High Surf Alert!

Spent the day at the north shore yesterday.  Had heard, and the surf reports confirmed, that it was going to be an epic day.  Predictions of 20-25 ft faces; the entire north shore was under a high surf alert.  And they weren't kidding.  Besides the Mavericks contest I saw in 2006, these were some of the biggest, meanest waves I can remember.




We came around from the windward side of the island so we hit Sunset first.  There was an SUP contest going on; was a zoo so we didn't stop.  But as we drove by I took a quick look (only a quick look, didn't want to hit any of the tourists getting off the Roberts of Hawaii buses and shuffling across the Kam highway like there was a crosswalk or something) and the hair on the back of my neck stood up.  It was big.  Really big.

About a quarter mile on down the road I started looking for a parking spot for Pipeline but it seems that the entire island had taken the day off the either surf or spectate.  Throw in the tourist vans and buses and it starts to be a real crowd.  Think Del Mar in the summer and multiply it by 10 and you would be getting close.

I was starting to worry that I wouldn't find a spot to pull over when, just like that, a parking space appeared; right in front of Pipeline.  Perfect parallel parking job and I was out of the Jeep fumbling around trying to get my camera set up together.  Karen was getting the food, water and sunblock supplies ready.  We know from experience that this place has a weird hypnotizing effect; once there it is really, really hard to leave.  One more set, becomes one more set, becomes one more set and so on.

Pipe was enormous.  The sets were breaking on the third reef.  Some guys were out there but too far away for photos.  The primo line up area was very small due to the westerly swell direction and the pack was tight and crowded.  When the waves hit the reef on the inside they jacked up to 20 feet and 25 feet on the sets.  It was freakin' incredible that anyone was even out.  But out they were and getting some insane rides and taking some horrible wipeouts.

Lots of broken boards and at least 3 rescues while we were there.  No bullshit lifeguards either.  They were yelling at people over their PA system.  Yelling survival tips to folks separated from their boards caught in the rip getting sucked over to Sunset.  When that failed (and it did) they would fire up the jet ski and blast off to save them with the tow sled.  Once they got them back to shore they got a not too friendly lecture suggesting that perhaps they shouldn't be in the water at all;  all very loud and very public.  Very humiliating, but I'm pretty sure that is what they were going for.

We finally decided that we were more hungry than we could bear so we headed off the Haleiwa for some lunch.  But between Pipeline and there is Waimea and once again we found a great parking spot.  Not as wild and crazy in the water as Pipeline but just as big.  Funny, when I think of big wave riders I think of guys built like Laird Hamilton.  So, I found it a bit weird to see regular guys launching them selves into the shorebreak to get out into the Waimea lineup.  Waves were inconsistent so the waves were really crowded when the sets rolled through.

Lifeguards were on the PA here too; telling tourists not to go in the water at all.  Don't even think about it.  Go to another side of the island if you water to get wet.  Good advice but I wondered why they even had to tell people that.  I mean the shorebreak was ten feet breaking right on the sand!

It was a good day and after lunch we head back to Pipeline for a couple of parting shots.  It was a great, great day.  Hope you enjoy the photos as much as I did taking them.

Aloha

Gary