Entries tagged 'watersports'
Good Beginner Surf Spots -- Video of Kid Learning to Surf Inside Hanalei Bay
I wish I were this young again. Yes, this is why you have to come to Hawaii to learn to surf....
Latest Issue of Honolulu Magazine -- 18 Outdoor Adventures, North Shore Dining
The latest issue of Honolulu Magazine is out and its a good one. The editors cover 18 fun outdoor adventures (mainly on Oahu but some Outer Island) including a couple I had never even heard of, such as rock climbing...
Hawaiian Sailling Canoe: Going Native Afloat on Maui with Sage
Aloha from Maui. Here's another Microsoft Mobile Post, on the go from the most beautiful island in the world and underwritten by Microsoft (literally). Thanks, Steve! Three years ago our neighbor's son Sage Spalding moved to Maui with a...
Microsoft Mobile Post from Sandy Beach Sunday: Hawaii's Best Beaches
I'm blogging live from Sandy Beach, Oahu, a stunning little crescent usually pummeled by massive shore break (enough to make it dangerous) on the Southeast corner of this island. This post is sponsored Microsoft as part of its Mobile...
Hawaii Night Surfers: Waikiki by Moonlight
This is a great article by Derek Farrar on what its like to go night surfing in Waikiki. I personally am a huge fan of night surfing, particularly in mellow waves like you find on the South Shore of Oahu...
Beginner Surfspots - Diamond Head, Near Waikiki, Not Much Crowd
It's a hoof down the cliffs and most schools won't take you there because it's a bit shallow but on a calm, clear day there is alway surf at the base of Diamond Head and the waves are extremely...
Eddie Almost Goes: Sloppy Conditions Last Week Mean No Go
Quiksilver almost ran the Eddie Aikaui Invitational at Waimea Bay last week when surf popped over the 20-foot Hawaiian range (that's 40 foot-plus on the face). Waves shown here are a bit smaller than that but nice, clean Waimea...
Hawaii Surf Spot Tour: Makaha Beach
Vintage footage of Buffalo Keaulana, Nat Young and others at Makaha 40 years ago. Makaha is pretty much the same today. No drop in....
Hapuna Beach, Big Island: Most Dangerous Beach in Hawaii
Hapuna Beach is definitely one of the nicest beaches in the Hawaiian Islands, a long stretch of wide yellow sand rimming a crystal blue bay. Alas, it's also one of the most dangerous. This research surprised me, because Hapuna, while...
Hawaii Surf Spot Tour: Hanalei Bay
This is the home break of Andy Irons, perhaps the greatest contest surfer in the world today. It's also a legendary spot on Kauai. The footage here is of a smallish day when the wave looks mellow. It's really...
Hawaiirama Surf Spot Tour: A Regular Feature
Kelly Slater, mega-world champion, surfing Backdoor at the Banzai Pipeline. This is a LOT more dangerous than it looks, kids....
Pissed off in Puna-- So Who Peed in the Thermal Ponds, Brah?
If the Champagne Pool on the Puna Coast is a little warmer than usual, blame the hordes of tourists, according to this AP story. It's not the kind of bubbly that makes the guide books, that's for sure. Regardless, more...
Xcel Pro Surf Contest at Sunset Beach on the North Shore
The winter waves start rumbling ashore on Oahu's fabled North Shore sometime in mid-November and by the time the Xcel Pro Surf Contest sets up its judging platform scafolding on Sunset Beach, the locals are ripping up what is often...
My Maui Vacation: Cover Story of U.S. Airways Inflight
The kind folks at U.S. Airways put my homage to slumming across Maui on the cover of their esteemed publication. The art looks great. It's a tough life being a travel writer. Here' s a taste....
Hawaii Best Lists: Best Beaches with No Hotels On Them
No doubt, Hawaii has its fair share of hotels, condos and other at times overwrought signs of civlization. But there are plenty of lovely beaches that are relatively untouched and some that are outside residential areas that remain totally...
Reel Cool:A Look at Hawaii's Lure Masters
Fishing in Hawaii is serious business. Lots of locals feed their families with fresh catch. The best restaurants either buy in the morning from the fishmarkets or directly from the fishermen. And the islands are a world class sportfishing destintation...
Octosquid Found off Big Island: What the Heck is That?
In an item completely unrelated to tourism, travel or fun things to do, a wacky new critter that scientists are dubbing and "octosquid" was trapped in uptake filters at a deep-water energy plant project of Keahole Point on the Kona...
