Solid Surf Ramble...

I was surfing at Patrick's Point/Agate Beach a couple Sundays ago and I experienced the worst beating/hold down of my surfing career. It's funny how crazy it is to paddle out in such big and powerful surf. The waves were in the 15-18 foot range and were solidly breaking. Patrick's Point is a point break and can handle big and powerful surf, while Agate Beach is a beach break. Both spots can handle a solid swell without turning into a washing machine, but they both get challenging when the swell gets above the 10-12 foot range. I was surfing with my best friend Adam, who recently moved out this way from the Outer Banks, NC.

We checked Patrick's Point as a last resort, all of the other spots we checked were maxed out and simply too churned up to facilitate good, clean waves. We decided to check the point as a final chance at surfing on a day in which the ocean was going crazy. There was a storm up off of the Alaska coast which was sending powerful swells our way. The Humboldt coastline sticks out like a sore thumb off the California coast, so we get the brunt of most swells. It can be 12-15 feet here, but 4-6 feet at points south during the same swell. The fact that most spots require a bit of a hike to get to, the water is way too cold (45-52 degrees year around), and old Whitey is constantly patrolling help to thin the crowds out a bit.

Every other spot was way too rough and we wanted to surf, so we decided that we could paddle out at Patrick's Point. Waves look deceptively rolling, glassy, and inviting from far away and on top of a cliff; so we decided to paddle out. We were both riding fun shaped short boards, so the overhead shorebreak was easy to duck-dive through. Once we made it out to the actual mackers we discovered that it was actually freaking-huge.

Maybe you don't surf, but you can at least appreciate that mental anguish that comes from paddling out in way overhead surf, in cold water and realizing that you are supremely out of your element. I grew up surfing the warm and small waves of the East Coast, so I'm still getting used to the powerful, large surf of the Northern California coast. I've surfed big swells since I moved here, but they are mostly point waves. Point waves break in a predictable fashion in mostly uniform lines, beach breaks are anything but predictable. At a beach break, you'll be sitting there...watching the swells come in and suddenly you'll realize that you are right in the impact zone (I call it the 'bone-yard'), so you immediately begin a sprint-paddle to a safe area outside of where the wave is going to break.

Now, let me let you in on a little secret...Surfers choose boards depending on the waves they want to surf. A longboard works great in small, rolling waves; short boards work great in head high surf; but in serious surf, most surfers will bring out their 'guns' for surf which requires serious paddle speed and solid 'cajones' to ride. Adam and I are poor, so we have limited boards to choose from. I was riding a short board and Adam was riding a semi-longboard. The point being that we were riding the wrong boards for the conditions and fully relying on our swimming ability and guts to ride the large waves which were rolling our way.

The first wave I caught was solid. There is something about paddling into very overhead surf. The energy that is present in the ocean on big swells is something everyone should experience. Just think about everything that goes into that wave...Storms which are thousands of miles away generate untold amounts of energy which is translated into open ocean swells, the last bit of that energy goes into the wave, and I'm all about catching that last bit of energy as it unloads onto a random sandbar on a bit of isolated stretch of Northern California coastline...

In two hours of battling the ocean swells and currents I caught three waves and took a couple of solid beating during which I was held under for minutes and resigned myself to the noble death which comes from following dreams which few dream. I grew as a person and as a surfer. During one particularly heavy hold-down I thought thoughts which come only to those which put their ass on the line and accept what may come. I attained a level of thought during those minutes held down, under the roaring surf, under the slate grey sky, under the murky blue water, far away from where I am comfortable, which I couldn't find all throughout college...I felt alive, I felt the need to be alive, the desire to live and pursue life...

I am alive. I will pursue life. I will follow my dreams. I will overcome. People always talk about limitation and things preventing them from taking that next step. I was underwater in 45 degree water, in 15 foot surf, undergunned and just trying to breath...and I realized that I can do anything. If I can survive this...Can't I survive the 9-5? Can't I survive taxes and budgets and deadlines?....

A Few Pictures...

Steamer Lane, Santa Cruz. I was lucky enough to visit the area on a really good swell. A couple hundred other guys were also as fortunate...

The Monterey Bay Aquarium had a ton of fish. This handsome fellow is a Sun Fish. He weighs in around a ton...

A couple places along the pier in Santa Cruz were completely taken over by big old sea lions. I could stand there for hours, just watching them nap and occasionally fight with each other.

Justine and Ben posing in Monterey...

Santa Cruz and Points South...

Our second holiday trip was an excursion to Santa Cruz, Monterey, and San Francisco. Santa Cruz is one of those towns that holds a certain place in surfing lore and I wanted to see what all the hype was about. While we were that far south, we checked out the Monterey Bay Aquarium and downtown San Fran.

