Iced Coffey (HMB Jetty)

The tide is high at dawn all this week, but with limited daylight a fortnight before winter solstice, that’s the only time I can get out to surf on a workday. I couldn’t round up any of my buddies for moral support getting back into the cold NorCal water after our Oahu vacation, so I dug deep for the self-motivation. Still, I wasn’t expecting that the air temperature would be hovering just over freezing at the beach, half the temperature of my last session at Diamond Head. A cold welcome home indeed!

No one was out as the sky lightened enough for a surf check. At first I thought I might have to look elsewhere in Half Moon Bay because only small waves were breaking shallow at the Jetty, but then there were some larger outside sets rolling through that looked promising. By the time I suited up (after first ducking back into my car for a few minutes of re-warming), one guy had paddled out on the main peak. The second peak looked better to me, especially since it was breaking left as well as right, so I gave him wide berth.

I watched the sun rise in pinks and oranges over a glassy sea. There were long shivery lulls between rideable waves. On my new Coffey shortboard again for only the third time, I bagged a couple of nice chest-high lefts with short shoulders amidst a handful of lesser rides. My breath steamed in the chilly air, and within a hour my feet were clods of ice while my fingers ached with cold. Time to switch to my thicker booties and gloves. I rode another left in to the beach, crossed the road on unfeeling feet, worked my car key from its wetsuit pocket with stiff fingers, retrieved my water jug and dumped hot water down my suit – aaah!

I miss Hawaii.

Frost on the grass

Surfline: Modest, holding SW groundswell and small/leftover WNW swell are on offer this morning. Most areas are a little sluggish with the deep morning high tide, and generally offering up 2-3'+ surf. Top exposures pull in some occasional chest/shoulder high+ sets, becoming a bit more frequent as the tide backs out(for areas that like the lower tide). Conditions are nice and clean thanks to light East-ENE winds, which look to continue through the morning. Buoy 46012: (Wave) SWELL: 4.9 ft at 12.1 s NW 100 / WIND WAVE: 0.7 ft at 3.8 s WNW / WVHT: 4.9 ft / APD: 8.4 s / MWD: 313° (Met) WSPD: 4 kts / GST: 6 kts / WVHT: 4.9 ft / DPD: 12.0 s / WDIR: 90° / ATMP: 52.0° F / WTMP: 54.0° F. Tide: 5.5’ high.