Big Tide, Big Cold and Big Waves

Same monster high tide as yesterday but the swell bumped way up over night to produce some OH set waves that offered a shoulder at times.  Nothing in between sets.  Smooth surface conditions and some pretty stiff offshores (the windchill factor was brutal).  As the morning wore on the sets were closer together and got bigger and started closing out but da boyz still managed to snag a few beauties.   The swell is supposed to keep building through out the day and peak sometime tomorrow late.  Negative 1.6 tide at 3:30 this afternoon.

Aloha
Gary

Surfers are optimists

They have to be with the surf being what you would expect with a decaying swell and a 6.9 foot high tide less than an hour away. Glassy smooth surface with knee to waist high stuff. Sets are showing; they're just not breaking. Take off zone is about 25 yards from shore of which there isn't any right now.

But hope spring eternal; 7 guys are out. 4 of whom are sitting about 50 yards inside of the reef trying to hop a shoulder. Much to far outside however. The real action is in the shore break which is a very short, not so sweet excursion onto the rocks.

Looks like a good day for a sea kayak journey. Cheer up, tomorrow is supposed to be better. Have a good one.

Aloha
Gary




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Location:Coast Blvd,Del Mar,United States

Linda Benson's Quest

So who is Linda Benson?  Well, for one thing she’s not Joyce Hoffman, a contemporary of hers.  Just wanted to get that straight right from the start in case you were confused. 

Linda Benson, an Encinitas native, began surfing at Moonlight beach in 1955, when she was 11 years old.  She got her first board at age 13 and the rest, as they say, is history.

In 1959 at 15, she entered the International Championship surfing contest, held that year at Makaha.  By doing so she was the youngest competitor in that contest; and, better still, she won it.  Later that same year, on a borrowed board, she paddled out at Waimea and caught a few waves.  Just to show the boys (Fred Van Dyke and John Severson both of whom had just wiped out) how to do it.  She quickly developed a reputation as a hard charging big wave rider; one of the few women into it at the time.

Linda also excelled in contests in the 60’s.  She won the first US Surfing Championship contest in 1959 and then won it again in 1960, 1961, 1964 and 1968. 

In 1964 Linda was rated number one in the International Surfing magazine poll.  She can also count Hobie Alter, Don Hansen and Mike Doyle as her tandem partners. 

Linda got her SAG card as the surfing double for Annette Funicellos’ beach party films and for Deborah Walley in Gidget Goes Hawaiian. Linda has been inducted into the Huntington Beach International Hall of Fame and the Huntington Beach Surfing Walk of Fame. 

Clearly, Linda is a pioneer in the surfing community and has some impressive surfing credentials. 

So why the uproar over her plan to hold a four day women’s longboarding championship contest at Swami’s in October of this year?  More about that in a future blog.

Aloha

Gary

Even Closer

To shore today than yesterday. Again there is wave energy but the high tide has a death grip on it. The line up is a mere 50 yards from the beach. But it is a beautiful day; brite, clear and cold. Surface conditions are semiglassy with waist high sets from time to time. It can only get better after 9am when the tide begins to ebb. Or as the Jedi master ( Chuck) is always telling anyone who will listen; just wait, it will get better, you'll see.

There are 2 guys out who apparently couldn't wait. They are chasing the shorebreak all over the place. Without much success.

BTW, in case you haven't noticed I put up two new links (on Clays recommendation)on the site. One is a surf finder and the other is for tracking tagged pelagic animals including a white shark.

Have a good one and remember; be patient.

Aloha
Gary


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Location:Coast Blvd,Del Mar,United States

Not Crowded!

Calm and glassy with one guy out on a soft top at Tres Palmas. There is still some swell left but the 6.0 high tide has swallowed most of it. Most waves are breaking right up against the bluffs.

There are some shoulder high sets but they aren't breaking till the inside sandbar. Recent wave action has scoured about 4-5 feet of sand from the beach. Lots of cobbles and structures exposed that previously had been buried in the sand.

If you want this place all to yourself, today's the day!

Aloha

Gary


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Location:Coast Blvd,Del Mar,United States

If Everybody had an Ocean..........

Way different than yesterday. 6-10 feet; mostly long, short period, closed out walls. Calm surface texture with just a touch of easterlies. Lots and lots of white water and the rip just north of the ramp looks like a river headed out to sea. 6ft high tide was at 5:30 this morning.