A couple of summers ago my wife and I were having a pizza at a bar in Yosemite Valley, we were rather undecided about where we would settle down and we were discussing possible towns to live in. "Fort Bragg? Nah, too small. Brookings? Nope, too small and the surf is fickle. Santa Cruz or San Francisco? No way, way too many people." At the point we said, "Santa Cruz?", the bartender said, "Check out Arcata, in Humboldt County...It's Santa Cruz, but thirty years ago". That pretty much sealed it for us. After we spent almost a month in and around Yosemite, we drove north to Humboldt and the rest is history. But we never forgot about Santa Cruz, so we put it on our list of roadtrips and places to visit.

Fast forward a year and a half, and here we are in Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz sits about an hour south of San Francisco and at a little bend in the coastline that means well groomed waves year around and offshore winds all winter. Surfing here is a part of life. I saw more cars with board racks than without. The place definitely has some solid waves, but also solid crowds on the waves. I was lucky enough to see the famous surf spot 'Steamer Lane' on one of the best days of the year. It was glassy, offshore, and absolutely reeling. The right wave would break for almost a half-mile. Can you imagine surfing a wave for that long? I'd probably go insane. I watched the wave for a bit and then got on with exploring the town.

We were lucky enough to arrive in Santa Cruz during the end of the Monarch migration. They follow the coast to warmer weather in the winter and back up the coast to cooler weather during the summer. We found a Eucalyptus grove which had around 20,000 monarchs flitting about the treetops and we just laid on the ground and took it all in. There really aren't words to describe how amazing it is to see so many butterflies in such a small area or the sounds that so many butterflies flying about in one place makes.

After soaking in the majesty of the monarchs, I needed a surf. I was able to surf a couple blocks away from 'Steamer Lane' at a solid little point break with around two dozen other people. Two dozen is a crowd in Humboldt, but I managed to snipe a solid number of waves in my hour long session. The wave was great. There is something inviting about a chest-high, glassy wave in front of million dollar homes. For a few minutes out there I imagined that this was my homebreak and I was surfing in front of my sweet, oceanfront house...and then a clean-up set rolled through...I managed to avoid the macker of the set, pulled my head out of my ass, and caught the last solid set wave. I rode it in, changed, and then found a pub with Justine. We shopped for a bit in the downtown area, which is well put together. It's absolutely chock full of "surf-shops", I put it in parenthesis only because they had more hoodies than surfboards...but I digress. While I'm on the digression, let me just say something about the state of "surf-culture"...it's become a commodity and an image to be sold. Just look around you next time you're around a crowd of high school kids. How many of them are wearing surf brand hoodies? Then ask yourself if they looked like they've ever woken up before dawn, called the bouy reports, scraped their car windows, went out, and charged the surf in the cold, gray morning...

We spent a couple days in Santa Cruz and then we drove south to Monteray Bay. Our mission was to check out the Monterey Bay Aquarium. We had heard it was spectacular, but we had no idea how spectacular it was. We spent the entire day wandering around the exhibits, but I could have spent another week there. They have so many huge tanks it's insane. I'm talking 30-40 foot high tanks with actual wave machines to help the fishies feel at home. It's certainly one of the coolest things I have ever seen. I'd love to just spend days there, just sitting on the benches and watching the fish swim. There is something quite mesmerizing about the entire scene.

After spending as much time as possible in Monterey and Santa Cruz we headed back North towards our little slice of Northern California paradise. On the way through San Fran we stopped in Union Square to experience the madness that the City is. It's fun in small doses, but I like it quiet and uncrowded.

Stay tuned for more adventures. Sorry about taking so long in between postings. Hang in there and check in every now and then for more pictures, stories, and words of wisdom.

Road Tripping to Bend

Vacation is over and I'm back in kindergarten again...well basically. Since the end of Christmas break, I've been subbing in a kindergarten class and I'm starting to feel like Billy Madison. All I do all day is arts, crafts, ABC's, 123's, and recess. It doesn't sound too bad on the surface, but it makes for long mornings after a month of goofing off in Northern California and Oregon. I noticed my last entry was almost a month ago, tons of fun has happened since then. Justine and I gave each other trips, instead of expensive gifts this year for Christmas. In the past month we've been able to travel up the Cascade Range to Bend OR, most of the Oregon Coast, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, and Monteray. There have been insane waves and great hikes. I won't bore you guys with a bland run through of city names and adjectives and I'll get down to the nitty-gritty.

