We were driving North along the east side of the island, looking for a good spot to spend the morning at the beach. A lot of beaches along the way were pretty crowded, so we kept driving, until we got to Turtle Bay Resort. We decided to turn into the Resort to try our luck, and it turned out to be a great decision.
The parking lot was not that full, so we parked and loaded our wagon with all of our beach gear, and headed towards "Keiki Beach".
We had never been to this beach before, so it was a new adventure for the four of us.
We discovered a nice stretch of sand with an area of water that is perfect for small kids (hence the name Keiki Beach).
Although there were no waves, the boys had fun on their boogie boards.
There were some small tide pools with small fish in them. We saw a handful of people with fishing poles.
Lots of sand for social distancing ....
and crystal clear water.
The only downsides are no restrooms or showers.
Although the Turtle Bay Resort is currently closed, the parking lot is open and beach access is still available. It's a great time to check out this hidden beach spot!
It was just me and the twins on Prince Kuhio Day (a State of Hawaii holiday), so I packed up the truck with our beach gear and headed north to the North Shore of Oahu.
On the drive over, we knew it was going to be a great day. Just look at the blue skies!
First stop - Paalaa Kai Bakery for snow puffies ...
The twins didn't want to try the snow puffy, so I bought one for myself ...
and bought a malasada and donut holes for the boys.
We normally go to the mini-mart next door (Paalaa Kai Mini-Mart) to buy spam musubi and fried chicken, but to our dismay, we discovered that the store is closed on Tuesdays.
After a brief pit stop in Haleiwa town for coffee and spam musubis, we headed to Ke Iki beach. We found a nice parking spot right on Ke Iki Road, and walked a short ways to the public access point to the beach.
The beach was pretty empty when we arrived shortly after 9 am.
The boys wasted no time looking for shells.
Here's some of what we found. We need to get some help on how to find the nice ones.
Thanks to the surf, there was a small pool of ocean water that formed on the beach, making for a safe place for the boys to get wet without entering the ocean.
In the mornings, there is a lot of shade at the top of the beach - great for taking it all in without getting burnt from the sun.
After a couple of hours, the twins were ready to go. One had a bucket of shells, the other - a coconut.
The twins noticed a bike path near our parking spot and wanted to explore it, so we did. It's part of the North Shore Bike Path (Ke Ala Pupukea Bike Path) which is a great way to explore a stretch of some of the world's most famous surf breaks.
We stopped at Log Cabins and watched the surfers. I wish I had brought my DSLR to take some photos of the surf. These were taken with my iPhone...
By now, it was after 1 pm and we were all thirsty and in need of something to cool us down, so of course, we stopped at Matsumoto's Shave Ice. They have a really efficient system for taking and fulfilling their shave ice orders, so don't be discouraged by the line if you ever come here. It moves relatively quickly.
Can't wait to take another trip out to the North Shore, and hopefully we'll go on a day when Paalaa Kai Mini-Mart is open!
Despite being born and raised on Oahu, I've never been to Kawela Bay until we stopped there during our Custom Tour with Circle Island Tour in 24.
Kawela, which means "heat," is part of a legend which tells of how gods Kane and Kanaloa struck spring water from a rock known as Wai-Kane to give life to the then waterless area around Kawela Bay.
The blue waters seemed very calm, and with the exception of a couple of companies who were offering lessons (Kawela Bay is popular for stand-up paddle boarding and kayaking), the beach was not crowded at all.
On the way to the beach you'll go through a whimsical tree tunnel which leads to a magical banyan tree. The single tree with multiple trunks has been seen in popular TV shows and movies.
I had no idea Kawela Bay was home to so many hidden gems!
Stay tuned for more on our Custom Tour with Circle Island Tour in 24.
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