Every person who surfs knows that when the winter winds begin howling it is time to quiver up those boards and head to the North Shore of O’Ahu for some of surfing’s finest waves and the Van’s Triple Crown of Surfing. There is nothing that quite captures the endless summer spirit like the North Shore.
My main reason for heading to O’ahu in December was to catch a couple of the Van’s Triple Crown contests as well as spend some time filming and taking photos at one of the most famous surf breaks in the world.
The drive up H2 to Haleiwa is one of the most scenic road trips I have ever been on. It is also the road to the Dole Plantation. The drive is not like a freeway trip, soon after you get on the road it becomes like a small 2 lane road, winding through vast greenery straight up to the waters of the North Shore. I swear as soon as I saw the ocean up there, I immediately was ensconced in the magic of the area.
First drive to the North Shore was raining. It was a lay day for the contest because of that. Settled on the fact I would probably not see any surf action this trip and would have to return another day, we decided to male our way back and indulge in the Dole Plantation. Of course all was not lost this day. I did manage to get these stormy surf shots from just west of Pipeline.
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Of course I knew I would be going back. It was too wet to fully take in the experience. I will confess this, I should never have booked time in Waikiki, it would have served me better on gas expenses to stay up on the North Shore, since most of the daylight hours were spent up on the North Shore. I could totally live up there.
Things to do while spending time on the North Shore for a weekend. Well first and foremost go body surf in Waimea Bay. That water is off the hook gnarly. The beach breaks on a reasonable day can be at least 4-6 feet in themselves. Dudes were skim boarding and boogie boarding into those waves and catching like 3 foot airs from them. The outside was pumping at double overhead plus and looked pretty off the hook. (Note: I am not skilled enough at surfing smaller waves there was no amount of magic getting me out in Waimea Bay)
North Shore Boogie Boarder
I did however brave the shore break. I ran into the water duck dived the first wave and positioned myself to catch the first wave back to shore. Couple of things to note about the bay. First it is a beach break with lost of sand, 2nd, there is a huge under current from the drag of water back out to the ocean. Why did I mention these two things, well because after about 5 waves and the challenge of fighting the under current, I was beat. I barely had enough energy left in me to climb back to the beach showers.
Which brings me to the first point I made. All the sand. I wore my rash guard, and a pair of board shorts down to the water, I brought back with me no less then bucket of sand stuck in places I did not even realize I had. I could not rid my body of all the sand. Good ting I brought a change of clothes. Though, even back in the hotel that night, I had a shower and another half a pail of sand fell to the shower drain.
Pipeline Barrel
The next day we were back up to the North Shore at Pipeline. We ended up there after a long drive up the windward side of the island. I was stoked because it was a great day and the contest was definitely going to go down. The goal was to catch it mid afternoon when more of the top seeds would be competing. Pipeline gets it name from the type of barrel rides you can get that stretch out across the reef. It was so cool being there where pros and amateurs were lined up along the beach
After a day watching the contest we headed to Haleiwa for some tasty sushi. We found an awesome place that also served some ice cold beers. If you are ever on the North Shore in Haleiwa, pleas stop into the Banzai Sushi Bar. It is absolutely amazing.
Don’t miss your opportunity to ride the waves on the North Shore.
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