Large swells likely
to bring 30-foot wavesKauai and the North Shore are
forecast to see the biggest waves
The first of three large swells over the next week rolled toward Hawaii's north shores yesterday, with waves of up to 30 feet expected by sunrise today, forecasters said.
The National Weather Service issued a surf warning that said waves on the north-facing shores of all the islands would rise from 3 to 6 feet to as high as 25 feet by sunrise and would stay between 15 and 30 feet high all day today, while western shores should see waves of 15 to 25 feet.
Kauai is expected to see the largest waves, followed by Oahu's North Shore, with slightly smaller waves farther down the chain, said Henry Lau, a marine forecaster with the weather service's Honolulu office.
"They should be reaching 30 feet at least here on the island of Oahu," he said.
Lau said the big waves are being generated by several large storms passing north of the islands, which have generated large open-ocean swells in Hawaii's direction.
A second swell is due in on Monday, and the largest of the three on Thursday, Lau said.
Surfers are watching the forecast in anticipation of waves big enough for the Quiksilver in Memory of Eddie Aikau Big Wave Invitational contest on Oahu. The contest is held only when wave faces reach 30 feet or more at Waimea Bay. It has been held only five times since it was created in 1986, the last time in 2002.