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THE WAVE AT PEAHI POINT ONLY BREAKS WHEN THE SWELL IS VERY BIG!

IT'S CALLED "JAWS" AND IT IS CONSIDERED BY MANY TO BE THE

WORLD'S LARGEST WAVE

Every winter, northern Pacific winds generate ocean swells which arrive on the northern coasts of the Hawaiian Islands. Surfers hope the swell will produce ridable waves along the reefs which rim the islands' shores.

And like clockwork, it does, which affords many people, residents and visitors, ample opportunity to enjoy the sport of surfing. People can be observed in the water all along the coast. And on some, particularly well-favored days the swell can produce really big waves in most places, forcing the novice out of the water.

There is a well-known "secret spot" along the North Shore of Maui which ONLY breaks when the swell is very big. It is called "Jaws" and for a long time was the exclusive reserve of a small cadre of professional extreme sportsman. The break at "Jaws" is so big, in fact, that paddling into the wave is not even considered. These professional risk-takers use jet-skis to tow them into the breaking wave.

January 28, 1998 was just such a day. A swell arrived that was thought to be the biggest in thirty years, and the tow-surfing crew was out at Jaws It was hard to guess the size of the waves, but it's likely that some of them were at least 35 feet with occasional bigger ones That's measuring Hawaiian style, which translates to 80 foot high faces!!!

Photos shot on this day are labeled "Big Wednesday" on their enlargement page, which is the name that day has picked up. A couple hundred people showed up to witness the spectacle aided by a local radio station which had broadcast directions to the cliffside arena.

"Heart stopping," "death defying," and "it shook the cliffs it was so big," were some of the comments heard over the roar of the waves. And there were reports of fights breaking out amongst the photographers for the best vantage points. Fortunately, nobody was hurt, in or out of the water.

These pictures, along with a few shots from other days, bear witness to the immense power, the awesome majesty of "Jaws" - the world's largest wave.

© 1998 RICK LEEKS


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