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Night Surfing
It was about one year ago that I first experienced the excitement of night surfing. The recent swell had caused every break along the south shore to become infested with hoot-and-hollering surf rats eager for an epic ride. In order to avoid the crowd and to watch the special pre-4th of July fireworks, my friend Brian and I ventured out on his extra-long stand-up surfboard for a tandem night surf session.
Arriving on the beach by the Duke statue, small fish were jumping out of the water along the shore. We looked out to see lazy 2-footers rolling in one after the other. The wind was non-existent, the sky cloudless. The moon—just beginning to wane from full—had yet to make its appearance.
“So, hold onto the board and paddle through the wave,” Brian informed me, for this was my first experience tandem boarding and my second night surfing. I settled my belly on the front of the board and Brian settled in behind me, his face looking right at my butt. “And whatever you do,” he continued, “don’t fart. Or if you do, let me know so I can look away.”
We paddled out to Queens at about 8 p.m. and to our delight found the break completely empty. The only light from which to spot the sets coming in was from the hotel and streetlights along Kalakaua Avenue. The ocean drowned out most of the hustle and bustle of Waikiki’s nightlife. Out there in the dark, in the cool quiet, smack-dab in the center of Waikiki’s great long boarding wave as we waited between sets, Brian and I sat up to take in the atmosphere. Our timing couldn’t have been more perfect. Almost never can you surf Queens all by yourself.
“Here comes one,” Brian alerted me. I quickly flopped back onto my belly to paddle forward. The black water in front of me began to taper and the board below us accelerated onto it.
“Stand up!” Brian shouted. I reached my hand back for his and he pulled me up. “We’re going right… now we’re turning left. Now move forward and right again.” Brian instructed us along the waves surface in our night ballet.
Before the night was over, we shared in a few more dances and watched the silent fireworks explode from Aloha Tower.
There is something so magical about night surfing in Waikiki. It’s something everyone must experience at least once in a lifetime.