Buoy 51001

NW Kauai

Offshore lead buoy

Best early heads-up for north shore swell before it reaches Kauai.

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Latest Snapshot

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Station Context

Region: Northwest of Kauai

Station type: Deep-water offshore buoy

Position: 24.475°, 162.030°W

Distance to Hanalei Bay: 194.6 nautical miles

NDBC lists this station as 188 NM NW of Kauai. It is useful for seeing longer-period energy many hours before it hits the reef.

Historical Swell

Blue shows swell height over time. Hover points to see period and direction.

Historical swell chart unavailable for this buoy right now.

How to Use This Buoy

What to Watch

  • Use it as your first alert that north shore swell is building offshore.
  • Compare period and direction here before the swell reaches the nearshore Hanalei buoy.
  • Longer-period energy at this station can provide many hours of lead time for Kauai surf.

How to Read It

  • If 51001 jumps first and 51208 stays smaller, the swell is still on the way.
  • A strong directional match here is useful for deciding whether a north shore swell is worth tracking.
  • Because it is far offshore, this buoy is better for trend and timing than for exact beach conditions.

Swell Travel Time

Swell timing from this buoy uses the same deep-water group-speed and signed-distance method documented in the technical guide.

See the swell timing method