I had a great weekend, most three day weekends are though. I surfed a couple times, hiked in some Redwoods, had some beers, and contemplated some deep thoughts. Now let me ramble a bit about those topics and some recents news...
The Surfs (Part 1)
Saturdays are great. I get to wake up after the sunrises, drink coffee at my leisure, skateboard to Happy Donut (good doughnuts, but nothing compared to Tom's Donuts), and look for surf. Justine usually has a couple massage clients during the AM, so I am left to my own devices. Last Saturday was no different. I woke up, had some coffee, got my doughnuts (2 glazed, 2 cruellers), and started my search for surf.
The first place to check is always 'Power Lines', it's a punchy little beach break that's about 5 minutes from my house. Unfortunately for me, the tides were high and the surf was pumping. I like to surf wedgie beach breaks, but it was just too out of control. I checked a couple of other spots along the Samoa and consigned myself to wait for the afternoon low tide.
That's the thing about the surf prospects around here. The tides are extreme and the swell rarely drops below 6 feet. The water is cold and it's either crowded or nobody out. I finished my coffee on the dunes, watching the powerful 6-8 ft surf roll in with nobody out, and then drove home.
After my lady finished her work for the day, we went to a little cafe we'd been eyeing for a week or two. Let me just say that the 'Opera Alley Bistro' is delicious. We spent the afternoon, waiting for the tide to drop, strolling around Eureka's old town. We finally made it into the local historical museum. Crazy stuff has happened in Humboldt County.
We finally made it up to Camel Rock for the evening glass off session. The drive up to Camel Rock is only 14 miles or so, but it always seems to take forever. The entire drive I'm trying to catch glimpses of the ocean from the highway, so I can start psyching up for big surf or consign myself to catch smaller, more playful waves. The surf on Saturday ended up being a fun session. Justine and I both got in and caught some great waves. Justine is starting to get used to the cold water and the challenges posed by larger swells and rocky beaches. I'm getting used to surfing with a crowd and hassling with a dozen other guys for the waves rolling through. We stayed in the water until well after the sun had set. After we had caught our final waves of the session we stood at the water's edge and watched the fog start to roll in. It started to rain and the darkness set in. We stood there, in the fog and rain, and just took everything in. The noisy sounds of the tide coming in and rain falling on the sand, the salty/fishy smell of the ocean mixing with the sweet/earthy smell of the rain, the beauty of the beach and the cliffs, everything combined into a very real moment. We could feel the magic of the area. It was a very Pacific Northwest moment.
The Hike
Sunday morning dawned clear and bright, something of an anomaly for November in Humboldt County. Justine and I knew that we needed to get out into the woods and find ourselves a hike. An hour or so in any direction (besides west, because then we'd be an hour out to sea) takes us into fairly remote wilderness areas and some spectacular scenery. Today we felt like walking among giants, so we headed north to Redwood National Park. The trails in the park are amazing. They are well kept, but rarely ever crowded. We decided on a hike in the northern end of the park, the Ten Taypo/Indian Creek trail. The hike is a four mile loop which takes you through lush lowland redwood forests into higher elevation upland forest environments. The elevation changes and the variation in environments make this an interesting hike.
Yesterday's rain had caused a ton of mushrooms to sprout up. I've never seen so many different types of mushrooms. Justine and I stopped every few minutes to admire a different mushroom. There were bright colored mushrooms that looked like coral and brown ones that looked like piles of crap. The rain had the effect of greening up the woods overnight also. It's just great to walk through huge old growth trees and smell the moist, pungent aroma that permeates the redwood forest.
The Surf (Part 2)
After our hike through the redwoods, we drove back towards Eureka. We brought our boards and wetsuits along, just in case we happened to come along a wave or two. We ended up back at Camel Rock, along with a hundred other people. Overnight the surf had picked up and it was close to epic. The surf was 12 foot plus and just reeling. The set waves would break for over 400 yards. The waves were as good as waves get. Unfortunately for me, every other person who owned a board or a wetsuit was out there too and most of them had attitudes. I went out for about 30 minutes and caught a couple waves and several dirty looks. I'd rather surf 2ft junk waves with a few friends than battle 60 assholes for a great wave.
It's funny, yesterday when the waves were good but not great, people somewhat shared the waves and there was a great vibe in the water. Today it was completely different. Maybe I've just been spoiled by East Coast waves and attitudes, but I'm looking forward to having a surf at Cape Hatteras soon.
Deep Thoughts and Beers
One of my favorite ways to kill a rainy, surfless afternoon is to read the newspaper at The Shanty. The Shanty is this tiny, dingy, stinky pub close to the waterfront, here in Eureka. There is always a variety of folk at The Shanty. Dockworkers, fishermen, students, and all types of enlightened folks seem to flock towards the bar. It's a nice quiet place to read the paper during late afternoons.
The best part of beers at The Shanty is the conversations with random other people that happen to wander in. Reading the paper seems to invite conversations and they often turn towards politics and religion. I think we could take society in a good direction if more people went to pubs, town squares, pretty much anywhere and had good soild debates in person. Too often in our society, people simply voice their opinions in chat-rooms or message boards, and aren't forced to argue out their point face to face. It's a very refreshing thing to do, I like being told to my face that I'm an idiot for rooting for Ron Paul and supporting the Fair Tax. That way a discussion happens and you can use powers of persuasion to bring people around...
I intended to add some deep thoughts and mind blowing statements, but California has seemed to taken its toll on my logical abilities...Lucky for me The Wall Street Journal, a copy of the Federalist Papers, and Unamuno await me for my reading pleasure this weekend...
More pictures and stories to come...
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