Conditions at Canoes in May
May: First Taste of South
May is when the Hawaiian south swell season starts knocking on the door. The average swell height sits at 5ft (1.5m) and the average period ticks back to 11.5s, but the real headline is the direction: for the first time since fall, the sunnier side of the compass lights up. S swell jumps to 7.6%, and the broader SSE/SE/ESE complex accounts for a combined 45.5% of observations - southern hemisphere storm pulses mixing with the trade wind background. The optimal S/SSW/SW/WSW quadrant peaks at 11.5%, the largest share of the year. Trades remain the protagonist (ENE 60.3%, NE 10.8%, E 13.5%), giving Canoes that ever-useful offshore comb, while ideal conditions improve to 21%. With water temp at 25.2°C, air temps warming to 24.3°C, and rainfall dropping to 1.23 mm/day, May delivers warm, glassy, increasingly south-swell-enhanced waves - the first real window for top-tier Canoes conditions.
Average Spot conditions at Canoes in May
Swell history for May
Wind history for May
Swell quality
Analyze the groundswell consistency at Canoes during May. Based on historical data, there is a % probability of groundswell occurring this month. The chart below provides a detailed breakdown of the average wave height distribution, offering deep insights into the swell quality and surf potential you can expect at Canoes for your next trip in May.
Ground swell
Ground swell by size
Wind conditions
Evaluate the wind and swell alignment at Canoes for May. Our analysis shows that favorable offshore or side-shore winds coincide with surfable swell approximately % of the time. The accompanying graph illustrates the average size distribution of waves during these optimal wind windows at Canoes.