Better?

 There was more swell this weekend so I was able to catch waves. We went to S reef because I thought it would be good on the high tide at 9am. It was pretty good, but I still struggled. JB did better, but also had trouble with the crowd. There were people sitting on the inside getting good waves, but then were in the way when a set came. There were also a couple people who would paddle just a little deeper as the wave came and I had to back out. Those waves I did get I kooked out on. But, the weather was beautiful and it was cool to see other good surfers ride waves.

After surfing we went to the overlooks and checked out some of the reefs just north of S. There were waves and far fewer people. So maybe next time conditions are like this we'll take our chances at one of those options.

Sunday was perfect weather for working on the canoe. I finished up all the scarf work, including adding 1.5-ft extensions to the pieces. They didn't come out perfect with some mis-aligned and others showing a gap. I'm not sure what I was doing wrong, but maybe the mistakes will blend away when I round the corners and sand it down smooth. The next step is to run the strips through the router to round over the edges. Once that's done I'll sand then down smoother before applying the first round of oil. Between coats of oil I'll take apart the old canoe decks and see if they are worth keeping. I wouldn't mind making new decks, but it will be my first time and I'm not sure what I'll do, exactly.

While waiting for the glue to dry on my scarf joints I started watching videos about surf matting and paipo riding. I kind of wish I had tried again on Saturday morning, going back out with another surf vehicle. Even bodysurfing the sizable shore-pound would have been more exercise. 

Next weekend is supposed to be camping on the coast. We'll see if that really happens because there is also rain in the forecast. I hope it doesn't make the tent area too muddy, and also hope the rain doesn't return while we're there. It's possible that I'll take just my son camping for just one day, and deal with the hassle of wet muddy gear alone. He would like that, and my wife would like the rare time alone. But it would also take away the one surfing window I have. Who knows, that one window might be terrible waves anyway so family time would be the best thing for me to do!

Not much to say

This weekend surf was not great. The weather was great. The water was clear and there were at least two different species of (non-stinging) jellyfish in the water. We tried to surf funboards, but it was a little too small for me. JB was getting the best of the waves and I was just missing waves. We walked up to S reef and surfed the left. I was awkward, but at least catching waves. JB was doing much better. We didn't end up surfing for very long, especially because of the long walks on the sand we did.

I did make some progress on Sunday on the canoe. I scarf cut and glued up some sticks, but I think I need to scarf a few more feet on those two sticks to get the length I want. I also cut down my other board of oak into sticks, but didn't get them scarfed and glued because I needed to think through my plan. I think I should try making the deck plates, because that will play into how long the gunwales need to be. Time to search images of deck plates for what looks the best of what I think I can successfully build.

Not good

The conditions weren't forecast to be great, but there was potential for it to be good. The weather was right, the tide was okay, but the swell didn't arrive as forecast. I considered Scot's Reef for a bit, but the pre-dawn fog made it difficult to see anything more than just the fact that waves were breaking. I decided to go for the hike and see if FRG stretch was any good.

The walk down had some waves along the sand, so my hopes started to raise. Funboards had small waves, R reef had waves but didn't look right, and G's looked the best from the beach. We paddled out and got a few. I decided with the small waves I was going for one of the deep barrels. The current was hard to read because it was still too foggy to see the cliff very well. I ended up to far on the shoulder for the first set, then too far behind for the next set. I didn't feel like waiting another 20-min for one chance at a wave, so I paddled down the reef towards JB. He had been getting a few and let me know that they were lining up more than usual. But I waited, drifted, and never really caught a good one. I was having trouble getting to my feet under control too. I went to the beach to check R reef again. It didn't look good, I still wanted more waves, and JB always takes a long time to get his last wave, so I decided to paddle back to G's. JB took a set wave and didn't notice me paddling back out through the channel. He rode his to the beach despite me shouting at him. Oh well, I decided he would wait for me this time. But then I quickly got bored and chased a small one, then paddled back across the channel to JB. We looked again at R reed and it still wasn't much good. On the walk back we took a longer look at the waves and JB even jumped in to get one. He ended up taking a big set on the head while jumping off the beach, which meant he'd have to wait another 20-min for a set wave. He ended up catching a small one that wasn't as good as what we saw, and rode it all the way in. Oh well, not every day can be the best day.

Now I'm thinking of what I need to do to stay in shape, and improve too. Winter is coming and I'm feeling stronger, but not strong enough. My weak knee in getting stronger but gives out occasionally still. My shoulders can paddle me out through the channel without taking a rest, but I know I need more once the waves get bigger. This weekend I came in because I was bored and hungry, not tired. I need to figure out what to do about that. Maybe eat a fiber bar when putting on my wetsuit.