Hawaii Trips: Kauai Trek Part 2 - Scout Troop Heads Out to Sea
HEADING OUT TO SEA The next day, the troop gladly traded its hiking boots for swimsuits and snorkeling masks. Hopping aboard high-speed boats, the Scouts set out to see Na Pali at sea level. Along the way to the snorkeling...
Big Island Family Vacation: Kayak, Snorkel Kealakekua
Day 2: You’re in Hawaii so get wet and take it all in. Score a kayak cruise in Kealakekua Bay, a marine preserve at the base of the green hills of Kona's coffee country, where pods of spinner dolphins are...
Kauai Guide: Hanalei, Poipu, Hotels, Beaches. Fun Galore
King Kamehameha I, who unified the Hawaiian Islands with an iron fist, failed not once but twice in his attempts to capture Kauai. That rebellious spirit lives on: By Hawaii standards, Kauai is still more than a bit untamed...
Hawaii Beach Guide: Lydgate Park, Kauai
This wonderful little beach park is often overlooked by tourists but that's their loss.Lydgate is a county park so there are bathroom facilities, showers, parking and lifeguards (one of the few beaches on Kauai that does). There are two wading...
Shark Bites Swimmer on Maui's Keawakapu Beach: She's OK
A California visitor snorkeling in the shallow waters off a popular Kihei beach was attacked by a shark yesterday, according to Honolulu Star-Bulletin.. She's fine, having suffered lacerations to her foot and calf. In fact, Hat tip to the folks...
Hawaii Beach Guides: Kehena
What with all the fuss about Puna becoming the up and coming low-key vacation locale in the islands, it's time to revisit the black sends of Kehena. This one of the only swimming beaches on the Puna Coast of the...
Hawaii Sports: Standup Paddle Surfing: Learning How to Ride the Beast
I wrote a trend piece earlier this week on standup paddle surfing. Lo, what appears in my inbox but a note from a local PR firm pointing out that instructructors at Action Sports Maui ($109 per person for two hours...
Hot Hawaii Trends: Stand Up Paddle Surfing -- Laird, Titus and Lots Surf Studs Doing It
On a relatively dismal day out at "Number Threes" in Waikiki, I counted three guys on stand up paddle surfing boards (pictured here) go by. That convinced me the large marge barges of surfing are multiplying rapidly. What is...
Waikiki Jellyfish Attack: 15 year-old Goes to Hospital With Gnarly Sting
A quick reminder from mother nature that even small, squishy packages pack a punch in King Neptune's Garden. The monthly box jellyfish onslaught that washes ashore in Waikiki and along southern shores of Oahu sent an unsuspecting visitor to the...
Hawaii Beach Guides: Hamoa Bay
Ringed black-lava sea cliffs, Hamoa Bay near the remote town of Hana was a favorite of literary icons and Hawaii lovers Mark Twain and James Michener. It's easy to see why. The soft, dark sands of this gray crescent composed...
Hawaii Beach Guides: Kalama Beach Park - Kailua Lite
This little park is a hidden gem tucked away from the rest of Kailua on the northern reaches of the vast Kailua Beach. How is it different than Kailua Beach Park and Lanikai? It's a little less crowded, for starters....
Hawaii Beach Guide : Lanikai - Faded Favorite but Still Fab
Dr. Beach, Stephen Leatherman, has picked this stretch of lovely pinkish sand as America's Best. Lanikai is a gem but one with a growing list of caveats. First, among all the great Hawaii beaches, Lanikai may have suffered the...
Hawaii Beach Guides: Chun's Reef
On a recent day out surfing at Chun's on Oahu's North Shore, I looked back at the beach and thought -- holy cow! That's actually a great little beach. You can't really see much of the beach from the road...
Barack Obama Hawaii Vacation Tour
Continuing our shameless Web traffic grab with the Hawaiirama Obamarama Vacation Tour....So Barry (as he was called during his Punahou days) apparently was a keen bodysurfer. As a town guy, that means he probably spent a few days getting...
Luxury Island at One-Third the Price: Hotel Lanai
Lanai is the private island, the one that food magnate David Murdoch owns virtually in its entirety. It's also where Microsoft founder Bill Gates went for his wedding. Lanai is home to two lavish Four Seasons resorts, the Lodge at...
Kealakekua Bay Update: Buoys, Closure, Still Lots of Room
This in from my friend Jessica Ferracane who reps the Big Island Visitors Bureau and also writes some nice books about eating around the Big Island and Maui. "Temporary buoys mark a 100-foot section along Kealakekua Bay - including the...
Hawaii YouTube Videos: Diving Lanai
We've not yet mentioned the Lanai Cathedrals off the coast of Lanai in this blog. The Cathedrals are amazing underwater laval formations that have become coral encrusted and produce some of the most spectacular light play and diving conditions...
