I’m going to Laie Hawaii for summer vacation and I’ve never been there and was just wondering what surf spots are nearby?
Laie is on the north east coast, gets wraps from giant NW and the prevailing trades push a wind swell into that coast, but most of the surf is on outside reefs and I mean outside, surf with a buddy kind of outside
A little way up the road north of Laie is Malaekahana beach park , there is surf off the beach , and there is an island called goat island with surf , might not get much surf in the summer , don’t leave valuables in your car . Have fun .
Also, leave your parked car unlocked, otherwise you risk getting a broken window. Sadly, this is one of the realities of Hawaii. Just one of the lessons I learned, along the way.
don’t try to surf goat island
not much in the summer
maybe body surf pounders or drive down the coast to sandy’s/makapuu
sometimes chuns/lani’s/puuena might catch a south wrap
but it’s mostly snorkling and fishing during the summer
some in Haleiwa say northshore is more crowded on the summer with all the tourists than it is during the winter
Jim’s advice is good. I’ve surfed out there when the huge north west swells hit. You paddle about a half mile or more offshore to the outer reefs. Waves were really good, and no one out, but this was in the 70’s. There’s Laie Point, which is close to shore, pounders is a shorebreak bodysurfing spot. Pounders get’s its name from tha powerful shore break. When it’s on, you can get pounded onto the sand. I didn’t ever see good waves at Maleakahana, but Goat Island can be good on the right swell. That area is mainly a camping area, so lots of people go there with their families and camp for couple of days. The only times I surfed Malaekahana was when I went there for a couple days with several families and camped.
One thing I don’t like about that side is the kite surfers. Trade winds blow onshore on that side so they like that. It’s a very popular area for kite surfers, and when there’s waves they dominate the area. Hard to get waves when they are out because they cover so much area so fast. The last times I surfed Malekahana I had that problem.
The beauty of the North side is there are always 2-3 foot waves coming through during the summer and those are more playful than the powerful winter storm swells. You’ll need to drive around to the west side of the North Shore to get there. If a south swell hits while you are on the island you should find a way to get to the south shore 40 or 50 different breaks from Sandy Beach to Barber’s Pt. and off to the west side. You should be able to find one that suits your tastes.