The purpose of this study was to record nearshore current patterns as witnessed and experienced by ocean users living in the greater Hilo area of Hawai'i Island, Hawai'i. This study relied on ocean-expert knowledge gained from place-based first-hand work and lifestyle experience. The ocean-experts were categorized as fisher, paddler, sailor, surfers, or others. The interviews were collected during 2014-2015, with prototype interviews collected in 2009. During the interview the ocean-expert was asked to select the appropriate map scale for their area of expertise (1:5000, 1:20,000, 1:40,000, or 1:100,000) and to describe and draw the nearshore currents. Sixteen of the interviewees visually documented on hard copy paper maps their understanding of the near shore currents. There are 30 combinations of location and map scale with four combinations being selected by multiple participants.