Don't forget the lessons

 I went out to G's with JB last weekend. I brought my 6'0" because I wanted to try it after having ridden the TH so much lately. I had a terrible time. I couldn't get into the wave before the thump, and I don't have the skill to get in under it on this board. After an hour+ of trying, I went in having never ridden a wave. I walked past R's and looked at Funboards. Went back to R's where the waves looked better. I think I could have had a decent surf there if I wasn't already tired. I rode one on my knees because I couldn't get my feet under me in time. I finally made it to my feet and rode a pitiful left. I rode it to the beach to call it a day.

I had forgotten the lesson I learned at G's, bring more foam. The wave has a soft part just before the thump. With a big enough board I can get in at the soft part and be on my feet ready when it thumps. Without that foam it's just a nightmare. (Alternatively, less foam makes handling the thump a little easier, but I'm far out of shape for that.) So this weekend I plan to return to G's, this time back on the TH.

And there was another issue besides picking the wrong board; being out of shape. I've had a stressful run of weeks at work and missed opportunities for getting away from my desk for a walk. I have been out on a few field days, which at least gets my body moving, but apparently it isn't enough. So this week I forced myself for a few walks, did a few squat reps (just bodyweight) and thought about doing some push-ups. I also thought about how skateboarding is a good way to strengthen my knees and legs. I looked to Utube for inspiration and instead found an affordable "surfskate" option. The WaterBourne surfskate and rail adapters are supposed to make skating feel more like surfing. For $100 shipped, I thought it was worth the experiment. It arrived yesterday and I put it together and got a little skating in. 

It's certainly a work-out because there's not much room for straight legged riding. Kicking is difficult with the extra height of the board and the introduced loose feeling. The recommended approach is to instead use the adapter advantage and pump to generate speed. I tried and just barely could feel anything. My feet and legs were tired after just a few minutes and I stopped to get back to family duties. It's worth more trying, although I wasn't blown away at the feeling of it. If it gets me out of the house, it's worth it.

A good one

I did some gardening and some surfboard repair on Saturday. The repair was frustraiting because I was distracted, uncovering more problems as I went, and generally not into it. But still, progress was made. 

Sunday was the surf day and we made a good choice. Although the swell peaked on Saturday, the north coast was windy. Sunday dawn still had plenty of waves and no wind. We surfed Tres mile on the high side of the tide. Dealing with some backwash and shorter period swell, but still something to work with. I got my share of waves and so did JB. All around a good session. 

Afterwards I went and paid $60 for a Royalex hull. Someone had stripped everything off the hull, the gunwales, decks, thwarts and seats. The guy who had it never got around to buying any of the replacement parts and had given up on the project. I took it on and my plan is to go with vinyl gunwales and repairing the old seats I have. I'll make the decks myself out of wood, but I'll need to buy thwarts because I don't have any hardwood on hand. The first task is sourcing the gunwales and getting them shipped for something less than $300! 

 Edit: I had to come back to this. Later on Monday my legs were feeling tired and I banged them a little with my fists to loosen up the muscle. Instead, my thighs threatened to cramp. This reminded me of the most noteworthy part of my session, bottom-turns. I had a few kinda late drops on overhead waves. On those, my legs didn't respond like I wanted them to. They are too weak and the extension during the end of the bottom turn was delayed as my legs waited for the g-forces to lessen. I remember this feeling from many, many years ago when I had a 7'4" min-gun and I was first riding shortboards and big waves. Longboarding small waves never tested my legs and I was suddenly feeling to weak to do what needed to be done. Every once in awhile I get compressed on a drop, but yesterday it was nearly every wave. So I am once again doing more squats during breaks from the computer.

Continued slight improvements

Same spot, again slightly smaller. This time I wised up and went out on my 6'8", which allowed me a few early take-offs. Those I got in early on were fun, but both times I ran into the back end of an inside section and flopped into the water. Then most of the rest of the session was spent trying to read the crossing chop, boils, and shifty take-off spots out there. Although it was smaller than the smaller last time, I was still dodging the occasional outside set. I think it became more of a problem as the tide dropped, and the take-off zone shifted to be more difficult. I think. I don't really know because although there isn't much current, there is a lot going on out there. Things are shifting around and popping up. A wave looks like it will crush me, but then I can't even catch it. It's a challenge and a fun one.

