Kelp Slalom (38th Ave)

Although the late afternoon low tide was probably perfect for Cowells, westside Santa Cruz has been taken over for an entire week by the Coldwater Classic surf contest. Grrr. So we ended up doing the kelp slalom on the eastside.

Luke brought the latest addition to his quiver, a 7'0" Ward Coffey, a remarkable $75 Craigslist find. It's probably similar to the custom board Ward is shaping for me right now, although I think a bit narrower, so I was eager to try it out and swapped him for my 8'3" as soon as he joined me and J-Bird in the lineup. I caught a few short rides with it, and I can't wait to get mine - it's going to be fun!

Pleasure Point from the water at 38th Ave

Back on Magic, I got a lot of long fun rides, both lefts and rights. J-Bird and I shared one right, while Luke paddled his new stick all the way to Pleasure Point to try for some bigger waves. The water was so clear that I had a fascinating glimpse of the world beneath the waves as I flew over the kelpy reef, turning to avoid the thickest clumps of seaweed. As I paddled back out after a nice left, a harbor seal popped up 10 feet away and stared at me with wide eyes before ducking under a wave.

We stayed out until the sun set and it was getting hard to see the surf. Had the clouds parted to let the nearly full moon shine down, the session might've gone longer, although a light breeze was chilling in the dim twilight.

Surfline: A fun sized mix of holding mid period and new/building NW swell is on offer this afternoon as some minimal SW-SSW swell mixes in. Most breaks are good for waist-chest-head high surf, with top exposures pulling in some overhead+ sets. Winds remain light offering up mostly clean conditions as the tide heads for a 4:30pm low. Buoy 46012: (Wave) SWELL: 6.6 ft at 14.8 s NW / WIND WAVE: 1.0 ft at 2.9 s SSE / WVHT: 6.6 ft / APD: 9.8 s / MWD: 314°