Photographer
Community
Mike Stewart
Mike Stewart, all smiles after a day doing what he loves.

It’s lunchtime on the North Shore of O’ahu. A new swell is peaking and the circus is in town down at Sunset with their trumpet line rhymes. Too bad because it’s looking best at Sunset for the wind direction. I finish my Morning Star veggie burger picked up from the freezer at Foodland. I take a bite from my burger and instantly wish it was juicy red meat hamburger from Ted’s dripping with bloody juice fresh off the grill. Oh man, and a slice of pie to go. I guess this will do for now. I pick up my phone to give Mike a call. I’ve only talked to Mike a few times before over the phone and it already seems like we’re old friends. Mike lives and breathes the Aloha spirit.

Mike says he’s about to check Pipe, so I make plans to meet him there. I gather my camera bag, some water and I’m off. I can hear the waves as I near Log Cabins. Peering through the trees, I can see some nice size sets silhouetted against the gloomy sky. It looks like the wind is getting on it already. I’m looking forward to seeing Mike do his best fish impression in the water like I’ve seen in so many films, from Fire to the recent Woodshed Films collaboration Come Hell or High Water.

After a look around Pipe, it seems like the wind is already on it and its looking kind of wonky. I reach for my phone to call Mike, then turn around to see him laughing at me with a toothy smile. I walk over and he looks me straight in the eye, giving a true man’s handshake. He introduces me to his friend and team rider Keahi, and begins to talk about their morning surf in Haleiwa with his eyes on Pipeline the whole time. Eyes on the Prize. “What you reckon?” Mike asks Keahi. Mike directs his voice to me and says, “I think I’ll go for a swim.”

Mike sits at the water’s edge and puts on his fins. A set wave comes rolling in off first reef and throws spit on the inside section. “Looks good on the inside,” he says. He circles his arms in a swimming stroke, warming up before battle, only Mike doesn’t seem like he’s going into battle. He seems like he’s going for another walk in the park. He takes a galloping run and dives into the sea like a fish out of water. It seems like it’s no time at all before he’s in the lineup ready to go, his hands gliding across the Pacific like glass and feet kicking in perfect sync. I can see the lineup starting to build up with a mixture of pro surfers, body boarders and Mike. He bobs around in the sea like a message in a bottle, unseen until the waves take it to the shore. Mike picks off a few inside bowls, getting one that lines up for a long ride. Skimming along the surface of the sea, he lives completely in the present moment. He rides the wave until its end and comes crashing onto the shore with style and grace. He motions to me with his hand to meet him back at the car, where he gets his body board ready. He has a contest coming up in the Canary Islands and he wants to get some bowls on his sponge before it happens.

Mike walks back out to Pipe with his yellow board like a child at play. It’s funny how surfing takes you right back to your roots. As we walk out to Pipe, Mike passes a woman lying in the sand who motions to her collective group, “Hey guys, that’s Mike Stewart.” Mike doesn’t hear her, or if he does, he doesn’t acknowledge it.

The sets are beginning to bump up, barrels are running on the inside and the crowd is growing thicker. I see Cory Lopez and Peter Mendia walk by me, making their way out along with Mike, who walks down the beach to sit down and put his fins on.

Mike pulls into his first wave and digs the rail, setting up for a clean little bowl section before riding it out smoothly. Keahi follows him up with a straight line and barrel on the inside.

Afterwards, Mike walks up the sand to me. “You want to cruise?” he asks me. He tells me he’s going to head back home to the West side of O’ahu. He’s got to run home quick and then we can go check the waves at one of his favorite spots. So we load up the car and we’re off down Kame Highway.

It’s been raining a lot lately, as the winter season is bright in Hawaii. We come to Mike’s road and drive over a bridge that leads to his house, sitting at the foot of a sturdy mountainside. It is beautiful out here. We’re greeted by his wife Lisa and his daughter who seems full of energy.

Mike opens a box with a pair of fins from his sponsor Viper Fins. A Mike Stewart Model, and he shows me some of the fins he’s been designing. Pretty cool stuff, really futuristic. His daughter Anela begins to play in the box that once held the fins. Mike sits in his office going over emails and making calls while Anela bounces around jumping in and out of the box, and Lisa and Kaimana go over his schoolwork. Anela introduces me to their dog, draws on her dad’s boogie board and shows me the wooden bridge that runs to their house. She makes sure I have an umbrella to stay dry from the rain. We say goodbye and I thank Lisa for having me. Hawaii’s hospitality continues to blow me away, and The Stewarts are no different. They are true spirited people with a great family and welcoming arms.

When we get to the water, we look out to sea for a bit, talk to another surfer, and look at the crowd and the weather. Mike tells me about the underground standup boogie boarders that surf the spot and he points out a few as they get some nice rides. Real smooth. “I think I’m over it,” Mike says, and we decide to check one more spot up the road. I check out the scenery and watch the sea move into the mountains. I can’t get over how beautiful this place is, even in the rain. Especially in the rain. We pull off to the side of the road and look down the hillside at another spot. Mike points out all the nooks and crannies and we watch a few small waves go by. We decide to wrap it up and Mike takes me to the bus stop so I can catch a bus back to the North Shore. We part ways, and I thank Mike for taking me in for the day. “No worries,” he answers.

Thanks for the day, Mike.

Aloha.

 
Newsletter

Only the best. We promise.

Contribute

Join our community of contributors.

Apply