I think I'll even go back tomorrow for a mid-week surf!

Slight Improvement

I went back to a cove that had handed it to me a few weeks back. I had first gone out expecting it to be kinda soft rolling shoulders, and seeing the best fun could be had racing the short wall at the take-off. I was on my 6'0" thinking I was going to rip the place up. (Or my version of that.) What happened last time was that I experienced first hand that the bowl/wall was more than I was ready for!

This weekend it was smaller, but I went for the same sized waves in the same spot. The biggest difference were fewer outside sets that I had to dodge to hold my spot. I was on the same board (repeated that mistake) but this time I was more ready for what I was facing. I also had JB with me, which makes finding the take-off zone after a ride so much easier. I was able to negotiate some drops and make it across some walls. The key for me was finding a wave that broke in the deeper lead-up to the shelf where the wall is. If I could get in just a moment early, I could get my feet under me for the wall. 

However, I repeatedly landed with my feet so committed on the inside rail that once I cleared the wall I couldn't do anything except fall. The wall is intense but short, and I need to do a big cutback to stay with the wave. I couldn't. Like, maybe twice I had enough control for a soft cutback that wasn't enough to stay with the wave. Many times I flopped one way or another trying to make a turn. One time I even grabbed the rail to make it across the wall and as soon as I let go of the rail I flopped over. Even considering all this, I was improving over my first day because I was at least riding waves!

So my plan is to keep trying. Next time I should really be on my 6'8" which both lets me take off earlier, and has a narrower tail which I expect to help deal with the situation. If not, I have a few more boards to try out.

Meanwhile, JB was doing alright out there. I happily gave him the 2-waves of the day award. He was also having trouble with the take-off because of the cross waves that seem to be persistent out there. There must be plenty of other reefs shallow enough to bend the swell, and it seems to all combine in the bowl we were trying to ride. It certainly requires paying attention when paddling for a wave and trying to be ready for a bump/step/chop from whichever direction it is coming that time. The flip side is that occasionally an A-frame hits the bowl and those are easier to ride if they let me in early.

Afterwards I went to a surf shop where I was planning to meet a guy to sell a board. He hadn't been responding to my emails, so I figured I'd hang around until I got bored. Luckily JZ came by to say Hi. We haven't seen each other in person since lockdown last March, and we've both been going through our personal troubles. We caught up as well as we could in the small amount of free time he had. Luckily, the guy to buy my board finally called and I said goodbye to JZ. I showed this guy the board and although he has appreciation for the all-wood Hess boards, mine didn't seem right for him. I had my 6'0" in the car and he really liked the look of it. I let him check it out but made it clear it was not for sale.

So, decent weekend all things considered!

Unremarkable

This weekend's surf was mostly unremarkable, but I'll try my best to make it interesting. The wind forecast didn't look good for either day so JB and I picked the window that looked like it had the best chance to be clean; Saturday at dawn. I arrived at first light and it was cold, but not frosty cold. We've had a relatively warm winter up until this weekend, and the cold air gave us the first taste of what winter should be. The cold air had me moving slowly, and the buoys read about 10ft at 11sec from steeply north of 315. We didn't know what to expect so we walked the trail in the dark to go see what tresmile was doing. When we got there a set hit and it didn't look bad. Not as big as we'd been surfing it, but not small either. An in-between size that looked good enough here, and would probably be bigger than we wanted if we went north. The tide had just peaked and was going to be dropping that morning, so things would improve.

We walked back to the car to grab gear to bring down and suit up at our usual spot. The daylight was filling in. Moving about after the long drive was warming up my body. This day I had given up on the 7'5" and didn't see the need for the Channin, so I had the 6'8" with me. JB asked, "Is that your tresmile board." to which I relied, yeah, and it works great at some other spots too. Walking down the sand we saw our path was getting regularly washed over with waves, but not wanting to leave stuff where it's easily accessed, we put on our wetsuits from the sand, but walked our bags over to the hiding spot. Waves were washing over the jump spot in a menacing way, so we both took extra care waiting for a break in the waves. I still got hit by a wave in the channel, but not bad. Just enough to get a wet chill!

We were the only ones around and JB noted that it was hard to pick the takeoff spot because we both had been surfing it at the limit recently, sitting way off the edge of the reef. We each got a wave that looked good but died in the channel. We spent the morning chasing waves back and forth between the inside bowls, the inside reef, and the outside reef. Others joined us one-by-one, but the waves weren't very good. Good enough to stay out, but I figure those watching from the cliff were taking there time hoping conditions would improve.

