Surfing Ruined My Life

March 2017 Surf Sessions

3-31-17 AM Session: 2-4+ ft, Rincon
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 17
Miles Driven: 30
When I got to Rincon this morning I was pleasantly surprised by stiff off shores winds, barreling lines up and down the point and a very light crowd.  Upon getting in the water I was unpleasantly surprised by how fucking cold the water was.  It had to be 48F out there.  I thought my finger nails were going to pop off I was so cold.  Any time all the sections look good at Rincon I just start up at Indicator and surf my way down then walk up and do it again.  I don’t know if it was the extremely cold water or that I was tired from all the surfing and working the past couple of days or the weak wind swell, maybe combination of all three, I just couldn’t get into a groove.  On my third drift the wind went hard south east and trashed the place.  I almost had to paddle in.  I heard Silver Strand was fun all day.  I was stuck at work.  It was my first actual on location even with this new company and I must say it was the most smooth a gig has ever went for me.  Have I mentioned how much I am liking this new job?

3-30-17 PM Session: 3-4+ ft, Rincon
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves surfed: 17
Miles Driven: 19
Initially I thought that I was going to have to work till dark.  Then I ended up blowing through the prep list chef gave me by 5:30 allowing to just clean the kitchen and get out of the there.  The wind had picked up super hard out of the NW which is off shore in the Cove and the buoys were showing plenty of swell in the water.  Since I was only five minutes from Rincon it seemed like a crime not to check it.  To the dismay of my girl friend who was hoping I would spent the evening with her Rincon had some solid sets coming through with a very light crowd most likely due to all of the wind and current.  If it was early season I may have not paddled, but there is such little time left in the season.  I am not about to squander any point session.  Whenever Rincon has one of these heavy wind and current days I start up at the River Mouth despite the mess factor up there.  My strategy is at the very least by the time I get out there I will be at the top of the Cove and most times I get an alright one in the River Mouth.  The light was waning fast limiting me to two drifts.  There were some really sick ones out there, but positioning with all the current and rising tide was tough.  I luck into a few that stoked me out and one draining barrel I came out of up in the River Mouth.
3-30-17 AM Session: 3-5+ ft, Rincon
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 18
Miles Driven: 30
Got up feeling a little sore, but stoked.  I was able to convince my new chef into letting me come in most days at 11 or noon instead of 8am.  This will allow me to continue the California surf bum life style I have become rather accustomed to the past 11 years.  Once again folks for those of you naysayers out there is yet another reason why surfing has ruined my life by not allowing me to work with in the confines of the stereotypical 9-5, Monday thru Friday work week.  As a result I am forced to be very selective about my employment at more times then not to my detriment finding that I am underemployed and therefore under paid and always broke.  Hey, I get waves nearly everyday and that worth more then any currency there is out there.  I got to Rincon and there were still solid head to overhead sets coming through the Cove.  My old friend and former couch guy Dave from Florida met me up with his new girl friend.  Turns out he has been living in Oxnard the past two years and just not surfing as much as he used to.  In classic Lisanti fashion I welcomed him back by accidentally running him over on my first wave.  Sorry Dave.  There was a lot of weird south wind warble on it, without the physical south wind making conditions and finding a good one tricky, especially on my back hand.  I did manage to get three to the freeway and one little tube.  When it came time to get one in I struggled to find a decent last one in due to the shitty waves, rising tide and annoying crowd.  Luckily my new Job is in Carp just an 8 minute drive from Rincon.  I think this is the start of a beautiful work situation.
3-29-17 PM Session: 4-6+ ft, Rincon
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 19
Miles Driven: 30
I started a new job today over at Omni Catering in Carpinteria.  I had to work at 8 am and once again I find myself back in the kitchen in a situation where my objective is to blow through large amounts of prep.  Apparently this is the only work that I am cut out for.  It was rather nice when I got off to already be in Carp and therefore I made it to Rincon in under five minutes.  The crowd was heavy, but the wave was flawless.  In my opinion it was as good as Rincon gets, solid over head sets with bigger bombs, perfect shape through the cove and barrels.  There was enough consistency that there were plenty of waves to go around.  I don’t know what got into, maybe I went into that after work this my home break and I am getting the good ones no matter what it takes mode, but I literally got tons of sick ones.  There were easily 100 surfers in the Cove.  I had one that I got barreled three times on just getting clipped by the lip trying to come out of the third.  Out of 19 waves 14 went all the way to the freeway.  It was one of those surfs that reminds why I get up every morning and keep on keeping on.
3-28-17 PM Session: 2-4+ ft, Rincon
Time in Water: 2.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 22
Miles Driven: 47
