Oahu by Van

Van life can be messy and some days a hassle, but my first experience was driving around Oahu and I would definitely do it again. My friend and I rented a van for the trip -- it was nothing fancy, mostly the bare essentials to make it through the trip.

Above is our van. Very simple. Cooler, sink, bed, solar power, and dishes. It was all we needed really and it worked out perfectly. Traveling by van in a sandy and muddy location proved to be slightly difficult when trying to keep the van clean, and learning to change out of wet clothing became hilarious in our daily routine.

We chose December to hit Oahu because of the Vans Triple Crown and Pipemaster surf competitions going on. If you want to see some rad surfing it is a great time to go and hang out on the beach for an afternoon.

Sunrise Shack

Hands down we went to this local coffee and breakfast place almost every day. It was created by local pro surfers and has some of the best coffee and hang out vibes. They have live music sometimes and they are located right across from the beach on the North Shore.

We had no plans for the trip ahead we just decided to play it by ear each day and go with the flow. One of the first days we kept hearing about Matsumoto Shaved Ice. On the island this is a huge treat whether it's from a man on the side of the road selling it or the handful of locations scattered through the towns where you can get it.

It is one of those dorky tourist things to do, but if you go to Matsumoto they have crazy flavors to try and if you ask the workers behind the counter they will create a crazy concoction for you based on what they have experimented with before.

We checked out a lot of the surf shops in the area - no worries if you forget to pack any UPF items or are in need of clothing for the water all the places surrounding the island make it easy enough to grab sun protection. A few times we almost got sucked into buying surf boards that's how excited we were to get to the water.

I am not a surfer - this was going to be my first time. The van we rented came with foam surfboards which are perfect for beginners.

My friend rented a board to be able to go out and hit the waves on the North Shore because those waves are more intense and require a real board.

Tip: If you are new to surfing the best spots to hit are closer to the beaches of Honolulu or on the northeast shore.

There are plenty of rental places for surf and paddle and some places will offer lessons if you want to pay for that being new to the sport.

The best part about the island is the endless amount of fresh fruit you will find available to you, including more exotic options. This is one of the roadside stands we pulled off for to pick up some fruit we had never tried before.

I will say with food the one thing to be careful of is the infestation of chickens on the island. They are literally everywhere. I am not exaggerating, the island brought them there years and years ago to help get rid of bugs that kill native plants on the island. Now they are just stuck there. This is more important if you're cooking outside - watch out for hungry chickens they mean business.

The hardest adjustment to them was the constant noise. Their callouts would wake us up in the middle of the night and continue throughout the morning. A lot of our mornings started early because of this.

Tip: If you're a light sleeper I would bring ear plugs along so they don't disturb your sleep.

Being in a van allowed us the opportunity to sleep and wake up just about anywhere. Our coffee morning views some days were amazing.

Oahu has a written rule of not sleeping in rental cars - we were in a converted van with blinds so we figured we were on the safer side of not getting ticketed for this. With the exception of our first night we were able to find spots that were far enough off the road we never ran into any problems and felt comfortable with where we were.

There are several campgrounds around the island that can also be rented. Two of our nights we stayed on at a campground with facilities that allowed us to shower and surf in calmer waters. We were able to set up a tent we brought for the trip and have a picnic table and fire ring. We stayed at Malaekahana Beach Campground for two nights. I would recommend this location for anyone. There are beach houses available, sites where you can just pull your car up, or sites where you need to pitch a tent.

The beach at this campground is a great place for beginner surfers. I was able to catch a few waves while I was here. With the calmer waters you might even be able to see some turtles come in closer to shore. We had one ride the waves with us one of the nights.

The hikes anywhere on the island are beautiful. I will say that there is no warning as to how intense they can get. We hiked Crouching Lion one morning and found out shortly into the hike it required a rope to get up a steep section of mountain. If you don't hike often or are afraid of heights, be sure to look into all the hikes you want to attempt as to not get in over your head.

The views are beautiful all along Crouching Lion. We were here in December and found the ground to be slippery and wet. Proper hiking shoes would work best for these trails.

During the day there are not too many animals you will come across, the bugs might get worse depending on time of year. If you start hikes when it is getting closer to dark be careful of the wild hogs that come out at night.

Tip: You need to have your hands free for most of the hikes so if you want to bring water, cameras, phone, etc you will need a bag that stays secure against your back. We found most hikes were short enough we could get away without water (hikes less that an hour).

There were too many hikes to hit them all while on Oahu. We split our time between water and land. The other two hikes we went on were the Pali Notches and Pu'u Ma'Eli'Eil' pill box hike. There are a few pill boxes around the island to hike to. We chose this one based off where we were on the island that day.

Pu'u Ma'eli'eli Pill Box Hike

The pill box hike's scenery completely changes from what the rest of the island looks like. The hike ends at a scenic overview of the island and beaches.

The Pali notches hike is more intense and on windy days it is closed and you should not attempt it. The trail is on the edge of the mountain side and leaves little room for more than one person on the path. You can go to the end and climb part of the way up. It's a beautiful view and definitely worth it.

This hike once again requires both hands to be free because there will be section where using a rope to climb up are necessary. They close down certain hiking paths due to the rainy weather. Do not attempt if they are declared closed. The mud during some sections of hikes makes getting any traction impossible. The pill box hike we went on had just reopened and we could instantly see that the uphill mile hike of mud would have been impossible a few days before.

If you look close enough along the ridge line you can see me hiking up to the top. This is for reference on how close you will be walking on the edge literally.

Makapu'u Tide Pools

Near the end of our trip we went on a hike that brought us down to some tide pools to relax in for the afternoon. This is closer to the southeast side of the island. The hike down is pretty steep.

Tip: The waves can come in high and get dangerous so pay attention so you don't get flung up against a rock. The tide pools are a great place to relax but there are living creatures in them. Watch your step for urchins and anything that can poke you.

We mostly cooked our own food while on our trip to make it easier on us. Here are a few recommendations if you find yourself wanting to try local:

Giovanni's is a great food truck! You will find this area just south of Haleiwa. I tried their spicy dish and it didn't disappoint. I had tears running out of my eyes by the end of the meal. This is a local spot that is very popular. There are other food trucks that are parked in this area for you to eat at as well.

Another place we stopped was HI-BBQ which is about a ten minute drive east of Turtle Bay on the North Shore. They have loads of options.

Lastly, this is for the more adventurous and daring -- this was a last minute decision we made on our trip. We met a woman on one of our hikes who recommended it. We sat and thought it over for a day and decided we just had to do it.

We went snorkeling with sharks with OneOcean Diving. They are a conservation group that researches the animals and took us out to let us safely interact with the sharks after given information and do's and dont's of the water.

We had a great experience. It was unnerving at first getting in the water with the sharks but after some time it becomes serene. I highly recommend this company and the experience overall. It definitely added to our trip.