Eventually JB and I had had enough. I got bored of chasing after waves only to be disappointed with what they were. We took waves in and called it a day. A thought lingered about whether using a surfmat and catching a big one off the top of the reef would work. That wave is hard to drop in on, then just rolls along for awhile before doing who-knows-what when it hits the inside reef. I think it could be fun, and might give it a try one of these days.

I wasn't tired from the session, and the day was shaping up to be pretty nice. I hung around town for a bit but couldn't think of anything to do. I decided to drive home over the coast route and look at some spots. The wind was coming up just a little and nothing looked very good. I realized we probably made the best choice of where/when we surfed.

I've had the 7'5" up on craig's website for a few weeks now. Besides a flurry of interest by 4 people all in two days, I've heard nothing. All those guys found other boards to buy. There have been a good series of boards available, and most of them for less $. I'm slowly lowering the price I'm asking, and being patient. But I've told myself I won't order the next board until I have this one sold, so it's hard to be patient.

Normally to big

 I arrived in the pre-dawn light as was happy to feel the calm air. It's also wasn't all that cold for a mid-January dawn session. The buoys read 10-ft, so I went to the spot that should be at its limit with long head+ walls. What I found instead was waves smaller than expected. I really wanted to ride a particular board, so I went up the coast where the waves should be bigger.

The next stop found the "small wave" situation was spreading. Also, the morning sea surface had more junk on it that expected since the wind hasn't been blowing all that hard lately. I continued north to a spot I have been avoiding because it's normally to big and crowded. What I found was some waves in the size range I wanted to ride. It didn't look great with the tide in the wrong range and the sea sickness here to, but there was nobody out and the breeze was offshore. I drank more coffee and convinced myself I really needed the exercise and to ride this board before selling it. I went out to see if I was wrong about the board.

The waves were pretty shifty, hitting several different parts of the reef. Some breaking and rolling along with such a short shoulder I couldn't hop it to get in. Others bowling and throwing the lip before I could get down the face. I honed in on waves that were swinging wide, bowling, but kind of rolling awhile before breaking. Even with this user friendly take off I was struggling to catch waves. Those I caught I was so late in I struggled to make the drop. I ended up with one ride and a lot of frustration before paddling in to the inside and letting the waves wash me to shore.

I wasn't done and I swapped boards to try the Channin. I had a good time on it last week and tried it out to see how well I could get it to work in different conditions. The waves had cleaned up and gotten better, and with it the crowd had increased. It wasn't crowded, but I no longer had my pick of the waves. I got one good wave that I rode conservatively. I didn't make turns or push myself, and I was excited to catch another and try to get a better ride. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. It was partially because I was sitting far out to avoid getting hit by the occasional bigger set, and partially because the right spot to catch waves had a handful of people. I continued to try to find a wave that missed the group, but I never got another ride. Again I paddled to where the waves could wash me to the beach and called it a day after a solid 2 and a half hours.

It felt good to surf somewhere else, it felt good to try different boards, and if felt good to be in big waves without to many people around so I could push myself and make mistakes without feeling like I was at risk of hurting anyone else. I'm now convinced I want to sell the board and I've lowered the price and added more photos. I also have another session on the old Channin and know how it feels a little bit better. So even though I didn't feel like I surfed very well, I feel good about the day.

2020, out with a whimper. 2021, in with a whimper

We've had a great run of big waves and good weather for surfing.

On the last weekend of the year I drove the coast of two counties looking for something to surf. The waves were to big at all the places I wanted to surf. I could have surfed at a few novelty spots that hide from the big waves, but instead kept heading down the road to find some big waves that weren't to big. The final stop found the wind picking up and ruining the waves. I drove back up the coast but didn't stop and went home without surfing.

The forecast for the first weekend of the year was pretty much the same, but this time I wasn't going to get skunked on the first day of the year! I brought my big wave board (7'5" Hess Noriega) out at dawn to the Lane. It was high tide, First Reef was showing but Middle Peak was breaking. Plenty of people were on Middle Peak before I even got wet, but nobody was at the Slot. Yeah, it was bumpy and smaller, but it was still overhead, and I'll take bumpy-solo over clean-crowded. So I stuck with it despite not being able to catch a wave, or make a drop. I missed so many waves I thought for sure I was going to catch. I fell on several and I only made it to my feet twice. The first time my balance forced me to fade towards the cliff and loose the open face. As soon as I gathered my balance I just drove hard under the white water. The second wave I was able to catch I freefell and my legs buckled, but I kept my balance. I stood up from the squat, then the wave disappeared and that was it. I waited and waited for just the right wave and when I caught it, I fell again. I took the paddle of shame back to the beach without ever really riding a wave.

