Anyone else get some today...?

This last week has been pretty fun. I have had late morning windows, so no trips down to Trestles since Sunday, but Newport has been delivering decent surf. It has been chest-shoulder high on the sets with a bit of tide push, not great, but still fun, although a bit soft.

One of my buddies gave me a 7'6" fish shape. He said he has no use for it and has a crowded garage. I took it out a few times this week and it has been REALLY fun. Normally I surf a 6'4" with LOTS of volume, like 22.5 wide and 2.75 thick. My small day board is a 6'8"/23wide/3thick fun shape which is great on soft days. I have not surfed a board this big in a LONG time, but I had forgotten how much fun a soft day can be on a board like this. Waves I would struggle to get into on my normal board, or even on the 6'8", I can glide into early and fly down the line. The 7'6" is a quad setup, and it has a very fun and loose feel. It just jets down the line. It had completely forgotten what it is like to be on a board like this. The trade off is that I really have not figured out how to turn it yet, and when trying shorebreak floaters in ch, which I often blow anyway, I have NO shot at pulling them off on this board compared to a slight chance on my everyday board. I have limited control over it right now, but in soft waves with a bit of a shoulder I am having more fun than I would have dreamed. This board would be insane in a soft, waist to chest high point where you just want to glide. It would actually also be fun on a shoulder high day at a place like Cottons, where shoulder high waves can sometimes be soft. I am blown away by how it just glides through mushy sections. Another tradeoff is that I can't even pretend to duckdive it so I really have to be aware of my surroundings. It is also not as easy to spin around, so you end up having to make earlier decisions.

I need to buy my buddy some beer and some good wine. I can't believe he doesn't want this thing. In steep waves it would be a chore, but on the right day it is all-time. I just need to figure it out so that I can do something resembling a cut back, right now it is just glide down the line and kick out.

Glad you are back in the water Ott. It looks like next week we should get some juice.

Had a late morning window yesterday. Got a 1.5 hour session in at 36th street, and the timing was great. It was crowded, but I found a hole in the crowd and was able to pick off some nice lefts. It was head high on the sets, with lined-up walls that had some steep takeoffs. I surfed peaks between 37th and 38th, the jetty was too packed, and got out of the water around noon. Unfortunately they have started blackballing, they put it up around noon when I got out. Newport really needs to deal with the blackball situation better.

I worked pretty late last night so I've got a long window this morning, which means heading down to Cottons. It will be another long evening tonight, but at least when I sit down at my desk I will (hopefully) have had a great session. Trestles looks nuts on the cams right now.

There is lots of swell lined up through the weekend. We will see if the beaches remain open. I'm hoping that if they close things they will at least allow for 'outdoor recreation' like they did in the last closure.

Day 5 was the one. Surfed on Tuesday, mid morning. 3.1@19 from 195 was perfect for the lumber yard. Maybe 5 of us at the peak, and maybe 7 at the secondary peak. Pretty well spaced out, fairly consistent in the chest to just a hair OH range. Actually a tad bit water moving for my 5'9" Bandolero Slim, but once over the ledge, it performed very nicely. Got the bug back after making a few down the line floaters and getting fins out cross the top. So stoked I got up early Wednesday and drove out to find nothing but lagging swell and morning sickness and huge crowds. Fuck that, it was too cold to deal with that. But I'll be back another day. Enjoying y new front tire as well, so I'll be peddling this afternoon.

Yesterday ended up being a blast a bit south of Nixon's house. I found a whole in the crowd, while it was not as consistent as Cottons or Uppers there were only a couple of us. It was head high, maybe a foot overhead on sets, and lined-up and fun. Cottons was several feet overhead on the sets, it looked awesome, but I chose a smaller crowd and things worked out well.

Today I had a smaller window, but I took a risk and headed to one of my favorite spots in Crystal Cove. I don't have a state parks pass, so this one is tough. You really can't check it, you just have to go. When Newport is 4-6 from the south this place can be a left point off a rock dealing up 150 yard lets, but it needs a lot of swell to make it go. Today did not work. I paid my 15 bucks, walked down the steps, then paddled out at the crappy shorebreak. There were a couple of other guys there, I think they were in the same boat as me: Thought the point would be working and took the risk. Oh well, I'm just about done with everything I have to do before the weekend, so I should have a nice window tomorrow.

That Crystal Cove spot is one of my favorites. But is has to be big and REALLY south for it to go, this is a bit SSW. I have had enough great days there that a day like today, when I roll the dice and park and go, is worth it.

I hope the rest of you guys get some. There is lots of swell in the water.

