Surf Report 2012

bigtony · Post by **bigtony** » Fri Dec 28, 2012 1:09 am

Santa Barbara County is predicted to be small and windy for the next week, best bet is for everyone to stay home and surf your local breaks instead.
Just say'n..................

Scott · Post by **Scott** » Mon Dec 31, 2012 1:14 am

With Saturday’s buoys showing a challenging 14’, 15 seconds, I paddled out about 7:30 am at a favorite NorCal reef break north of Santa Cruz. There is a river there, too, that flows out into the channel, recently enlarged by a lot of rain. Got out to find Phil Curtiss already sitting outside. He told me it was puzzlingly inconsistent, mostly about 6’ when he was watching and getting ready to paddle out. But then he went on to account how, once outside, a massive set marched in. Phil and a friend, already on the outer reef, scrambled outside and just barely got over the top of them without getting sucked over backwards. Phil estimated those waves at 20’ and “wanted no part of those.” But there was something more frightening than those waves yet to come…

I took my place among the dozen or so seasoned surfers in the lineup. Phil and I eventually both managed two good sized set waves. It’s fun to see the respect Phil garners in the lineup and how they enjoy seeing him take off big and take off deep. But it was certainly a challenge to actually drop into them with the longer period, and you certainly didn’t want to get hung up at the lip with nothing below you but air. I had my new Blast 6’3” roundtail gun under me and it seemed very comfortable in these powerful waves, while Phil told me he felt a bit undergunned on his 6’0”. My best wave was a large set that closed out across the main reef, but I had edged over far enough off the main reef to catch the first one as it closed out its initial surfer. I enjoyed for a long, fast drop and a memorable ride with lots of deep turns all the way to the channel. Even that far over, I barely got around the following 3 very large waves, watching them cause general mayhem through the lineup for those who were mercillously caught inside. But I had a greater challenge yet to come…

After about 90 minutes and seeing Phil take a last wave in, and following with one of my own, I proned to the normal inside landing area, near the river mouth. Typically, it’s just a matter of paddling in at the base of the cliff, removing leash and fins, then wading across up a short section of the meandering river to the trail leading up the cliff. As I came in, I could already see Phil looking a bit distressed, with blood evident from a cut above his nose, waving me to paddle over around the river, but I was already too shallow to reverse course. I stood up at the base of the cliff as he had already disappeared around the bend to wade against the river. Once there, I quickly experienced what had just gotten him. A larger wave swept suddenly along the base of the cliff with such force it knocked me off my feet and dragged me over on my back for about 10 yards, bouncing painfully across the exposed rocks, then the river began quickly washing me back out to sea. My board had been ripped away from me and it took a frustrating minute or two to retrieve it so that it couldn’t be washed right into the cliff. By the time I got it I was now floating just feet from sizable 100 – 200 lb soaked logs and smaller debris getting sucked out into the oncoming walls of strong whitewater, and these logs were shooting around haphazardly upon impact. Very scary! I was experiencing the same series of mishaps that had just happened to Phil, and one of the sticks had hit him. I was disoriented and didn’t know quite what to do, but finally pushed in on some white water, avoiding the wood, and was now fully into the base of the river. But even though I could finally stand up on sand, the current was so strong going out to sea (and dodging more logs!) I could hardly move. It felt like to lift one foot to move ahead wouldn’t give me the strength to stand against current, and indeed twice I lost my footing and began tumbling back out in the swift current towards the logs in the surf.

Phil had somehow made it all the way in and was giving some helpful direction to me. Eventually, I had to climb slightly up the vertical ledge along the side of the river (very difficult footing!), which took me enough out of the current to eventually make it in to beach. I inched along in this precarious position until I finally got past the river bend. It felt so good to finally make it to the trailhead. Phil’s cut was not bad, and he shouted to a few other surfers on how to paddle in to get around the river issue. It seemed obvious to us now how to avoid the problem, but it was much easier to see it now standing safely on the beach, as opposed to when you were suddenly up to your eyeballs in current and giant wood. Later over coffee, Phil said it’s one of the heaviest situations he’s ever been in, which is saying something for him and the treacherous surf he’s tackled over the years…

Is this what surfers in Oregon and Washington have to put up with regularly?!

southpeakbrad · Post by **southpeakbrad** » Mon Dec 31, 2012 1:31 am

Wow, quite the story Scott! Stoked that you and Phil are OK

nmac · Post by **nmac** » Mon Dec 31, 2012 6:10 pm

Sounds pretty harrowing. Glad you guys survived. Don't have anything like that to deal with over hear on the East Coast. Maybe the occasional syringe and 2x4 after a hurricane, but that's about it.

