BEACH & NEARSHORE
EXTREME
Primarily for beachgoers and surfers

OFFSHORE
EXTREME
Primarily for boaters and kayakers

BEACH CONDITIONS

SURF CONDITIONS
SURF ALONG WEST FACING SHORES WILL BUILD TO HEIGHTS OF 6 TO 8 FEET TONIGHT AND REMAIN 6 TO 8 FEET ON WEDNESDAY
[5/21/2013 4:00:00 PM]

WEATHER CONDITION

WIND CONDITION
Southwest at 5.8 MPH (5 KT)

AMENITIES & ACTIVITIES

Information and Beach Analysis

Our course after leaving this place [Makua] lay about W. by N. and along a difficult path by the sea which is here bounded by the base of the mountains. On one hand was the broken and rough lava against which the surge below was dashing and on the other the steep and rugged sides of the mountains. At about 12 o’clock we arrived at Keavaula, an indifferent village, but the place of a school.Journals of Levi Chamberlain, 1822-1849.

Keawa’ula, or the red harbor, was named for large schools of muhe’e, or squid, that once gathered here near shore. Muhe’e, normally transparent, change their color to bright red when they congregate seasonally to reproduce.

One of two beaches in Ka’ena Point State Park, Keawa’ula is popularly known as Yokohama, also the name of a surf site in the center of its sand beach. The name Yokohama is related to the Japanese fishermen who frequented the beach in the early 1900s, often riding the OR& L trains that ran from Honolulu around Ka’ena Point to Hale’iwa until 1947. Yokohama is the port city in Japan that most Japanese immigrants to Hawai’i sailed from and evolved as a nickname for the beach. In an article called Pana Waialua in the Honolulu Advertiser on February 12, 1933, the author identifies the railroad stopping place Yokohama, an indication that the name was already in common use by the 1930’s.

The wide sand beach at Keawa’ula lies between two rocky points. Without the protection of a reef offshore, it is subject to high surf and strong currents throughout the year. For beachgoers heading west along the Wai’anae coast, Keawa’ula is the last sand beach before Ka’ena Point. The shore at Ka’ena Point, rocky and backed by sand dunes, is frequented primarily by fishers and hikers. No vehicles are allowed beyond Keawa’ula.

This description is taken from John R. K. Clark's book - Beaches of Oahu (Revised Edition) which is published by University of Hawai'i Press and available from University of Hawai'i Press. We thank John R. K. Clark for providing his description of Hawaii's beaches to improve beach safety.