Circling Oʻahu

When I arrived in Hawaii in October, 2013 and joined Hui Waʻa Kaukahi I was new to kayaking and had only paddled a few times on lakes, a bay or a calm river. In my wildest imagination, I would never have considered paddling around the entire island! I started out with the easiest paddles in my inflatable kayak and heavy paddle, always at the back of the pack, and slowly gained strength and skills. I bought Seabands so I never felt queasy again. I took the skills and safety class from Kevin and Joe. I remember telling Kevin, “I really don’t want to tip over!” But he insisted I must learn to self rescue, so over I went.

Just four months into my new hobby, I slipped and broke my wrist after a paddle out to the Mokes. I had been so careful hiking around the island and conscientiously paddled safely back, but walking was my (literal) downfall! I was out of the water for several months as I recovered from surgery. The first time I went out paddling after that was on a typically windy day and I had to use that wrist a lot as my rudderless boat was pushed away from the channel. I was tired and decided to just go directly in to get done with it when a wave picked me up, turned me sideways, and I tried bracing with my paddle (which I had just heard about as a technique). It worked! I stayed upright, even rode a second wave, and eventually made it to shore.

I graduated to a hard shell kayak with a rudder, and a really nice carbon fiber paddle. What a difference that made! But I was still a newbie when it came to learning ocean conditions. My first attempt at launching from Mālaekahana to go around Kahuku Point was a disaster. I didn’t know enough to not go out in strong wind and rough surf. I was feeling proud of myself as I got over bigger and bigger swells, until I got to one that was too big, and breaking, and I tumbled around for a few waves, trying to hold onto my boat as I contemplated how to flip it over and get to my radio. I had not practiced self rescue with the new boat (big mistake, but the waves were furious and I may not have been able to anyway). Fortunately, my fellow club members came to the rescue, somehow hauled me onto the first boat I was near and I paddled in as quickly as I could with a left-handed paddle. Steve accompanied me to the beach, and miraculously had salvaged my prescription sunglasses and hat from the water! I was really scared of waves after that, and black and blue from the hard kayak, but I learned a lot that day, including some things I needed to work on. At the next Crash and Burn clinic, Eileen talked me through self rescue techniques on my new boat, which really helped my confidence to keep trying.

So it may not surprise anyone that this same paddle didn’t make my list of things I wanted to do until it was the last one I needed to complete the circle. But first, almost ten years into kayaking, I braved up and took advantage of a beautiful day to go around Kaʻena Point. It was only Stan D and me and the conditions were magical. There were some very big swells but they were not breaking, and the water near the point was glassy. That was the first time I thought that maybe I could finish the whole circle. It took time, I think about a year and a half,  but I completed the points around Diamond Head, Weed Out The Wimps around Makapuʻu and Koko Head, and Barber’s Point plus a few shorter paddles to fill in my map. Then finally I was down to The Last Dreaded Paddle. 

And herstory was made! It was not quite as calm as the Kaʻena Point day just two days earlier, but it was really good, and nothing like that nightmare day many years before which, by the way, turned out to have Small Craft Advisories and I was not the only one rescued. The next two weekends after I finished were windy and paddles were canceled, so my champagne celebration was held after the Tracks to Pōkaʻī Bay paddle on May 18th.

I continue to learn about navigating the waves and reading weather conditions, but the confidence I’ve gained from pushing onward has helped make the experience much more enjoyable, and less scary. My advice to new paddlers: Don’t be afraid to ask questions! There are decades of experience amongst the members of the hui, and what you learn can make the difference between a fun day and a Not Fun day. Happy Paddling!