Just got back to Canada after two months in Sydney surfing twice a day basically every day. Surfed from knee high all the way up to some of the biggest waves the area has seen in 10 years (on a 5'7 none the less). Already missing it like crazy as i sit in my home quaranting for the next two weeks...
Picked up a couple of new boards while i was there.
5'10 x 19 x 2' 5/16 27L. Basic shortboard from a local shaper. Nothing fancy but goes well.
Attachment 333642
5'6 x 19' 9/16 x 2 7/16 29.5L. EPS custom from a shaper up the coast. Based on a Pyzel Grelmin. Only got it out for 2 surfs but holy shit does it fly in small surf, so loose as well
Attachment 333643
Said to put this one into semi-retirement. Will leave it in Syd so i have something to surf without flying with boards every trip. Shit adds up fast.
Picked that this one up in Puerto about 5 years ago. Weighs a ton, so many dodgy repairs by and surfed with duct taped over holes for too long.
Attachment 333644

^^^Those thumbnails must feel so loose after surfing a pin for 5 years. New boards are always fun.

Got back in today. Shoulder still holding up. Surfed Cowell on the negative tide with a 3@17. Mostly thigh to shoulder high, fairly consistent, soft 200 plus yard rollers. Long boarding is still fun. It was a good workout for my shoulder with the long paddle back, and short wait between waves. Only lasted 90 minutes before tiring out. And getting run over by the guy who dropped in and eventually cut back into me. He wiped out, but I plowed through. With a 30# zero rocker board with no leash it is a good thing I did not lose my board. It would have sucked. Left due to fatigue, but the 100 person crowd of aged ex-pros to first timers was creating a bit of mayhem in the water by 7AM.

This swell is nice. Lots of local wind up here while it lasts. And it looks small after that.

Friday through Monday was pretty epic down here. I ended up going to Cottons three of the four days. There were some VERY big sets at Cottons, like 2xOH+ in some cases. Luckily it is pretty soft, so as long as you are not completely in the wrong place you can deal with it pretty well. It was both rights and lefts, and while the crowd was on it I was able to line up a few that were really fun. I split time between Cottons, which was huge but crowded, and Barbedwires, which was less crowded but not quite as good. A bunch of pretty good Barbedwires waves combined with 1-2 GREAT Cottons waves made for some great days.

I got in a fun mid-day session today in Newport. The wind held off just enough, and the 68-71 zone had fun shoulder high peaks. It's sunny, the water is warm and it's nice to be in Orange County. There is a young blonde that regularly longboards (reasonably well) in a g-string in the 68-74 tower zone. She is hard to miss. It's funny because you can just feel the glares of sedentary moms in one pieces on the beach who don't want to be reminded that three power walks a week won't make one look hot in a bikini. I really love Newport Beach.

I have not been trunking it, I would still go with a spring suit, but you could get away with trunks in the middle of the day now.

SF has had a pretty decent run of swell over the past few days. OB was surfing better than it normally has a right to in July, great to be back in the water after a few months inland hiding from big cities and COVID.

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Originally Posted by Long duc dong

Friday through Monday was pretty epic down here. I ended up going to Cottons three of the four days. There were some VERY big sets at Cottons, like 2xOH+ in some cases. Luckily it is pretty soft, so as long as you are not completely in the wrong place you can deal with it pretty well. It was both rights and lefts, and while the crowd was on it I was able to line up a few that were really fun. I split time between Cottons, which was huge but crowded, and Barbedwires, which was less crowded but not quite as good. A bunch of pretty good Barbedwires waves combined with 1-2 GREAT Cottons waves made for some great days.

I got in a fun mid-day session today in Newport. The wind held off just enough, and the 68-71 zone had fun shoulder high peaks. It's sunny, the water is warm and it's nice to be in Orange County. There is a young blonde that regularly longboards (reasonably well) in a g-string in the 68-74 tower zone. She is hard to miss. It's funny because you can just feel the glares of sedentary moms in one pieces on the beach who don't want to be reminded that three power walks a week won't make one look hot in a bikini. I really love Newport Beach.

I have not been trunking it, I would still go with a spring suit, but you could get away with trunks in the middle of the day now.

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Such a bummer those south swells don't make it up this far and into Canada.

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Originally Posted by nortonwhis

Such a bummer those south swells don't make it up this far and into Canada.

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Yeah, I guess the distance is just too great.

I was about to say something really stupid, which wouldn't be the first time. I was about to mention how when I was in northern Fiji that area got swells from the north, in our winter. Fiji is tropical, much closer to the north Pacific than BC is to the south Pacific.

