Surf Report 2012

[Willy Kelly]

Nor Cal checking in
Humboldt was 3-6 on the face with fun little zipper waves
water a bit warmer 49
the best part no rain

[Casey Patelski]

April 21 & 22. South West Combo Fires at Newport Saturday and Sunday. 3-5 ft combo lined up peaks, no wind, some waves had mirror oiled glass. Sunday I got 3 back to back In-N-Out left barrels. Thats saying something for a beach break. Low crowds, feeding frenzy of dolphins, pelicans, seals, terns, gulls between sets, non stop entertainment with a fish oil slick to soak in. One of my favorite days this year. Thanks Ed Dimick for the tip, and Vartanian for the perfect Newport board. STOKED! Casey Patelski

[Amanda Taylor]

Watched the guys surf their first sesion today at Playgrounds/Veracruz, Nicaragua... a couple three feet overhead perfection rights and lefts, light off shores.
They got out after 3 or 4 hours, then pulled anchor then headed to Lance's left.
Surfed a couple more hours on 200-300 yard lefts...(picts to come/ the boat captain kept me in the best spot in the channel for the shots). This week has been amazing so for far. Colarados and Panga Drops has been off the charts perfection!

[mmanners]

Glad the lads are scoring, and you're there to document it all.

Take care,
M2

[maxb]

Had a really fun session wit Joe T.,Kenny,and Putzy at 54th st this morning,light crowd,shoulder to HH peaks and splitting peaks with other Kneelos made it a blast. Amanda was up on the tower shooting away,hope we weren't too boring to watch.
Everyone got alot of really fun waves.
Great to surf with you guys this A.M.
Max

[Eric Carson]

One week after 3 tons of Square Groupers found off Dana Point ....Hurricane BUD is formed. Coincidence? I think not!

[Bud]

Surf out here continues to pump.
April saw some awesome big swells with Indo conditions.
Last 2 weeks have been excellent and a new swell arriving now.
Scored Sunset the afternoon of June 7th with just 6 guys out.
NNW swell with 8' HWN sets roping all the way to the channel.
I paddled out at 2:30 pm, was surfed out by 5:30.
Just as I got a few yards from the guys sitting in the line up, I got caught inside by a 20 wave set and pushed to the channel.
(I'd started my paddled off the point)
For that effort I was handsomely rewarded a dozen great rides along with 2 bomb set waves, starting deep on the Bone Yard through to the channel.
The second one (last wave) actually ending on the sand at the end of Val's reef rights.
As I took off my flippers, a couple of guys walked down to shake my hand and congratulate me. Then as I walked home along the cove the "Peanut gallery", sitting at the picnic table under the tree in the cove were hooting. High 5's all around as I sat down to join them and watch the rest of the afternoon's how.
This past week brought an extreme West swell that lasted 5 days. Tuesday peaked at 8'.
Fellow kneeboard surfers Dave Sears, Derek Nako and I jumped into the cove at Sunset at 5:30am. We enjoyed a couple hours of thick hollow wedges, then paddled up tp back Yards as the tide filled in.
Dave and I surfed the lefts with just 2 bodyboarders. Conditions went from glassy to light Indo quality off shore winds. The extreme west angle of some sets provided long fast spitting barrels. More than a few wrapped all the way into the bay at V-land.
Paddling back looked like a cross between Kandui lefts and Uluwatu Race Track.
We gorged ourselves until 9:30am.
Back on shore I ate a hasty breakfast then headed for the shaping room.
I emerged at 4:pm to see the line up at Yards empty!
2 glasses of water then "out there!"
By 6:30 I was done.....exhausted and suffering from "tunnel vision"
Only a few others had joined me around 5:30pm, surfing until dark.
The following morning I slept in until 7:30am.
Smaller then and real glassy.
By 9am a SE light off shore filled in grooming the swell to ultimate perfection.
The rising tide brought 3-5' of West swell dream waves with 4 separate line ups to choose from.
Only 2 guys out by noon when I paddled in to hydrate.
At 1:30pm Lee Pattison arrived just as a massive thunderhead moved in bringing rain and variable winds.
We surfed through the changes alone, until around 4:pm when a couple of the "pau hana" after work crew paddled out.
Conditions settled into a delicate wispy light off shore.

