About Lanai Surf Travel
You don’t hear of a lot of surf trips to Lanai…but you should. A more off-the-beaten-path option when traveling through the Hawaiian islands, it has the least publicly accessible land in the entire chain. It used to be a haven for pineapple, but these days Larry Ellison, the founder of Oracle, owns 97-percent of the island. If that sounds crazy it’s because it is. The State of Hawaii only owns 3-percent of the island. With such limited access, surfing around the island is obviously a bit tricky. But if you know when and where to go, there are still waves to be found. And if you were thinking about a boat trip in Hawaii, Lanai might be an amazing place to start.
Manele Bay:
Located on the southern rim of Lanai and home to a high-end Four Seasons Resort, Manale Bay is one of the more popular tourist’s spots on the tiny outer island. The wave itself at Manale is a lefthand reef point on the eastern rim of the bay. It’s a fickle spot, but when it’s on, it’s really good. Summer South Swell lines wrap in around the point, wedge up and peak, often with a barrel, then peel all the way in with a rippable face. Turning into the easterly Trades, this spot will be well groomed and clean. When it’s not working, there are some shorter peaks just past the reef edge, as well as some heavy shorepound for bodysurfing and bodyboarding just off the sandy beach in the cove.
Kaiolohia Bay/Shipwreck Beach:
Kaiolohia Bay, also known as Shipwreck Beach, is located on the north side of Lanai, about a half-hour’s drive from Lanai City. Kaiolohia Bay is an 8-mile stretch of windswept coastline notorious for the Kalohi Channel, which is the shallow, 10-mile swath of sea that separates Lanai and Molokai. Because of Kaiolohia’s vastness, there are, of course, a variety of reefs/waves to pick from, all of which break about 500-600 yards offshore. Like many beaches on Lanai, there is only dirt road access to Kaiolohia, meaning that to get there, you’ll more than likely need a 4×4. Surprisingly, Kaiolohia is very consistent all year with East-Northeast trade swell getting in, but unfortunately almost always accompanied by breezy onshore East-Northeast trade winds. The best time to pay this rugged, beautiful stretch of Hawaiian coast a visit is during a North-East or East-Northeast swell when the offshore Kona winds from the South-West are blowing in with a frontal passage.
Lopa Beach:
Lopa Beach is a long, white sand beach on the east coast of Lanai. It is most consistent in summer, but occasionally a winter North-Northeastly swell will sneak in-between Maui and Molokai and provide moderate surfing potential. The stretch of reef just offshore offers a variety of peaks and sections for surfers of all abilities to have fun with. The catch is that the wind is usually onshore because of the easterly Trades. Any possibility of trade swell, however, is dashed due to Lopa Beach’s close proximity to Maui, whose northwest coast lies within eyesight ten miles across the Auau Channel. If you’re lucky enough to be on Lanai when a front passes through and the winds clock around offshore from the westerly direction and a swell is in the water, you’re guaranteed a fun session. Also, Lopa Beach is only accessible by one of four 4X4-only roads that branch off of Keomuku Road, so access with just about any vehicle is not possible.
Pohakuloa:
Pohakuloa is part of the shipwreck coast on the northern edge of Lanai, just outside of Lanai City. This raw, sandy beach fringed coastline is home to a series of reef points that offer lefts and rights. Like most beaches in Lanai, access to Pohakuloa’s various surf spots is by dirt roads only, meaning you’ll more than likely need a 4X4 to get there. Pohakuloa is actually very consistent all year long with East-Northeast trade swell sneaking in between Molokai and Oahu, but it usually comes with breezy trade winds from the same direction as well. Make your way out to the Pohakuloa wilds during a solid East-Northeast winter swell and with prefrontal southerly winds. Occasionally, large North-West swells will wrap some energy around the west side of Molokai and bring swell to Pohakuloa; large West-WNW swells can also scoot just under the island of Ni’ihau off of Kauai and make their way to Pohakuloa.