation considerably. Revelations is a bit more user friendly with the wave not being as hollow and powerful and the wind less gusty and fewer dead zones. But if you’re chasing the kiting waves of your life, this place delivers.
East Side Wave riding Oahu
Kite Surfing Spots
Laie/Hukilau – East side location. this whole area can be kited but there are two main waves. Goat island is a punchy left that has a few sections down the line and is just east of Goat island. Good when there are strong trades, and a long period NW swell, a bit of north in the wind will get it good. The reef gets shallow so watch out at low tide on the inner sections. The other wave is un-named and on the Laie side of the bay, it’s a reform so is always small, but the winds offshore there, and the water buttery smooth so can be a fun playground. There are numerous other breaks in the bays north of here so go exploring! Launch in front of Hukilau beach park, or off the point at Malaekahana recreation area.
Sandbar– Kiting the Kaneohe sandbar is a free stylers dream, especially towards the lower tide. You will need strong wind in the forecast as it typically a few knots less than in Kailua. Also, to get there you will need to take boat, though some people downwind from chainman’s hat, but it can be fickle, and getting back upwind could be challenging. If you venture out past the sand bar there are waves around the small island in the middle of the bay.
Kailua Bay– Is the most accessible and best place to learn on Oahu, constant wind, a deep water bay with an outer reef protecting it and nice launch zone with facilities make this the most popular spot on Oahu. Bring your larger kites, as the wind typically has a die off during the middle of the day, with the morning and evening usually the windiest times of the day. There are good waves here also, see the spot guide for full details.
Waimanalo – Not such a popular spot but it has the same conditions as Kailua, winds on the lighter side, so bring big kites, and the outer reef also has waves. Wind is more directly onshore, so getting to outer reef takes some time. Access not as easy as Kailua, with you having to park further from the setup zone. Park and setup at Bellows Beach or Sherwood’s Beach
Kahala– Nice south side spot right in town, by Kahala resort, small beach park and launching area. Great waves over the summer months, with a left hander directly in front of beach park, and other waves east further up the reef towards Wailupe. The standard NE trade wind can be fickle, and this location is GUSTY, wind gets cleaner the more easterly it goes. Ideal conditions are ENE/E/ESE winds and 2-3ft swell at high tide. Experts only location due to shallow reef which goes dry at low tide, please note left hander in front of beach park is called “Razors” for a reason.
South Side Wave riding Oahu
Kite Surfing Spots
Hawaii Kai – South side location. You need SE to SW winds to kite here, and they seldom happen, and are not often very strong or consistent. You need a weather pattern anomaly, a low need to form east of the island, and typically there are southerly winds before a front comes through, and the wind dies. Good waves on the outside if you score the “Kona” winds.
Diamond Head – the “Diamond” of the south shore. A great location for wave riding and was the go to spot on Oahu for windsurfing in the day. Picks up the most swell of all south shore locations and can hold any size. Several breaks across the zone, starting at Keiko’s a left hander with good wall in front of Blackpoint. The other main spot is the left hander in front of the cliff where you walk down hill, there will still be surfers at this spot when its blowing so please respect them. Again, the standard NE trade wind can be fickle and this location is GUSTY especially on inside, but wind gets cleaner the more easterly it goes. Park on the road and walk down the hill with your gear. walk east along beach 100-200m and there is a stretch of sand to launch. This is a tight launch zone, and the wind is gusty and turbulent close to the cliffs, get up and get out is the rule. The hillside/cliffside is covered in Kiawe trees, with huge thorns, so drop your kite in the water. Also, wind goes gusty and offshore after beach access path so always try to come in where you launch. Not a beginner’s spot.
White Plains – South side location, not such a popular spot but it has consistent winds, and swell in summer with a couple of good breaks in front of the launch. Large area to play in and few hazards make this spot suitable for intermediate riders. Again the standard NE trade wind can be fickle at this location but the wind get more consistent and stronger the more easterly it goes. Bring a big kite. Parking is opposite the coast guard station, and setup at Nimitz Beach.
The best place to learn to kite surf on Oahu is in Kailua. There is a large deep bay free off sharp coral, with a nice wide sandy beach curving off down wind.
The Kailua community is not particularly fond of kiting and there are actually no legal Kite Surfing instruction companies, due to some silly local rules. However, there is a plethora of instructors who do teach here, with enforcement of the rules nonexistent.
There are two other options for learning, the best alternative is learning at the Kaneohe Sandbar, which is a dream location but only boat accessible, and not as windy as Kailua. The other option is to learn off the back of a jet ski on the north shore, which has the best wind on the island. Due to complications these two locations have, expect considerably higher lesson fee’s – But both locations are true adventures!
We detail the required conditions, equipment and experience for the wild downwind adventures on Oahu
A detailed break down of the conditions required to make “Mokes” fire and some of the hazards you get at this wave riding spot. We also look over the rules
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