Ko'Olina Lagoons: Keiki Friendly Fun
The Ko'olina Resort area is, like Waikiki, a man-made wonder. So be it. The resort's four swimming lagoons, which are open to the public like all Hawaii beaches, are marvelous. Calm and clear with a fringing reef, sandy bottoms and...
YouTube Video of the Day: Turtles in Kealakekua Bay
Turtles are a sign of good luck in the Native Hawaiian culture, a potent aumakua (or animal sign). They are also beautiful to watch in their native habitats. Most snorkel spots around the islands give you a decent chance...
Overlooked Lahaina: More Fun, More Fun
All the major travel mags have written off Lahaina. It's too touristy. It's cheesy. It's crowded. True, true, true. Which clearly explains why everyone is fleeing Las Vegas. Now that we've gotten that out of the way, let's cover why...
You Can Pet the Cucumber: Waikiki Aquarium Reef Walk
I am standing ankle-deep in turquoise water that's washing over a shoreline reef I'm doing something I have never done before: petting a cucumber. A black sea cucumber, to be exact, held by Mark Heckman, an educator at the Waikiki...
Soon Open for Business: Northwestern Hawaiian Islands Marine National Monument
Midway Island was the site of a key battle in World War II that turned the course of the war in the Pacific. Since then, this sleepy outpost in the Northwest Hawaiian Islands has hosted mainly critters and a small...
Hawaii YouTube Video of the Day: Footage from Pipe Masters
I had seen some footage but this reel makes it clear how truly nasty it was out there. Kudos to the finalists. Related Posts: Andy Irons wins 2006 Pipe Masters...
Andy Irons Wins Pipeline Masters, Triple Crown
Sounded like a great final in shifty, tricky and BIG surf. Here's linkage goodness. Honolulu Advertiser with article, photos, story on the crowds attending Good videos at the Triple Crown website (Windows Media only) Surfer Magazine Coverage of the...
Shorediving.com -- Great Site for...What Else? Shorediving!
There are so many places to get in the water in Hawaii that the selection becomes overwhelming, like a kid in a candy shop painted ocean blue. No worries. When I am venturing outer island or even around Oahu, I...
Turtle Bay Controversy: Guv Says No!
In an interesting twist, Hawaii Governor Linda Lingle in her second innaugural address came out squarely against major development at Turtle Bay and surrounding beaches. This fit in with her argument that should Hawaii continue to rely on land development...
Freak Waikiki Sailboat Accident Kills One, Critically Injures Another
You've probably already read about the accident, which happened on Dec. 2, if you arrived at this post. If not, quick recap.The catamaran Na Hoku II was sailing off Waikiki in fairly heavy winds with dozens of tourists aboard for...
Hawaii Beaches: Untouched Oahu Gem -- Kawela Bay
I almost hate telling people about this spot. It's so perfect, and its right on Oahu. Kawela Bay is one of the last semi-secret beaches on this most populous of Hawaiian Islands. "Magnum P.I." and "Lost" have both filed scenes...
Hawaii YouTube Video of the Day: Skimboarding at Makena
What the heck is skimboarding? Basically, its akin to surfing but rather than paddle into a wave, the boarder runs towards shorebreak, slides the board out in front of himself / herself, jumps on the board as it begins...
Hawaii Beach Guides: Kauai's Best Beginner Surf Spots
Here's the latests in our series of beach lists from John Clark, the noted Hawaii beach expert and all around beach nut, will be feeding us his extremely informed take on beaches around Hawaii. You can buy his books at...
Hawaii Beach Guides: Oahu's Best Beginner Surf Spots -- Canoes
Here's the latests in our series of beach lists from John Clark, the noted Hawaii beach expert and all around beach nut, will be feeding us his extremely informed take on beaches around Hawaii. You can buy his books...
Hawaii Beach Guides: Oahu Beginner Surf Spots - White Plains
Here's the latests in our series of beach lists from John Clark, the noted Hawaii beach expert and all around beach nut, will be feeding us his extremely informed take on best beaches around the Aloha State. At any...
Hawaii Beach Guides: Oahu Beginner Surf Spots -- Inside Puaena Point
Here's the latests in our series of beach lists from John Clark, the noted Hawaii beach expert and all around beach nut, will be feeding us his extremely informed take on best beaches around the Aloha State. At any rate,...
Big Fish to Fry
Note: Due to the graphic nature of the subject matter, this event may not be for small children or animal rights activists. The 47th annual Hawaii International Billfish Tournament kicked off on July 24 on the Kona Coast of...
