Thursday, September 23, 2010

The Reef is Always Brighter, in Somebody Else's Pond

Travel tip today is Waimea Bay on the North Shore.

During the winter and when the giant waves are up, if you get up early and can get parking on the highway up and above the waves, you might witness something like this...


That kind of surf only comes up once or twice a year, if at all. In the 28 years I have lived here, I have only witnessed it twice.

Howver, during the summer, Waimea is a huge salt water pool with the clearest water you can imagine. A great beach for snorkeling.

We like to walk to the far left side of the bay, past the rock the crazy kids jump off of (and yes, you might find my crazy son jumping off it from time to time).

On a lower ledge, you might even find my dog hanging with the boys.


The ocean is unbelievably clear.


The rocks provide an underwater playground.


Or a moment of zen.

Got a place you'd recommend for a day trip? A long trip? A lifetime? Link on up...

15 comments:

Kristan said...

Loooove the underwater pics! How do you take them? We bought a waterproofing Digipac bag for our regular camera, which seemed to work out okay...

Julie H said...

Wow that surfing video is breath taking!! The ocean is such a magnificent thing!

Brian Miller said...

what cool and fun pics...the water is crystal clear...and that vid is amazing...

Fragrant Liar said...

Wow, beautiful water. Can't believe the size of that wave!

tulpen said...

Holy shit that was a mountain of water.

Sprite's Keeper said...

I've jumped off that rock only once. Never again. I like my ribs the way they're stacked. No rearranging here, thanks.

lisahgolden said...

The biggest wave I ever saw was on Maui.

I love the pix! The snorkeling looks like so much fun.

Michele said...

Beautiful!

Joanna Jenkins said...

Those surfers-- the ones who do those huge waves- I yiyi, they must scare their mothers to death!

Love the underwater pics. It looks like a real blast.

Cheers, jj

Joanie said...

Those are amazing underwater photos! I suppose if you live near the water, you should own an underwater camera.

secret agent woman said...

I have some good memories of the bays in Hawaii when I lived there one summer.

Rosaria Williams said...

Beautiful! How can you stand so much fun?

sage said...

Beautiful waves and water--i'd love to dive there. Again, I missed doing a TTT :(

Twenty Four At Heart said...

I've been there, but its been a long time ... beautiful!

Paula Scott Molokai Girl Studio said...

Wow-I've never been to the left of the rock that the kids dive off of. It looks like a pretty cool spot! Where do you park? This makes me homesick! When I go home, I spend my last few days on Oahu to transition myself from Molokai to NM. And, always, we make a trip to Ehu beach past Waimea, over by Sunset.