By 5PM this evening a steady, light rain was falling throughout the area. By 5AM this morning
the first forerunners of a long period south swell were beginning to show on the nearshore, data stuttering buoy.
I launched at the pier around 1130 hours (about an hour after low tide) hoping for some boost
from the rising tide and not expecting much from the new south. But I was pleasantly surprised by a number of waist to chest high, five to eight wave long period sets, which were much more consistent and sizable than I had hoped for. My plan was to paddle down to Sarge's and Gdubs. My back is still recovering from Monday so I thought a good paddle and perhaps an occasional wave would be good rehab. But when I saw that first eight wave set at Apt. House Point I knew I wasn't going anywhere soon.
No one was out but me (therefore the paucity of surf pics) and a skimboarder on shore. I couldn't believe it! Friday...the last Friday of Spring Break and the place was deserted. Granted, the waves weren't epic but there were many good rides to be had in excellent conditions. There were a dozen laydown guys out at Sarge's and at around 1230 a regular convention of janitors invaded. My last count was seven SUP riders at Sarge's...and no one but me at the point.
Both the weather (rain) and the surf (south swell) were accurately forecast by the
NWS,
Mark Sponsler's StormSurf and
Adam Wright's southern california surf forecast. Adam's blog and forecasts are a great new "find" thanks to
Jason's DailyBread blog in SoCal. It has been much easier for me to find resources to accurately predict North to West swells but finding good resources for south swells has been more difficult. Adam's website is outstanding, and a great indicator up here in NorCal for incoming southerly swells.
The day started out in bright sun and ended up with high cloud overcast. Based on Nate Burgoyne's suggestions on
The Zone, and a column he wrote in
his online mag, I switched out my Greenough cutaway for my trusty Preisendorfer Rainbow flex. I used the 2" Burgoyne Rule for a good starting place. It took a few waves to get used to the new feel. The board was solid on the wave face and perhaps a bit harder to turn, but overall the tail
end felt a little more stable in the wave. I also got a good recommendation from Nate re a cutaway fin so I bought one with a credit I had at Freeline. The theory is that this 9" Future cutaway produces more drive from a beefier base, but the cutaway gives you more maneuverability and a "pivoty" turn. More on this after I try it out.
Since the sun was nearly overhead when I launched, and it's rays were harsh enough to be of concern, I decided to try my new
"Indo" surf hat from Dakine. It
worked great. Somebody ought to get employee of the decade for designing this hat, it's got everything, is very comfortable, and does what it's supposed to do...keep the sun off my face, ears and neck. It comes in "one-size-fits-all" which I think will be too small for people with bigger hat sizes. Mine fits me perfect and I wear a size that is almost exactly between S/M and M/L. For $30 it's a great deal. (
Dakine makes a ball cap too which is also a big seller according to the sales folks at O'Neill's, where I bought the Indo.)
Finally,
Evan had a very cool post of him surfing his new Blair 9'11" Quad SUP at Puena Point. He's looking very moderne in red surf shorts and dark glasses. It made me remember that I had a pair of
surf sunglasses from SeaSpecs that I had received for free with something I bought a couple years ago. Today I gave them a try with mixed reviews. They are tinted brown (they come in gray too), and they worked great in the bright sunlight. But when it got overcast and the sea color blended with the sky color at the horizon, it was
difficult to see which were the best waves in each set. It was difficult without the glasses too, but somewhat easier without the SeaSpecs on. Another slightly irritating thing about the glasses is that when they get wet you have to look through the water drops on the lenses. You can't really wipe them off, they just streak. (My wetsuit sleeve did the best job, but it was still kind of a hassle.) I did like the glare reduction though and will probably wear them again in bright sun. For distance paddling the glasses will be totally killer.
March 28, 2008 (F)In: 1123
Out: 1300
AT= 53 - 58 degrees
WT= 50 degrees at the farshore buoy
Wx: Sunny and cool with incoming leading edge cold front clouds to increasing overcast
Tide: 0.85 Rising to 1.59
Wind: Light south/southwest at 3 mph, increasing to 6 mph with gusts at 10
Sea Surface: Smooth and glassy with bands of light wind texturing to fully wind textured
Buoy: NWSThe buoy is delivering sporadic data.
