The Long Walk to the Top

When good, the wave at Rincon is so long that you catch a wave in Santa Barbara and ride it to Ventura... yes, the county line does bisect the point. However, the point I'm trying to make is that it is a VERY long ride. After catching one of these rides, a surfer makes the long walk back to the top of the point to do it all over again! It's one of the places where your legs can get as much of a work out as your arms. 

Big Saturday - Part III

Two shots from "The Queen of the Coast" (aka Rincon) just as the wind had switched and the rain departed. The tide was quite low this evening... and the surf was big (but not huge). This was the probably the best I've ever seen Rincon break. Also, I think a lot of people were scared of the rain (or didn't know that the conditions became good)... and it was relatively uncrowded for a period of time. In my opinion, it's worth getting a little sick for waves like this.

Big Saturday - Part I

A few weeks ago, a big storm came through Southern California (here is some video footage of waves crashing into Santa Barbara's pier). It was our first significant rain of the season... and it lasted for a few days. With the storm came strong winds and a plenty of rain. As the rain subsided, I decided to emerge drive down to the beach to take some photos of the waves. I was expecting to see "victory at sea" conditions. However, as soon as I got down to the beach, the winds shifted... and the stormy seas turned into nicely groomed groundswell. These are a few shots of a spot that rarely breaks. I think a few people might recognize the pier in the background.

Magnific Rock & More

A few of the final photographs I took in Nicaragua (during the smallest surf day of the trip).

Playa Encuentro - "The Right"

Looking further down the beach on Playa Encuentro at a spot referred to as "The Right". Can anyone guess how this spot got its name? This wave was "bowly" and offered an occasional barrel... but mostly the kids liked to launch airs on the many ramps. It was a lot of fun (but no airs for me). The only issue with this wave was that there was a constant rip pushing you away from the peak. You had to constantly paddle to stay in position.

Playa Encuentro - "The Left"

Just in front of the resort I stayed at in the Dominican Republic was Playa Encuentro. Playa Encuentro is a beautiful and quiet beach on the northern coast of the island... and it just happens to have one of the  best waves in the Dominican. Most people I spoke with referred to it as "The Left". There was another wave further down the beach referred to as "The Right" (They're not very creative with wave names in the Dominican). The wave starts with a steep/hollow takeoff and is followed a fast/long wall. On the best sets, you could get rides up to 200m long. The bottom seemed to be a mixture of sharp coral and rocks (which I was lucky enough to not come into contact with even though I had some pretty epic wipe outs). This was definitely one of the most fun waves I've surfed in a long time!... and this is how I spent my Thanksgiving (have much to be grateful for!)

Steamer Lane

Steamer Lane is one of the best surf spots in Southern California. However, since it's located up north in Santa Cruz, the water is a bit chilly (need a 4mm wetsuit year round) and there are "men in grey suits" (aka great white sharks) cruising around the line up. I don't think there's ever been a reported shark attack here... however, with seals chilling on the rocks, you know they are around.

One of the great things about Santa Cruz and Steamer Lane is that it faces south. Therefore, the northwest winds (which are predominant in this area) are offshore at most spots. By facing south, it also helps to groom the giant swells that march down the coast during winter. On this particular day, there was a southwest swell in the water. Some sets were coming in the head high+ range. It looked like a lot of fun... but it was rather inconsistant and bunch of people were sitting at the point. I ended up surfing further south at Pleasure Point instead.

A Windy Afternoon in Santa Cruz

As I was driving back from San Francisco, I decided to stop in Santa Cruz and go for a quick surf. Had I taken the time to think about the logistics, stopping in Santa Cruz was not ideal (since it's just an hour away from where I was staying)... would have made more sense to pick a half way point. Nonetheless, Santa Cruz has some incredible surf spots... and I thought I would check them out. Pictured in this photo is Natural Bridges State Park. This surf spot is great during a big NW swell... but on this particular day (with a dying SW swell), it was not breaking. Nonetheless, it's a beautiful beach and is a great place to watch the sunset.

If you notice in the background, there was a big fog bank just off the coast. It kind of felt like a scene from Pirates of the Caribbean. I kept expecting the Black Pearl to emerge from the fog. 