One could spend thousands of dollars and travel across the planet to surf the Mentawai's or other islands of the South Pacific, to try to score waves as good as the last 2 weeks on The North Shore, only to find every spot packed.

With today's internet surf forecasts, a window of opportunity and the spare change to spend, guys in the USA could easily have scored EPIC surf along the entire North Shore coast without much hassle.

I'll try to post a couple photos, but not now.
The tide's filling in and Dave Sears and I are heading out for more, as this new swell starts cranking.
More waves in the forecast.
(South Shore has been fun as well.)

[Mike Fernandez]

Sounds epic Bud! Flat as hell last week, and looks like this week coming up also. Doing a lot of snorkeling and videoing.

[Mike Fernandez]

Surfed Wind an Sea today about 4-5ft faces, rode them all the way in with some little tubes on the inside and only three people out. Seems people have jobs down there unlike at Huntington!
Of course I had to wander on down to the infamous Big Rock. Went out with only a very friendly standup, and sponger in the lineup. Both getting tubes.
My first wave woke me up like a slap in the face. I thought for sure I was going over the falls sideways, but then the wave released me and I went shooting down the line hooting as the sponger watched me.
Normally I wouldn't mention it, but I am claiming a three foot tube.
All my drops were like this.
I found that I didn't really get to paddle into the wave, it is more like trying to control a launch into a late double sucking up wave as the reef is almost exposing itself. Several times I was running over one to two inch waves on my bottom turns, meaning the reef was probably only four to six inches deep. I was clearly viewing the sea grass floating on the surface while expecting my fin to rip out.
Reefs are great, the wave always holds up, and there is plenty of juice. I got lucky today considering I have only surfed once in a couple weeks.
So, been there, done that, I'm ready for the safer drop of the Wedge.
I'll gladly shoot photos though.

[duct tape]

Spent a week around Nosara this June. We were rewarded with an early 6-8' south swell which gradually dropped during the week. Maybe they measure them Hawaiian style there too but even the "3-5'" sets seemed bigger. Wave period was pretty small and some paddle outs at the beachbreaks were tough. Really good offshore winds the first two days, with great facial spray shots on takeoffs.

We took a melange of wave tools - longboards, shortboards, and my new 6'0" Flashpoint kneeboard, which I picked up from Bruce during a trip to Oz in February.

This was my first real extended experience, other than one very small day at Manly, with a kneeboard which is clearly going to be a learning opportunity. Bottom turns and cutbacks were frankly not very dynamic compared to standing up - basically my technique sucks. Hart has pointed me to some videos which I'll watch and maybe get some tips.

Still not sure if I'm going with the swim fins (Hot Buttered Octoblades). I tried it both ways and while it was a little easier to get out, and to duck dive, I'm not sure they really helped much getting into the wave. I got worked by one set where the wave grabbed my fin and really torqued my knee. Plus my water entry/exit technique needs work.

Anyway, I'm ordering another board from Bruce, a 6'3" ish one to have a traveling quiver and will be leaving the longboards home next time.

The waves weren't hollow, even on offshore days, which is the only reason I can't claim a tube this trip.

[Willy Kelly]

Nor Cal surf 4-8 on the face
fun peaks up and down the beach
wind NE 4 knots
Air 55 deg. and foggy with a few showers
water temp. 49 deg.
best part no 20 to 30 knot NW wind


peace and good waves

[K-man]

Nice day!70F..Small SW...2-4 at the kidde pool.Water's a toasty 54.Bars a bit weird..sop for this place...

cheers!

[K-man]

Fifth straight day of south Swell!Must be part of that stuff off baja?Morning sickness every day.South winds all day,till about 5.Classic!The baitball leaves about that time.Down to a handful of locals,including the cute chickies..dangerous,They don't look..they just go.God loves women and little kids... Been 3-4 with bigger sets.Glassy till dark.Outer reefs are still closed..Too much blubber floating around from the dead fin whale.
You folks down south must be getting some?

cheers

[Mike Fernandez]

Whooooooo scored Two session day surfing various reefs/slabs in Laguna. No current, no wind, just sun, clean and warm water with six, some eight foot faces with trippy takeoffs, and long lefts.

[WillP]

Mex was good today!