One of the things I really love about Orange County is how much swell we get in the summer, unlike most places. Now that I don't have to go into the office I have windows during the day in the winter when I can surf, but for most of my office years I was at my desk from 7-5, meaning my winter surfing was on weekends, which conflicted with Mammoth trips, or not at all. I would usually only surf a couple of times a month in the winter, so if summer was flat, the way it tends to be in Santa Barbara for instance, that would be tough for me. In Newport I would typically get to surf a couple of evenings a week during the summer, sometimes more, and then on weekends, so I was able to have a pretty solid surfing life. Don't get me wrong, deciding whether to surf or ski on the weekend is VERY much of a first world issue, but it is really nice to have surf when the days are long and the water is warm and I'm not tempted by Mammoth.

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Originally Posted by Long duc dong

Yeah, I guess the distance is just too great.

I was about to say something really stupid, which wouldn't be the first time. I was about to mention how when I was in northern Fiji that area got swells from the north, in our winter. Fiji is tropical, much closer to the north Pacific than BC is to the south Pacific.

One of the things I really love about Orange County is how much swell we get in the summer, unlike most places. Now that I don't have to go into the office I have windows during the day in the winter when I can surf, but for most of my office years I was at my desk from 7-5, meaning my winter surfing was on weekends, which conflicted with Mammoth trips, or not at all. I would usually only surf a couple of times a month in the winter, so if summer was flat, the way it tends to be in Santa Barbara for instance, that would be tough for me. In Newport I would typically get to surf a couple of evenings a week during the summer, sometimes more, and then on weekends, so I was able to have a pretty solid surfing life. Don't get me wrong, deciding whether to surf or ski on the weekend is VERY much of a first world issue, but it is really nice to have surf when the days are long and the water is warm and I'm not tempted by Mammoth.

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Ya i hear you for sure. One of the main reasons i never returned full time to oz to surf is that commuting to the city meant basically no chance of surfing in the winter other than weekends. With the whole work from home thing really taking off, i would love to winter in Whistler and potentially winter in Sydney to surf. If I can land a job paying $AUD salaries that would be sick.

South swell does reach to Canada from other side of the world. In fact last week it was overhead for 3 days and very good at select spots.


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Originally Posted by Atrain505

South swell does reach to Canada from other side of the world. In fact last week it was overhead for 3 days and very good at select spots.


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

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Nice!

Sounds like you guys eventually got the same stuff we did.

I have had late morning windows the last couple of days. It is small, thigh high to waist high, but I have been taking out the 7'6" and having a blast. Surfline is calling the water low 70's, so I have trunked it the last couple of days. It really is incredible what warm water and enough foam can do.

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Originally Posted by nortonwhis

. With the whole work from home thing really taking off, i would love to winter in Whistler and potentially winter in Sydney to surf. If I can land a job paying $AUD salaries that would be sick.

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If you can pull that off that would be awesome on so many levels. When I left Tahoe I always dreamed of being able to work from home so that I could winter in Tahoe and summer on the beach. I could actually possible pull that off now if I was not married. I can't complain though, I feel lucky to get the skiing and surfing in that I do.

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Originally Posted by Atrain505

South swell does reach to Canada from other side of the world. In fact last week it was overhead for 3 days and very good at select spots.


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

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Only the biggest of the big though right?
I'll be keeping my eye on the next purple blob though.

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Originally Posted by nortonwhis

Only the biggest of the big though right?
I'll be keeping my eye on the next purple blob though.

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That's right. Though the models are fairly accurate these days with existing swell and how it develops with distance.

That's why the 5 day forecast in indo is more accurate than the three day forecast in the Atlantic. The storms direction and strength are still hard to predict.

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Originally Posted by nortonwhis

Only the biggest of the big though right?
I'll be keeping my eye on the next purple blob though.

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Just keep an eye on local surf forecasts. They are decent for some spots. Terrible for others. But once you get to know how far "off" they are its easy. There a usually at least a few south swells a year that are quite good on Vancouver Island.

Obviously October-April is the money time for surf up here with WNW swells. But there are a few out of season gems every once in a while. I surfed a primo heavy wave in late June this year. Two different days. 8foot+ wind swell. Kinda unheard of. But it does happen.

And there are plenty of waves on the island that rival anywhere in the world. Truly. It takes lots of time to figure out the locations, swell, tide, wind, etc. But they are there.

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Originally Posted by Atrain505

Just keep an eye on local surf forecasts. They are decent for some spots. Terrible for others. But once you get to know how far "off" they are its easy. There a usually at least a few south swells a year that are quite good on Vancouver Island.

Obviously October-April is the money time for surf up here with WNW swells. But there are a few out of season gems every once in a while. I surfed a primo heavy wave in late June this year. Two different days. 8foot+ wind swell. Kinda unheard of. But it does happen.