1000: 5.2 feet @ 19 Seconds South
1100: No data
1200: 5.6 feet @ 17.4 Seconds SSW
1300: 5.2 feet @ 17.4 Seconds SSW
1400: 4.9 feet @ 17.4 Seconds SSW
10'4" Angulo SUP with Infinity paddle
Fin set-up: 2+1 with 9" RFC Preisendorfer center fin and FCS GL sides
Rock reefs
Waves: 3 feet at 10 seconds (Nearshore buoy approx. ave.)
Storm Surf Buoy Model
the first forerunners of a long period south swell were beginning to show on the nearshore, data stuttering buoy.
from the rising tide and not expecting much from the new south. But I was pleasantly surprised by a number of waist to chest high, five to eight wave long period sets, which were much more consistent and sizable than I had hoped for. My plan was to paddle down to Sarge's and Gdubs. My back is still recovering from Monday so I thought a good paddle and perhaps an occasional wave would be good rehab. But when I saw that first eight wave set at Apt. House Point I knew I wasn't going anywhere soon.
end felt a little more stable in the wave. I also got a good recommendation from Nate re a cutaway fin so I bought one with a credit I had at Freeline. The theory is that this 9" Future cutaway produces more drive from a beefier base, but the cutaway gives you more maneuverability and a "pivoty" turn. More on this after I try it out.
worked great. Somebody ought to get employee of the decade for designing this hat, it's got everything, is very comfortable, and does what it's supposed to do...keep the sun off my face, ears and neck. It comes in "one-size-fits-all" which I think will be too small for people with bigger hat sizes. Mine fits me perfect and I wear a size that is almost exactly between S/M and M/L. For $30 it's a great deal. (Dakine makes a ball cap too which is also a big seller according to the sales folks at O'Neill's, where I bought the Indo.)
difficult to see which were the best waves in each set. It was difficult without the glasses too, but somewhat easier without the SeaSpecs on. Another slightly irritating thing about the glasses is that when they get wet you have to look through the water drops on the lenses. You can't really wipe them off, they just streak. (My wetsuit sleeve did the best job, but it was still kind of a hassle.) I did like the glare reduction though and will probably wear them again in bright sun. For distance paddling the glasses will be totally killer.
mixing out the inversion layer and voila, no fog. On the ground we're looking at high thin cloud cover with some more solid clouds occasionally filling in.
reason for leaving his wetsuit on land. He's in Hawaii! He sent me these pics so I wouldn't feel bad about being left behind....thanks MikeyB.
surprise eh? Today I launched at Platty's, no one out. Then suddenly I was joined by Priscilla and her son Patrick. A nice surprise and a good way to start the morning. My plan was to paddle down to Walls, turn around, come back to Platty's, get my 7'6" Freeline and lay down surf for an hour or so.
sunshine. Yesterday I couldn't see fitting my SUP into any of the fast closing beach breaks waves, so I brought my 7'6" Freeline shlong (John's name for this hybrid cross between a sh-ortboard and a long-board). I launched again at Platty's and went for a half-hour paddle. After that I got the shlong and surfed another 45 minutes before having to get out to visit Mark, my chiropractor.
was covered by a high layer of clouds, aka the inversion layer, i.e. high fog, which eventually moved off to the south as the day wore on.
energy. These days have had all the pieces of winter from warm sun beating on black rubber to the hard labor of paddling against blustery and unforgiving headwinds. And portentous of the lull to come, this swell would not give us the sheer, raw muscle of winter. We go more gently into the next season, and this not of our own making or will.
stand up, and Lars (retired Cali state lifeguard and surf instructor extraordinaire) out on his 10' House shaped Surftech. The sweepers were everywhere. Finally after a couple hours it was just me and Lars.
definitely got the better of the deal because I got to use Lars super secret adjustable length paddle that he designed and built. I am sworn to secrecy but when this paddle hits the market all the boyz will want one. It is hot!
wash woke me. No reason to get up. Wife still on vacation. Kids grown and independent. Body aching from two days of hard paddling and stand up surfing. Lay there. Doze. Pray. Assess for further injuries. Re-assess.
an aberration at first, but at 11AM and Noon, there it was again. No souths are showing in SoCal, although south passed through there yesterday. I thought that the south was too weak to make it up here, but...here it is. (See updated buoy data image.) Some spots look pretty good on the rising tide. Still...I'm resting up for tomorrow.
WNW swell and the new NW wind swell delivering waist to chest high waves. At first, waves were consistent but as the day lightened, the close together waves became smaller and less consistent.
