If you want to ride the waves of Oahu without the crowds that flock to these North Shore surf breaks, head to Yokohama Bay in the northernmost leeward part of Oahu. Also known as Keawaula Beach or Puau Beach, Yokohama Bay is a hidden Hawaiian delight for surfers, sunbathers, and nature lovers located near Kaena Point on the Waianaie Coast at the end of Farrington Highway. The bay offers a crescent-shaped bay of white sand against a backdrop of jagged pali cliffs. Characterized by breezy trade winds and hot sunny days, Yokohama Bay is truly a beach paradise unspoiled by development.
The bay offers clear waters ideal for snorkeling, scuba diving, shore fishing, picnicking, shell collecting, swimming and sunbathing. To enjoy Yokohama in that way, it’s best to visit Yokohama Bay during the summer months when the ocean is calm.
In winter, the surf goes up to 20 feet. Surfers and bodyboarders take to the waves here. Big waves, strong currents, and strong breakers off the coast become Yokohama Bay. Surfers also have to deal with the wind here, which can sometimes blow erratically and unpredictably. Some days the wind will blow offshore, while on some days the wind will blow onshore for half an hour, then switch to land for another fraction of an hour, and then be offshore again.
During the high swell months, amateur surfers should stay on the shore and watch the excitement of the swell and the surfers who tackle Yokohama’s waves — the high winter waves are extremely dangerous.
Services and amenities: lifeguards and toilets at the park entrance, no bus service, no facilities
unique things:
- The bay is the last beach on Farrington Highway.
- It is also the last stretch of sandy shoreline on the Leeward coast.
- It is part of Kaena Point State Park,
- The bay is also known as Keawaula Beach or Puau Beach, but locals on the west side who frequent the beach more prefer to call it Yokohama Bay, after the name of the city (Yokohama, Japan) where Japanese immigrants lived and fished. in the cam of the coast.
- It is close to Kaena Point, which is the “jump” of souls to the spirit world according to legend.