The Trip to Bend, Oregon

Justine and I went up to Bend in early December. The main purpose of the trip was to see The John Butler Trio play at an awesome venue and to explore Oregon a bit. Bend is about 6 hours north of Eureka and in the heart of Oregon. The town straddles the mountains and the high desert of Eastern Oregon. It's pretty much of haven of backpackers, mountains bikers, endurance athletes, and other outdoorsy folk who have their priorities straight. We'd been wanting to visit it for quite some time, the fact that our favorite band was playing there was the last straw.

The drive from Eureka to Bend is spectacular. We followed the coast to the Oregon border and then headed NE towards Medford, OR along the Smith River and the Rogue River. The coastal mountains along the California/Oregon border are absolutely dripping with foliage. Every little ravine has a stream which drains into a creek, then a bigger creek, then a river and eventually the coast. The drive is littered with waterfalls and scenic overlooks. The road to Bend goes right through Crater Lake National Park and along the edge of the Cascade Range and the Oregon desert. We attempted to get to Crater Lake, but the side roads had 4-6 feet of snow...not exactly choice driving conditions for the Chevy G20 (a formidable van, but not an off-roader). We're planning an excursion to Crater Lake for a later, less snowy date.

Once we got into Bend, we went looking for our hotel. We decided to somewhat spoil ourselves and we booked a room at McMenamin's Old St. Francis School(link at bottom). These guys from Portland buy old buildings and restore them into amazing hotels, breweries, and whatnot. Our hotel featured a Turkish Soaking Pool, Brewery, and an array of great art work. It was formerly a catholic school complete with nuns and friars. It was a nice change of pace from camping out in the woods.

At the hotel we enjoyed spectacular food and drink. For dinner, before the show, we feasted on the best pub-fare ever. We feasted on cheese fondue, deep fried won ton wrapped shrimp, and burgers. They brew a variety of beers on site, in the basement. Their signature handcrafted brew is the Hammerhead Ale; it's a hoppy, flavorful beer with citrusy overtones...Delicious!!!!

The John Butler Trip concert was amazing. The venue was an old roller rink within a few blocks of our hotel. After dinner we walked to the concert venue and waited in line. It payed off, for the show we were front row center. The opening band, Brett Dennon, absolutely rocked. They had a groovy, rocking, reggae sound to them. John Butler played pretty much every song I would have wanted to hear. Google them and check out their website. You can listen to most of the new album and some live concerts for free on-line. After the concert I had to check to see if I still had eyebrows they rocked so hard. Justine and I have really dug their music for a couple of years, so it was really rewarding to see them at such a small venue. We were literally feet away from the band.

The next day, after a soak in the Turkish Pool, we decided to have a day walking around Bend. The town is great. It just feels like people have their lives together. It's clean, the buildings are well maintained, and everyone in town seems to have a purpose. People are walking around decked out in kick-ass outdoor gear, people are riding sweet bikes, and everyone seems happy. It's a nice change of pace from Eureka, which at times seems overrun with vagrants and other mal-contents (but not as bad as the rest of California). I could really see living in Bend eventually, it's chock full of outdoor adventure opportunities. Speaking of very nice people...We actually spent a night in Bend in the spare room of a really great couple we met at the Patagonia store. I mean talk about great people, they heard we were gonna camp out in the van on a night which snow was forecast and they opened up their home to us. People like that kind of restore faith in humanity and help me realize that some people still see the bigger picture.

The road from Bend to the Oregon coast is pretty gnarly, especially after a snowstorm and in a camper van. The mountains surrounding Bend are spectacular. A number of 10,000 foot peaks surround the area, unfortunately visibility was limited due to a massive storm on the coast. The coastal storm meant rain on the coast and snow in the mountains. We decided to brave the drive before the brunt of the storm hit. Next time we visit Bend, we staying longer and bringing mountains bikes and snowboarding gear. The more places we visit out here, the more we want to visit more places out here. It's starting to become a vicious cycle of travel resulting in more travel, it could be the start of a never-ending cycle of travel.

We made it through the Cascades and to the Oregon coast. There were several 'Oh Shit' moments where we were sliding down icy mountains roads, brakes applied but not working, hoping that we would hit a bit of pavement that wasn't pure ice before we careened over a nasty precipice.

The rest of the drive was great. We made it to the Oregon coast and then home. The Oregon Coast is amazing. It's rugged and rocky. The towns are still small and have a rural feel. There are waves, tons of waves. They just take some work to paddle to and a thick wetsuit.

http://www.mcmenamins.com/index.php?loc=98

Stay tuned for more adventures...Judging from our band account statement from last month, we had a great time!