There is the occasional left shoulder coming off the reef. 11 hardy souls out just waiting for that moment when they are in the right spot at the right moment. Not as cold as yesterday but haze and clouds have given today that full on winter vibe.


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Location:Coast Blvd,Del Mar,United States

Cold and clear

BRRRRRrrrr! Freaking cold! 3-4 feet with some larger sets. About 13 guys out not doing too much except sitting around. Has possibilities and I might go out once I capture some solar radiation. Have a good one.

Aloha
Gary

Location:Coast Blvd,Del Mar,United States

Still big,still gnarly

Calming down and shaping up. But still fairly unorganized and closing out. Head high with some head+ sets coming through. Nice east wind blowing the tops off and creating a wind chill factor of about -40 or so. Luke, Kenny and I have found a sunny spot to stand and critque the technique and intellegence of the 3 guys that are out. Water quality still questionable. Just spoke with a guy who despite getting worked and washed back in at least once in his hour long saga to paddle out; "good workout" was his comment.

Coming up next on CSSR; Linda Benson's effort to organize a women's long boarding contest at Swamis and some of the backwash she's run into.


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Location:Coast Blvd,Del Mar,United States

Starting to Clean Up!

The waves, not the water quality. Still a jumbled up, crossed up mess. 8-10 feet with larger, meaner sets just looking for something or someone to eat. The rip is all the way out past the 1/2 mile marker bouy. No one out anywhere (north or south) and the parking lot is deserted. Plus it's really cold and with a slight offshore adding a wind chill factor. Still large chunks of debris in the water. Bacteria and viruses lurking too. Looks like a good weekend to catch up on stuff around the house. Later.

Aloha
Gary


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Location:Coast Blvd,Del Mar,United States

Storm Surge

Not as windy as yesterday and the surf is somewhat smaller; a mere 8-10 feet. Pretty much what you would expect after a day and night of steady rain and wind. Storm junk and 5 foot chop. Wonder why no one is out? The color of mud and silt extends about 1/4 mile out and there are large chunks of debris (trees and what looks like a telephone pole; where did that come from?). Looking south it looks like the storm is clearing. Northward is dark and forbidding. Makes for a dramatic sky but not so with the surf.

Have a good one.

Aloha
Gary


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Location:15th Street

Bird Rock Sewage Spill

5,000 + gallons of sewage finds its way to the ocean.

Storms, storms and more storms!

Raining hard, gale force winds and giant waves (still). Looks to be about 10-15 foot storm surf. No one out (where's Chris?) and I'm the only one here. If you think the camera angle today is a bit odd, that's because I took it from my car. At least I rolled down the window first! Have a good one and if your on the road today, take it easy, don't let the sound of your own wheels make you crazy.

Aloha
Gary


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Awesome Day of Winter Surf

The sun vanished behind a thick layer of storm clouds, the offshores got stronger and the temperature dropped rapidly.  The waves got bigger too.  The air was thick with salt spray.  Cameras were everywhere and I had a severe case of lens envy.  These were taken at La Jolla Shores and La Jolla Cove early this afternoon.  Enjoy and if anyone went out today, let's hear about it!  Click here to see a slide show of all of the photos.

Aloha
Gary

Torrey Pines Lines

There is nothing more beautiful than big, solid surf charging through and battering the coastline with an offshore wind on it.  I took these from the bluffs overlooking Torrey Pines around 9am this morning.  I'm heading out in a little while to see what is happening further south.  Should be spectacular.  And it's supposed to get bigger!

Aloha
Gary

Clean monster waves perfectly groomed by some substantial offshores. Sets are easily DOH with closely spaced waves. Actually, I take that back; a set just rolled through that had to be TOH. Lots and lots of water moving around; nobody out. The parking lot is empty and not that many lookyloos. If you get the chance, slip out somewhere and watch this before the wind turns. Spectacular!

Aloha

Gary


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Hepatitis; the Gift That Keeps on Giving

Clay suggested that with the rain and runoff that this is a teachable moment about Hepatitis.  I agree and as a  public health professional with 40 years of experience, I have some interest in providing you, the public and my friends, with some useful information about Hepatitis.

There are five types of Hepatitis; A, B, C, D and E.  As surfers, we are primarily concerned about Hep A and Hep E;  sometimes referred to as acute hepatitis.  These are the types of hepatitis that are transmitted by the fecal-oral route; that is, eating shit.  Hep B, C and D are transmitted by saliva, blood or sex.