Willy Kelly · Post by **Willy Kelly** » Mon Dec 31, 2012 7:32 pm

Scott the answer is yes even in the real Nor Cal we deal with logs and currents all the time

peace and good waves

badknees1 · Post by **badknees1** » Wed Jan 02, 2013 4:04 am

You folks who travel to or live and surf places like this are people I admire. You've got the guts and what I like to call...the "crazy gene" to surf in places like this!

Daryl D · Post by **Daryl D** » Wed Jan 02, 2013 9:22 am

It is what it is and it's what we've got. But I think all of us in the north would agree that out of the deal we get some interesting surf and an uncrowded line up.

K-man · Post by **K-man** » Wed Jan 02, 2013 6:26 pm

Not to mention all that good steelhead fishing in that area.....

Bill E. · Post by **Bill E.** » Wed Jan 02, 2013 9:37 pm

Well there are floaters and then there are sinkers. Not all wood floats!! The heart wood floats but the sap wood sinks, sometimes it is a battle as to which one it wants to be.

When standing in the water waiting for a lull to paddle out, you must look behind you and up the beach for logs dislodged from the beach and headed your way fast. Not just the waves and the others nice rides.

This year all the sticks came down from the dams they removed up the Elwha River. At times they are piled on the beach many feet high(and gone the next day). But when you wade out in the water to paddle out the legs get quite a beating with all the sinkers. Most are smaller than your wrist but some are as big as your leg, not to mention the log sized ones.

pcledges · Post by **pcledges** » Sun Jan 13, 2013 1:48 pm

Scott, I just bought 50 feet of a 250-pound test floating rope. If I'd had it that morning and been able to toss it to you, it might have helped you keep your footing to walk against the current and get in a bit quicker. I can think of a few other spots where it might come in handy as well.....basically any rocky place at high tide. Here's hoping we don't have to use it though.

Scott · Post by **Scott** » Mon Jan 14, 2013 12:48 am

Yes, no doubt it would have helped in that situation. I just wasn't thinking at the time, "now, Scott, don't forget to tie up a few hundred feet of floating rope before you paddle out in case the river goes mental on you coming back to shore." Glad one of us is thinking, Ledges.

K-man · Post by **K-man** » Mon Jan 14, 2013 5:15 pm

State beach is almost there..Rips are going good,grooming the bars.Hasn't happened here for a few yrs. :DCan be a classic beack break.Faces WNW and sucks in those boomers coming down the coast. peaks up and down the beach,probly 50 bodies spread over a mile.Glassy clean yestiddy,+-HH
Nice to park,walk 50 ft...jump in the water.No bloody muddy slippery hills!

cheers.

jdc · Post by **jdc** » Tue Jan 15, 2013 1:07 am

hey scott

your new board...did it escape unscathed? Sure, not the major concern... but still!

Willy Kelly · Post by **Willy Kelly** » Tue Jan 15, 2013 6:37 pm

Surf today in Humboldt was 3 - 5 on the face and glassy cond.
Air when I left the ranch in the morning was 32

it warmed
up later to 55
Water 51
peace and good waves

K-man · Post by **K-man** » Tue Jan 15, 2013 9:18 pm

Same weather/temps here.Suppose to warm a bit next few days.Surfed OB today..not bad..small clean..not crowded.Jumped in at the dunes,got out north of the chalet.Looks like a smoker coming down the coast by sat/sun. this pressure system should hold till the weekened...meaning OS's, could be some classic winter sessions.

cheers

Kneeboard Surfing USA Community Forum

Surf Report 2012

Surf reports are wrong

got wood in the line up

ost

ost

ost