Hi, I’m off to Kona in Spring for a trip with the extended fam. I know Kona is not the foiling Mecca that Maui is, but I wondered if there are any areas to wing or even dock start onto swell? I haven’t proned yet, but will probably be desperate enough to get my ass kicked trying it if there are no wind options. Any beta is much appreciated.
Hilo bay is good spot for foiling on the other side of the island. They have a good crew of guys out there.
Thx Nick, I’ll be staying around Kailua, so will plan to make the trip over. What is the Hilo Bay crew mostly doing? I came to foiling with kites years ago but have since switched to winging and dock starting. I’m frothing to start down winding but need to sort out the right place to learn. I have a pretty limited surfing background so see probing as my last option, but stoked to give it a try if that is my best bet.
Ha! *proning. Getting killed by auto correct.
Your best bet for wing foiling are Kiholo bay, Anaeho’omalu bay, maybe Hapuna and Mauna Kea beach. Or perhaps from Puako boat ramp. From 30 to 45 min drive north from Kailua Kona. Trades blow off shore, then if thermals kick in, mostly on shore to side on shore. Be prepared for light wind, if you are very lucky it might be 4M weather 
. As far as Kailua Kona town, if enough wind, easiest is from the pier by the King Kamehameha beach hotel. There are other places on Ali’i drive you can launch from, but lots rocks. Drive around and check it out.
As far as proning, Kahalu’u bay when there is 0.5 ft tide minimum can be fun. Also Honokohau harbor but better to go there with someone. If you are fortunate enough and there is a NW or WNW swell big enough, a couple other places can open up to prone. Tides are a big factor here. Hope this helps
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Big thx for all the info! I’ll definitely get a look at these locations. Much appreciated!
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Hello, I am trying to wing down by Ocean View. I was wondering if the boat ramp at south point was OK to wing at? Do you know of any other spots down that way?
Specifically, Kaulana Boat Ramp
I didn’t win at that location. I did a couple sessions off the four seasons area, which was pretty dodgy with lava rock. The wind was super fickle, i.e., 6 m wing conditions, and a couple swims with the wind shutting off pretty quickly.
OK thanks. I went do to the Kaulana boat ramp yesterday and it was absolutely nuking. I didn’t go out because I was exhausted from travel, but there is definitely potential. It looks kind of terrifying from the standpoint that the current was moving as fast as the wind and will take to Japan in 20 min if you make a mistake, HA! The waves were pumping on the outside too. I talked to some of the local guys doing the green sands beach drives and they said that people kite there all the time. I should have hiked to green sands and seen if it was wingable there cause there is actually a beach and not just a boat ramp to set up on, but there is no way easy way to get your gear to the beach without smacking it on rocks while hiking down. The lava rock out there is definitely dodgy, hi potential to destroy you gear. Thanks for the feedback.
How is winging Honoli’i on a small day?
Looks like Kapa’a state beach in the north constantly pumps, but from Google maps it doesn’t look like there’s an easy in/out there.
The island of Hawaii is not a very good place to wing in general. You have to be prepared for fickle conditions with some remote, difficult access and potential dangerous place to wing into. Not for the faint of heart! Definitely nothing like the other islands.
I winged Kapa’a in the north end of the island. Strong offshore winds and it absolutely nukes on the outside (250 yrds offshore). The get in is not easy and the get out is even harder. It blows there everyday cause its at the tip of the island where the tradewinds blow. If you can’t go upwind I would not suggest going out cause you have to go upwind to get back to shore.
If I go to honokahau for surf foiling, where do I go? Close to the harbor or more on the sand beach area? Low tide or high?
Waikoloa beach is the easiest access in and out of water. The thermals usually pick up late morning early afternoon 
Can be light, medium wind or you can get skunked!
Possible to wing at Honokohau harbor, usually side on shore or on shore. Best to go when tide is higher if you don’t know the place but can go on lower tide as well, just do not go too far in. Can walk to little pond on S side and paddle out thru the key hole, come back same way. Or chance it to shore on high tide. Be prepared to paddle your gear upside down dragging your wing.
If you wanna prone foil Honokohau, be prepared for long paddle, can go thru key hole thru pond on S side, then paddle to middle, if you can find the boil where the reef is then that’s a great place to catch waves there. Can surf L and R, harbor best when lower tide to prone and swell between 1.5 to 2 ft. Above that becomes a paddle fest with current. Especially when you have to paddle back towards key hole. Hopefully you can catch one and connect others as close as you can. There are other ways to get out there but you have to be shown
Thanks, I’ll give it a shot today. Everything looks to be lining up for early afternoon for your suggested conditions at Honokohau.
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These conditions worked perfect for Honokohau. The paddle is far for the break! When you paddle from the key hole, you gotta paddle all the way to the Costco sign for the good chips. That wave is super good and I was the only one out (probably because there are tigers you can see from the jetty just chilling in the harbor as you walk to the spot). The wave does some wild things as it hits different sections of the reef but over time I’ll get it dialed. Place is great, thanks for the heads up.
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Great! Glad you liked it!
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