Indian Summer and A New Camera

As we begin to experience one of the best times of the year here in Norcal, mid-Fall "Indian Summer," SoCal goes up in flames. Fire weather and the red flag alert is in full effect here too and it just remains to be seen as to when or if a big one starts up here. In the meantime just about every Norcal Fire Department in the state is preparing to dispatch mutual aid units to help protect structures in SoCal or where ever they are needed. And me? Gone surfing...

As forecast, the swell has dropped leaving just a few high tide lines for us SUP addicts. I got my 15 or 20 early in the new day during a beautiful sunrise and mellow morning. A friendly and unafraid sea otter hung with us for a while, chowing down and chilling with the human company.

As you can see I got the new camera and today was my first surf with it. The cam has a number of different settings so I tried one, and kept it on that setting for the entire session. Tomorrow I'll try another setting and see how that works out. Quality is about what I expected for the Olympus 790SW. The waterproof build and durability was what I was after over the other brand and model I researched (Pentax Optio 30W). Once I progress further in the learning curve I should be able to do some fine tuning and improve the picture quality. It was challenging trying to put myself in the right place to take pics while standing and preparing to maneuver in another direction in a hurry if necessary. I missed a great wave photo op that happened directly in front of me while I was paddling back out through the whitewater.

All in all though, another good session. I'll be on it dawn patrol in the morning although I'm sure there won't be much improvement in the waves as the swell is still dropping and the tide will be even higher.
October 22, 2007 (M)
In: 0655
1st Wave: 0705
Out: 0855
Wave count: 15+
AT=60
WT=59
Wx: Bright and sunny, few clouds
Tide: 4.34 Rising to 4.73
Wind: Light offshores turning easterly
Sea Surface: Glassy with a light bump from the incoming tide.
Buoy: NWS
0700: 7.9 @ 12.9 NW
0800: 8.2 @ 12.1 NW
0900: 7.2 @ 11.4 NW
1000: 8.2 @ 12.1 NW
10'4" Angulo SUP
Reefs: Rock and sand
Waves: 6' @ 12 (approx. ave.) Storm Surf Buoy Model