KITEBOARDING MOMENBARU BEACH

YOMITAN, OKINAWA

Momenbaru is a great beach on the west side of the island suitable for winds from the south and west. Depending on the tide, there can be fantastic flat water or waves. With southwest wind, you can explore several kilometers of shoreline north and south. There is also an atoll 1km offshore with great flat water and a tiny island to explore at the right tide level.
Wind direction: S to NW
Tides: 1.1m+ to start from beach. Any tide if willing to walk 80m over coral to the deep water.

Getting there

Momenbaru is in the southern part of Yomitan Village. There are two parking areas that can accommodate about ten cars total. Four spots are right next to the beach cafe. There are also a few spots along the road that you take to approach the beach.
Link to Parking Location in Google Maps
Once you park, you will walk out onto the beach and take a left. The kite launching spot is a grassy area about 100m down.

Kiting Conditions


Exact Kite Launch Location:
Launch conditions: Intermediate skill. The beach is relatively narrow. There are some trees to anchor from if the wind is side on-shore. If it is high tide and side-shore, then you may need to drift launch.
What to explore
The immediate area is a shallow coral reef that extends about 80-100m offshore. There some deeper pools with flat water safe for large jumps. Surfing the waves at Momenbaru is one of the bigger draws. If you are in the mood to explore and have WSW wind or a foil, you can follow the coast south down toward Sunabe and Araha Beach in American Village or go north all the way up towards Cape Zanpa.
There is a large coral atoll about 1 km offshore from Torii Station. There is a ton of flat water and breaking waves out there at the right tide level. At about 0.6m tides, there is a tiny island that you can ride to. Maybe even have a picnic?


Hazards:
There are various rocks and shallow areas, but they are usually easy to see beforehand.

Other beach users

Momenbaru has a lot of beach users, especially on nice days. Walkers, swimmers, snorkelers, sea kayakers, and paddle boards. There tend to be a lot of swimmers and a few scuba divers about 400m south at Toguchi Beach, so please stay well away from other users. About 1km north, there can be a lot of users at Torii Station Beach, inside the US Army base. When the surf is high, there can be surfers and foil surfers just out from the parking area about 200m offshore.
Powered Paragliders
During light winds below about 15 knots, a powered paragliding company operates from the same patch of grass that the kiters use. They don't leave any room so if that happens you will need to launch from the beach just south of the normal launch area.
There are often people taking wedding photos on this beach.