And there are plenty of waves on the island that rival anywhere in the world. Truly. It takes lots of time to figure out the locations, swell, tide, wind, etc. But they are there.

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Yeah such an enormous coast line, must be some crazy setups, but its so hardcore with the access and the cold. I dunno how people do it.

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Originally Posted by Long duc dong

Nice!

I have had late morning windows the last couple of days. It is small, thigh high to waist high, but I have been taking out the 7'6" and having a blast. Surfline is calling the water low 70's, so I have trunked it the last couple of days. It really is incredible what warm water and enough foam can do.

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LDD, your 7'6 dims are virtually the same as mine. I love it from the grovelers up to a couple feet OH. I think running it as a quad is key. Looks like you guys had a pretty good upwelling event the last couple of days …. water temp drop of 10 degrees at Delmar buoy :eek: Glad I decided to wait till end of August to head down next ;)

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Originally Posted by Xover

LDD, your 7'6 dims are virtually the same as mine. I love it from the grovelers up to a couple feet OH. I think running it as a quad is key. Looks like you guys had a pretty good upwelling event the last couple of days …. water temp drop of 10 degrees at Delmar buoy :eek: Glad I decided to wait till end of August to head down next ;)

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I'm running mine as a quad too and I would agree. I just have to try to avoid pearling it!

The upwelling was solid! I surfed yesterday in HB from around 10-12 and it was 63-64. I wore a spring and I was initially cold. Luckily it was pretty consistent, so I felt like I was constantly paddling, which was good. As the sun came out a spring was tolerable, if brisk. Trunking it would have been rough.

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Originally Posted by nortonwhis

Yeah such an enormous coast line, must be some crazy setups, but its so hardcore with the access and the cold. I dunno how people do it.

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The right gear. In the winter that means 7mm booties, 5mm gloves, and a good 5/4 or warmer wetsuit. Summer can be 3mm booties and gloves and a 4/3 hooded wetsuit.

Also good rain gear and a dry bag for long hikes to the best waves. But when you get super long fast walls that allow for many, many turns on one wave or thumping barrels with just you and your buddies. It's worth it. Waves like this elsewhere in the world have 50+ people on them.

Tuesday and Wednesday were really fun. I had late morning windows and caught the tide push while it was still clean. After a slow week it was nice to see shoulder high peaks with lined up walls. The downside as it got cold! It was 58 on Tuesday, a bit warmer on Wednesday.

Yes, I know that to people in Santa Cruz and BC it sounds lame to complain about 58 degree water.

Sunday morning was actually surprisingly fun south of HB pier.

It was not big, waist high, maybe slightly bigger, but the shape was decent and I brought out the 7'6" for some glide. The crowd was pretty spread out, so it was easy to just keep finding fun ones. It was one of those days where I was REALLY glad I brought out a bigger board, it would not have been as much fun on something with less volume. The water warmed up a bit, I was able to wear a spring suit, though it was a bit brisk at first.

I might have a bit of a late morning window tomorrow. It would be nice to see some real swell arrive.

I hope the rest of you guys are getting something. The south Pacific has turned off after pumping for a while. Surfline does not have anything in the 3-4 range or bigger for OC until 8/10.

^^^^^Evolved B2. Not sure the volume on your 7’6”, but my 5’9” Skinny B2 has enough float for small (knee high plus surf) most days. Little rocker and lots of volume and turns on a dime. They have a showroom in Huntington. If I lived down there I’d check it out. It cost me $320 new. Not the best glass job but at least as good as a $700 Lost.

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Originally Posted by Atrain505

The right gear. In the winter that means 7mm booties, 5mm gloves, and a good 5/4 or warmer wetsuit. Summer can be 3mm booties and gloves and a 4/3 hooded wetsuit.

Also good rain gear and a dry bag for long hikes to the best waves. But when you get super long fast walls that allow for many, many turns on one wave or thumping barrels with just you and your buddies. It's worth it. Waves like this elsewhere in the world have 50+ people on them.

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Well, technically, not every where. I live in a very popular surf town with 8 million people within driving distance. All the spots in town are super crowded for sure. But I regularly get world class waves a ten minute drive and 5-15 minute hike from the car with 0-8 people out. It is crazy how easy it is to get away from the crowds here when conditions align (swell, tide, wind). Lemmings are lemmings.

Surf non world class waves Monday with just my buddy. Another thin I love about this region. Surf report was “flat to 1’”. We surfed a wind swell magnet and had consistent waist to chest high surf. Even got a barrel on two. Nothing special, but still had a load of fun. And I need the paddling exercise to get ready for the fall.

Boy, it has been flat in San Diego for about 10 days now. Waiting for October.