Under the Weather (Linda Mar)

I was under the weather today, literally and figuratively. Glowering clouds dripping with cold rain clamped an oppressive lid on the world, and I felt out of sorts and lethargic, like I was coming down with something. I needed to pick up my Insulator wetsuit from Sonlight Surf Shop, back from having the fin cut repaired in just over a month. Rip Curl had to replace the entire mid panel which runs from thighs to chest, but the cost was only $27, plus $12 for shipping.

That's not the sun; it's a water droplet. Or a UFO.

Despite the weather and my own sorry state, I couldn't very well drive to the coast without surfing if there were halfway decent waves, so I packed the car just in case. By the time I arrived I was feeling a bit better. The winds had clocked around to the south as forecast, so some of Linda Mar's usual closeouts were holding up shoulders and looked worth a paddle out. The offshore wind was rather too much of a good thing, and lacking my usual energy, I wasn't getting over the lip against it. Stormy conditions made the surface choppy, and my brief perk-up faded. After barely escaping out the back of a head-high closeout with spray falling around me like hurricane rain, I caught one just-broken wave north of the pumphouse and decided to try the smaller section to the south. While the northern peaks were scarcely populated, the southern parts were clogged with surfers, and I had trouble claiming an empty wave. Finally one came to me, mine all mine, and I landed a nice shoulder-high drop and rode it in. The rain was falling hard and steady as I walked up the beach. I saw J-Bird's car in the parking lot but we hadn't managed to connect in the water during my short time out. Perhaps if I had that flashing light on my helmet...

Surfline: 2-3 feet+. Crumbly, mostly clean lines with short sections and end corners on offer. Short-mid period NW (300+) swell mix and minimal SSW Southern Hemi swell combine for mostly waist-chest-shoulder high surf this afternoon, with a few larger sets working through at top exposures. Onshore winds are on the rise creating textured/bumpy surface conditions and the surf is a bit mixed up and disorganized overall. Buoy 46012: (Wave) SWELL: 4.9 ft at 12.1 s NW 17 / WIND WAVE: 2.3 ft at 4.5 s W / WVHT: 5.2 ft / APD: 6.8 s / MWD: 308° (Met) WSPD: 12 kts / GST: 14 kts / WVHT: 5.2 ft / DPD: 12.0 s / WDIR: 190° / ATMP: 50.2° F / WTMP: 51.6° F. Tide: 3.5' to not quite 4'.