Hepatitis is caused by a virus that attacks the liver.  Hepatitis can be a mild illness lasting 1–2 weeks to a severely disabling disease lasting several months. Getting better often takes months; a long time out of the water.  You are wiped out, have no energy, stamina or even desire to surf (or anything else that requires exertion).   It is also easily transmitted to others who in turn can give it to even more people because they are infectious way before the symptoms appear.  It's the gift that keeps on giving.

So, how does the hepatitis virus get in the water in the first place?  Understand that the sewage collection system and the storm water conveyance system are separate; storm water runoff does not go to sewage treatment plants.  Storm water runoff and all of the wonderful stuff the water picks up as it courses through streets, parking lots and and businesses dumps right into the ocean.  

Furthermore, if sewers and sewage treatment plants are overwhelmed during a storm event by the volume of runoff entering the sewage system (the sewage collection mains are not a closed system, water can enter them very easily), raw, untreated sewage becomes part of the runoff which we know flows right to the ocean.  Research conducted at SDSU has shown that the hepatitis virus remains infectious in ocean water for at least a week.  

There is a vaccine for hepatitis A.  It is given in two shots, six months apart.  Initial immunity starts 2 - 4 weeks after the first shot.  The second shot provides long term protection.  The Hepatitis A vaccine is safe. No serious side effects have resulted from the Hepatitis A vaccine.  However, you should discuss the vaccine with your doctor if you are considering it.

The surfers in Imperial Beach are especially at risk and a while back a nonprofit organization known as WildCoast (www.wildcoast.net) was sponsoring a program to provide the Hepatitis A vaccine to surfers.  I'm not sure if they are still providing that service but you can check with them to find out.   

While hepatitis is rarely fatal, it is no fun to have, keeps you out of the water for months on end, eliminates you from being able to donate blood and will make the folks you give it to extremely pissed off.  

These photos are from this morning.  The top one is at 15th Street and the bottom two are at Swami's.

Aloha

Gary

Storm Day Plus One

Wow; a lot cleaner than I would have thought! Very clean surface conditions with a moderate offshore. Long shoulder to head high lines pushing through with an occasional left poping up on the reef. No one out which means every one passes the IQ test this morning; heavy runoff, contaminated water, no getting in water. Pretty simple.

If not for that, these are some great looking waves this morning. Have a good one.

Aloha

gwe


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Location:Coast Blvd,Del Mar,United States

A Week of Real Waves

Starting on Saturday, January 9th we had a solid week of waves just about everywhere in San Diego.  I managed to get around to a couple of spots I don't usually visit and got some photos of some great rides and waves.

Sunday:   Terra Mar.  The waves were perfectly shaped and head high.  Enough juice for everybody, long board, short boards and dolphins.

Wednesday:  Black's;  big, beautiful and breaking hearts and boards.  Next a quick stop at Scripps found it  pumping out some nice clean head high barrels and ended up at Boomers in La Jolla where the body surfing crew was getting some great rides in some really big stuff.  The swell was so big that day that the Cove was breaking; not rideable but cool to see

Friday, 15th Street was still big and the crowd small.  The boyz were snagging some nice lefts right off the reef

Finally, with all this rain you know there is going to be major run off so if the wind dies down and the surf cleans up before 72 hours after the last rain event just think about all the crap, fertilizer, bacteria, viruses, chemicals and trash that is getting washed into the ocean from the storm drains.  And then think if you really want to muck about in all of that.

Aloha

1st Day of a Week of Storms

Gray sky right down to the horizon. Just starting to rain again. One guy out in knee to waist high junk. Wind is southeast and light. The predicted large swell isn't showing just yet but it should begin in earnest tomorrow.


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Location:Coast Blvd,Del Mar,United States

Getting Started

For a while now I have been sending out a daily surf report to my friends and surf buddies.  On some days I also take photos and post them to facebook and/or email them to the group or to individuals.  Lately I've had some requests to access the photos from my website (which I don't have).  So I decided that the best thing to  do would be to start a photo based blog about surfing and the surf community in San Diego.  Some of you were notified by email of this post.  If don't want that in the future, let me know and I will remove your name from the email notification list.

Anyway, here is the first post!

Gary