Pipeline (Ehukai) Beach, North Shore

During winter, Pipeline (also called Ehukai Beach) is where it's at! If you're lucky you can catch a surf contest here and get caught up in the excitement of the crowd as they watch famous surfers navigate the perfect tubes. In 2017 it was amazing to watch the crowd cheer John John on!

Even on quieter winter days it's fun to come here and watch the surfers do their thing.
Kelly Slater writes about Pipeline in Surfer Magazine, "In terms of pure physical mechanics, there are lots of factors that make for a good wave, and Pipe has almost all of them. You can ride it big. You can ride it small. When it's 12-foot, you can pull into the biggest barrel of your life. When it's 1-foot and onshore you can do airs...many legendary surfers have had the best tubes of their lives out there."
I love the sloping yellow sand of this beach. There's just so much of it! Your feet sink way down as you walk onto the beach. I also like all the shrubs and greenery around the beach. You can sit in the sloped sand in a little bit of shade and watch people go by. Usually in winter it's too rough to swim but sometimes on the east side of the beach it's calm and kids swim over there. It's a lovely swim!
During summer it's calm and great for swimming almost all the time.
If you have kids, check out the playground across the street at Sunset Beach Neighborhood Park.
The North Shore Bike Path, or Ke Ala Pupukea Bike Path, starts at Shark's Cove and runs past Pipeline Beach, 2.4 miles to Sunset Beach. It often has a jungle canopy of shade, and sometimes, ocean views. It's a great alternative to driving, especially when the surf contests are on and there's traffic, plus parking costs $10.
Beaches on the North Shore from west to east are: Aweoweo Beach Park, calm, shallow water for swimming (even in winter) and a fantastic playground with a lively energy; Haleiwa Alii Beach, a great spot to learn to surf; Turtle Beach, a place to see turtles lazing on the sand; Waimea Bay, where you can have an incredible, refreshing summertime swim in the clearest water or relax on a huge yellow-sand beach; Three Tables Beach, also a nice swim, and a small, shady beach; Sunset Beach, which has large winter waves for surfers; and Turtle Bay Hilton Beach, a pretty and magical spot but with more chance of bad weather.
Quote from Surfer Magazine Special Edition: The 100 Best Waves, p. 124.

Directions

The parking lot for Pipeline (Ehukai Beach) is across the street from Sunset Beach Elementary School, a green-gray school that you can't miss on your right as you head north up Kamehameha Hwy on the North Shore.
If the parking lot is full, turn into the Sunset Beach Elementary School driveway and park there at Sunset Beach Neighborhood Park (weekends only).
During surf contests, you can park in private front yards for $10.
There are restrooms and showers. Beware: the restrooms have no doors! This is the case with many of the beach park restrooms in Hawaii- not sure why they don't want to keep your okole a private affair!

Click on map for interactive view