Kaena Point State Park Crashing Wave - Oahu Hawaii

Kaʻena or Kaena Point is the westernmost tip of land on the island of Oʻahu.... more

by Brian Harig

Title

Kaena Point State Park Crashing Wave - Oahu Hawaii

Artist

Brian Harig

Medium

Photograph - Photographs

Description

Kaʻena or Kaena Point is the westernmost tip of land on the island of Oʻahu.
In Hawaiian, kaʻena means 'the heat'. The area was named after a brother or cousin of Pele who accompanied her from Kahiki. The State of Hawaiʻi has designated the point as a Natural Area Reserve to protect nesting Laysan Albatrosses and wedge-tailed Shearwaters, Hawaiian monk seals, and the fragile native strand vegetation that has been restored there.
During the winter months, Oʻahu's North Shore is typically bombarded by large, powerful waves that attract surfers from around the world. It is rumored that Kaʻena Point typically has waves up to 50 feet in height, larger than those at Waimea Bay, one of Oʻahu's world-famous surfing locations. This has not been confirmed; however, during the famous "Swell Of The Century" in 1969 and on the day of Greg Noll's famous wave at Makaha, Greg himself took a picture of a gigantic wave breaking at Kaʻena Point. Until "Biggest Wednesday" on 28 January 1998, when professional surfer Ken Bradshaw was photographed riding a wave with a reported 85-foot face, it was believed that Noll's picture showed the largest wave ever photographed. During that famous swell in January 1998, several persons reported seeing waves with 60 to 80-foot faces at Kaʻena Point.

Uploaded

February 28th, 2013