JB was out with me and wasn't having the same difficulties. I thought about the board I was on and tried to remember of a session when it really worked for me. I couldn't think of anything. I remember the board worked okay at OB, but I don't surf there anymore. Although its more than 6" longer then my next smaller board, I feel like it is harder to catch waves on it. I have caught and ridden waves on this board, but I couldn't think of any time I was super excited with it. So, it's probably time to sell it. I never thought I would, but I also can't keep adding boards to my collection without making any space. Doing the accounting, I think if I sell a few I can cover the cost of a new Hess!

I think I want a +9-ft "FunGun." It would be for those spots that have plenty of channel to paddle without duck-diving. But only those that are relatively soft as big waves go, which to me means a wider board. So, time to clean wax, do a photo shoot, and post on Craigslist. 

It's been quite a year

We all have plenty of reasons to consider 2020 a year to remember. Recently I realized I have a really good reason: multiple new spots surfed!

I don't know what happened but something clicked for me at the end of last year, or maybe early this year. I had always checked other spots, but was also more focused on getting the best out of the more well known spots. Clearly those well known spots are well known because the wave quality is high and the effort to get there is low. But this year I tried more new spots than ever before. The reward has been lower quality waves with far, far fewer people competing for them. As a way to savor the memories, I'm going to attempt to list them from North to South. In an attempt to hide this from google searches, I'll use "gamer text."

Lagoon Beach, Po!nt @rena, Fl@t R0ck, @lligat0rs, the far inside of Greyh0und Ruck, R0ckie Po!nt, Funboards, G@ng!es left and right.

Not included in the list are the places that I didn't exactly surf for the first time ever, but surfed more times in this year that all the other times combined. Most of these spots have some degree of hiking adventure that goes along with surfing them, but a couple are just a short stroll from a parking spot. Some are a far drive from home, others closer to home than where I typically surf. Some have views of barnacle encrusted rocks that have to be avoided, others have boils indicating holes in the reef. Only one is all sand-bottomed, but another is mellow enough that there's no risk of bouncing off the reef.

Also, the year isn't over yet and there are many places I have been checking but haven't found in good enough conditions to surf. There's one more weekend before the end of the year and more swell in the forecast. Work will take me to the beach tomorrow and maybe I should lock in one more spot while I have the chance. But then again, none of these spots were surfed just for the novelty of saying I did it. Each one was the best opportunity that presented itself that day, so I kinda don't want to break that run. I guess I'll have to go check some spots and see what looks good tomorrow.

*Next day edit: I only kinda forced it, but I'm really glad I did. I always thought Ro$$' C0ve was a mushy boring wave, but today at least it pitched me with the lip a few times. It was hard to surf because it was really shifty. It was breaking kinda soft on the outside, rolling through the middle, then hitting hard inside. I tried to sit more inside and pick off just the right one, and take sets to the head. But when caught by a set it wasn't to hard to duck dive. I was on my small board and wished I had a bit more paddle power to slide in earlier. I actually think a full gun would be a reasonable choice out there.

Alligators

I surfed a new spot. It was surprisingly good and I don’t know what to do except try to make notes and see if I can get it good again. 

High tide of at least 4-ft. Swell around 8-ft at 14sec from 305. Sensitive to the wind. 

Tomorrow dawn I’m going to meet JB at tres mile. 

Holiday Waves

It is a tradition that the ocean has been keeping for there to be a good swell and perfect weather for Thanksgiving. Unlike our family, the ocean was able to keep this tradition despite the pandemic gripping our country and most of the world. Because 2/3 of our family has the entire week off, I also planned for a week long vacation at my parents cottage in Santa Cruz. The swell and weather was forecast to arrive, and in my stoke I brought 6 different surfboards with me.

Sunday the conditions weren't great, but I rushed up the coast and forced 4 waves in poor conditions. The weather was warm and I haven't been out in awhile, so I was happy for what I got. Monday was a family day that ended with me checking in on my work projects to find others hadn't done what was needed by the time it was needed. My stress level went way up and I frantically typed away on the borrowed laptop trying to deal with the situation. Tuesday was spent working at a makeshift "desk" that was a kitchen counter and sitting on a footstool ladder.  Wednesday morning I went to go look only to find even my garbage surf spot was crowded. I headed up the coast but it was mid-morning, a bit junky with mix swell, and surprisingly crowded. By mid-day Wednesday I was burnt out and the swell was filling in. I went to my garbage spot and snagged two small waves among the crowd.