My Fijian Adventure - Namotu Island

Namotu Island (shown above) is located between Tavarua and Malolo Lailai. It features some world class surf spots that are a bit more "user friendly" than Tavarua: Namotu Left, Wilkes Pass, and Swimming Pools. Namotu was always the first place we checked (when looking for surf) and I surfed all 3 spots. Wilkes was probably my favorite (because it was one of the only places I could go right). However, I wasn't able to surf it everyday because of the strong currents and bad wind. The wave does almost a full 180 degree turn as it wraps around the reef... and it just peels forever.

On a side note, I almost stayed at Namotu Island. Unfortunately (or fortunately for my mom), it was fully booked. I think it would have been pretty cool to stay on such a tiny island. Although, I guess some people might get a bit "stir crazy" if they can't leave.

I love the ocean colors in this photo. During low tide, our boat driver had to drive a much longer distance to avoid the middle reef. 

My Fijian Adventure - Cloudbreak

This is my first post from my Fijian Adventure. Overall, it was a great trip with my family. Fiji reminded me of many places, but ultimately was unlike anywhere I had ever been. It reminded me of Hawaii because of the plant life and polynesian culture. It reminded me of the Caribbean because of the crystal clear waters and beautiful coral reefs. It reminded me of the Maldives because of the tiny islands and because your main source of transportation was boats. I guess I would have had a different reaction  had I stayed near the capital city on Veti Levu... but right after I flew into the Nadi airport, I immediately left for one of the outer islands called Malolo Lailai. Malolo Lailai is a small island with a few different resorts and is popular amongst the "yachting culture". I ended up staying at Musket Cove (which seemed to be the best match for me). Right next to Malolo Lailai was a bigger island where the locals lived (could actually walk to it during low tide).

Featured in the picture above is heart shaped island of Tavarua. Tavaru is a "mecca" for goofyfooters and has two of the best left hand breaks in the world: Cloudbreak (off screen to the right) and Restaurants (which wasn't breaking on this day). There is also a really good right called Tavarua Rights. In the past, only guests staying at Tavarua were allowed to surf these places... it wasn't until recently that the Fijian government opened them up to anyone with a boat (lucky for me). Cloudbreak is a scary, but perfect wave that breaks in the middle of the ocean (hence the name). Locals used to refer to the place as "Thunder Reef" and considered it to be bad luck because it was a dangerous place for fisherman. However, because of the influx of tourism dollars, they now consider it to be good luck. At Cloudbreak, you'll either get the barrel of your life or thrashing of  your life. All I can say is good luck! Restaurants is another scary, but perfect wave that breaks in really shallow water over some of the sharpest coral you'll find in the world. It requires a really big swell before it starts breaking (since it's positioned inside of Cloudbreak) and again I was lucky enough to be there during a HUGE swell. It broke perfectly during the first 4 days I was in Fiji. My leg actually got the privilege to meet Restaurants first hand (when I got washed over the reef)... and I still have the markings to prove it.

This picture was taken towards the end of my trip and the swell had dissipated (which is why I was taking photos instead of surfing).

More photos and stories to come!

Action Surf Shots!... at Chicama

So... based on these photos, it looks like I can actually kind of surf. These photos were taken in early May by a super friendly Brazilian guy staying with us at Chicama Surf Resort in Peru. The waves on this day were on the small to medium size... and this is me during the mid section of the wave (have about 300ft+ more to go). It was definitely not my biggest or best wave of the trip... just the only one that I was actually photographed. Luckily I didn't hit myself in the face with my board on this wave (which I managed to do twice this trip)... or have a bad wipeout.

Speed Blur!

The Turbulent Sea

The Turbulent Sea. 

Dark and Stormy (@ Tamri Beach)

"Dark and Stormy" @ Tamri Beach in Morocco. The interesting thing about Morocco is that the surf conditions can drastically change each mile as you wind your way up the coast line. For example, on the day I took this picture, the spots in Taghazout were blown out and small... but Tamri beach was head high and offshore. Glad I had surf guides to show me the light!

The Golden Hour at York Beach

After a long day of surfing, it's nice to kick back and watch a beautiful sunset. These photos taken at York Beach, ME. There was a very thin layer of clouds along the horizon... and as the sun started to set, it made those clouds glow. I thought it was pretty incredible.