The Incredible Sands of Yokohama Beach
First off, let’s talk about the “beauty” of these beaches.
White beautiful sand as far as the eye can see. You’re first reaction will be “wow”. Not only are there enormous expanses of beautiful golden brown sand poised against the deepest of ocean blues and on most occasions a sun drenched paradise sky with light blue hues competing against the deeper blues of the ocean. Add to this the backdrop of the Waianae Mountain Range with its stark ridges and dramatic assents and you have a picture postcard beach. The fact that there will usually be no-one on the beach except yourself, a few dolphins cruising the shoreline and possibly a few others adds further to the special nature of this place. You get the sense that you could lay-out here on the beach and relax into the beautiful south seas desert island mirage that you’ve been dreaming about for months as you stared out the window in your office daydreaming about your Hawaii vacation.
The View of Yokohama Beach toward Keana Point
In the summer months you’ll appreciate the fairly calm oceans. You will want to speak to a lifeguard about the conditions on the day you arrive to make certain it is wise to enter as the ocean, winds and currents can change quickly. Just two weeks before our last visit on a September day there was a rescue, under fairly calm but windy conditions of a kayaker who was blown out to sea fortunately to be rescued hours later. In the winter times you likely will not want to enter the water at these beaches at all. The breaks are on the shoreline and they can be pounders. They can also be quite large up to 20′ at times. These waves can have their way with you before you even have a clue but a good call might be to watch some of the expert surfers that migrate to these locations when the big waves come a calling.
A City of Homeless
Now lets turn to the “beastly” side of these beaches. There are definitely some negatives. There is one road in and one road out to the beaches of the west side. For whatever the reasons, this area of coastline (probably because it is the driest place on the island) has drawn to its coastlines the islands most unfortunate residents and the islands homeless. As you motor along the coast you will drive through and past a series of large areas of cardboard and crate shanties right along the water. There are a few areas that are so dense with homeless in these temporary shelters that you will feel that you are traveling through a full city of impoverished souls. This in itself is hard to get used to but people living so desperately have been known to participate in certain illegal activities that in some instances might affect you. It is known for instance that the levels of drug abuse in this area are high. It is also known that the number of break-ins of vehicles parked along this coastline is very high (a check with the statistics offered by the Honolulu Police Department showed this area as often the highest in stolen or broken-into vehicles). One lifeguard pointed out some trees not far from his tower that he said were just large enough to hide from view the cars parked on the other side and was a location that was consistently preyed upon by thieves. At a beach further up the road a similar story was related to us by another lifeguard. The unfortunate truth is that this is an area where your car could get broken into and despite the beauty of the beaches in the area you are putting yourself at risk.
It is certainly your choice as to whether you decide to visit these beaches on Oahu’s western coastline but we simply want you to be aware of the facts that will allow you to make a good choice. This is the only place we know of anywhere in Hawaii that will require you to make this type of difficult decision.
Ocean Caution
Please be advised that all beaches and ocean locations in Hawaii can be potentially dangerous including this location. Be completely aware of the ocean conditions prior to entering the water and of course, never turn your back on the ocean when you are on the shoreline. It should also be noted that all shorelines and beaches in Hawaii, including this one, can be frequented by sharks, jellyfish and other sea creatures which can provide potential harm to people entering the water.