Thursday, Thanksgiving, the peak of the swell and great weather. What I thought was crowded the days before now looked great in hindsight. People everywhere. I felt fine not trying to surf and instead took my son for a beach day adventure (which was also me scoping out a somewhat hidden beach during the swell). The weather was great and when we first arrived the beach was mostly empty. We walked the sand, checked a few tide-pools, watched the waves hit the rocks at the south end, and played in the little creek at the other end. I was watching the waves and thinking how I could take advantage. It didn't look great, but with the right approach waves could be ridden. As the day went along and the tide dropped, I swore I saw something cranking along the inside. One wave looked kinda good. Then later another one in the same spot. Then another. Then a grizzly guy with a shortboard showed up and it looked like he was watching that wave. I'm pretty sure he was, but my son and I had been in the sun for a few hours and I was getting hungry, so we headed back to the car. Just as we were driving away two more shortboards were heading down the path. Hmmmm....

On the way home I drove along west cliff. It wasn't very big because the angle had too much north, but the tide was low and the weather was great. It was crowded, but I didn't stop because I wasn't there to surf, just to see what's what. Middle Peak had overhead waves and a ton of people. The angle wasn't sending very much down the cliff, with almost nothing left at the statue.

Friday JB and I agreed to go to tres mi at the top of the tide. The tide was too high and the swell was dropping, so we figured that would keep the crowd to a minimum. We were right, and we were the only ones out. High tide is really bumpy at this spot, with reflecting waves from two directions. Still, there was enough wave energy to ride and I got a few long and fast rides but was only able to hold on through all the bumps and not able to make a turn without falling. It cleaned up and got better, but then more people started showing up. JB wasn't linking up with any good waves and was getting grumpy, so we left before we had to interact with anyone else.

That was it. The best waves I got were bumpy lumpy but uncrowded. I felt fine "missing it" because I didn't want to deal with all the people. I felt good about knowing what my other options are, and taking advantage of that knowledge. I also feel good about still finding new opportunities for waves, especially ones that are in-between waves I already surf. I think there are still places to have fun and avoid the crowds, it's just a matter of working harder to get there.

North of here

Work required me to spend a few days in far northern/coastal California. I drove, which gave me the opportunity to surf along the way. Because this was far from home, I'll be extra careful to not give enough details for someone to follow in my footsteps. On the way up I went to a good spot that is well known but still uncrowded. The swell was small and the tide was mid-high, but still the waves were good. I arrived at dawn and having never been there before, I didn't know enough about the set-up to know where to surf. I waited for someone else to paddle out first and catch a few waves. It looked fun, with occasional head+ sets. I followed his lead and got a few waves. I was on my Hess mini-gun, a board I haven't ridden in awhile. It took awhile for me to figure out the wave catching sweet spot both for the board and for the wave. The worst part is I was chasing the small ones (and missing them) two times when a set came it. I fought through the set and got to the outside, only to wait again for another set. Time was running out but I really wanted a set wave so I sat on the outside and let the little ones go by. When the outside set finally did arrive it was bigger than all the rest and I couldn't get to the takeoff spot in time. So, a third set caught me inside. I ended up back outside, but had to paddle to the inside to get a wave to go back to the beach on. While I didn't catch any great waves, I saw plenty. Like most spots north of Santa Cruz, this one isn't worth a dedicated trip, but if you're in the area, bring your stuff.

I continued my drive north seeing surfable waves if I had time and dedication to surf them. The work I had to do allowed me to peak at the waves and I continued to see waves that I could have fun with. However, the swell died while I was busy working and by the time I was done and could go surf, there wasn't enough energy to power my mini-gun. I saw waves that would be fun on a longboard, others on a fish/quad, or a mid-length. In summary, I brought the one worst board for surfing on the drive home. I did have the surf mat with me, but wasn't feeling like riding it.

What was keeping my imagination stoked was the idea of accessing rivermouths by canoe. There are many large rivers in northern California with sand faced lagoons at the mouth. Some have roads, others don't. Some can't even be seen from a road so they could be perfection with nobody knowing it. That is unlikely the case this late in the season when most rivermouths are closed, or the sand has been flattened by summer. The most promising time is after some big flows when the river pushes a point of sediment into the Pacific Ocean. I've picked a spot not to far where I can do a day trip and learn what I need to know to handle a canoe with surfboards. Now I need to wait for the rain to come!