I got up early hoping to get some fun mid tide Rincon.  By the time I got there it was already too high and had some shitty south wonk on it.  The top was all torn up and the Cove looked fat and crowded for what was there.  Unmotivated to paddled I decided to have a look at Hammonds since the swell was pretty west.  Hammonds looked like Rincon only a few feet smaller.  Over it I decided to head home and fix some of my board which I have procrastinated all winter.  Around 3 I decided despite the shitty south wind to go to have a look around.  I had a look at Rincon, but it was still really torn up and crowded.  From there I had a look at Little ‘Con and Pitas, both of which were uninspiring.  I decided to head back to Rincon and hope for the best.  Despite the mess I got into a good rhythm and began getting a few good ones.  The key to south wind Rincon is to take the double ups of the later waves in a set this way the face is a bit smoother from the previous waves.  I even managed to pull into and come out of a backdoor barrel.  Then it got crazy crowded and I spent nearly a half hour floating around.  In this time I got cold and on my next good one decided to go in.
3-27-17 PM Session: 1-3+ ft, Rincon
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 28
Miles Driven: 30
The wind was up howling like an injured wolf.  Low tide was mid day.  I knew the only place to really find anything would be Rincon Cove.  I slept in, did a little gardening then ate a leasurely lunch.  I got to Rincon and it was pretty torn up.  The wind decided to have a little bit so south west in it making a bit of a mess of things.  There wasn’t any place else to really go and there were only about six people out.  It was a bit smaller then I would have liked causing me to opt for my fish.  Despite the chop I just got in the zone and some how found my way onto all sorts of fun ones.  The fish though still feeling too big went rather well.  Though small and shitty I made apple pie out of rotten apples.  One thing I can say is that it has been nice to hit the points consistently the past few days.  With more swell on the way it looks like March is trying to go out with a bang.
3-26-17 PM Session: 2-3+ ft, Little Rincon
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 22
Miles Driven: 56
My girl and I enjoyed a lazy Sunday morning followed breakfast with her dad at the Mesa Cafe, a great little eatery here on the Mesa.  From there we headed south in search of some waves.  I got off at Bates to have a look at Rincon.  One and a half lots were full and I was not in the mood to deal with a crowd,  Pat ended up passing me at the exit and hit me up that he was going to have a look at Little Rincon.  I followed.  Right off the pier was rather crowded and the best ones were going through it.  I had hate shooting the pier backside.  It is really stressful and the consequences, which I have experienced, when you miss are very unpleasant.  The Mussel Shoals section has had a great sand bar all season and though not as big as the top was peeling easily 150 yards plus on the good ones and no one was out.  Pat, Mcgil and I decided to give it a go.  I stated out on my short board, but after it took me ten waves and one angry vent on some poor kook who accidentally dropped in on me (sorry, guy I was wrong to act like such an ass.  I was just really frustrated.  I owe you a wave bud) to get a good one I decided to switch to my fish.  The waves were really wonky with the south wind and backwash from the sea wall.  There were some really shitty flat sections too.  My fish was the equalizer and I began getting some decent rides.  It was good to get more time on the new board as well.  Once again I still feel like it is just a tad too much board for me.  I guess I will have to make the next one a bit slimmer.  For a Sunday to find a point wave all to yourself with two of your mates and have your girl on the beach, how could you not call that a good afternoon?
3-25-17 AM Session: 2-4+ ft, Rincon
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 25
Miles Driven: 30
My girl wanted to go to LA to visit a soon to close WWII Japanese internment camp exhibit at the Japanese American Museum.  First before any such thing was going to take place I had to take advantage of the late season WNW swell at Rincon.  I knew with the 9 am high tide that I might be able to score a window with a light crowd.   Sure enough I was right and there were some chest to head high lines coming through up top with a rather light crowd.  Stoked I paddled.  Of course as soon as I hit the water the wind went south tearing up the faces.  This also kept the crowd at bay.  Despite the shit wind there were a few decent ones to be had especially the inside double ups.  I made the most out of what was on offer up at Low Indicator and high River Mouth.  Far from epic Rincon I did manage to get my fill.  After that it was off to LA to a very boring unimpressive museum.  At least I got my waves.
3-24-17 AM Session: 2-3 ft, Rincon
Time in Water: 3 hrs
Waves Surfed: 18
Miles Driven: 30
Emma Wood was my initial call this morning.  On the way there I got a call from Ryan that it was grotesquely crowded and not epic.  Fearing the wind and seeing a few fun ones coming through at Rincon I opted to cut my losses and take my fish out.  I started at the top, where the decreasing tide and increasing crowd quickly turned it into frustration. I surfed my way into the Cove since I had my fish meaning I could ride anything and was actually where I saw some of the better waves anyway.  Sets were slow and the swell was waning although there were a few choice waves out there the pack of long boarders made getting them very difficult.  In between waves were also seldom. I sat around getting one wave every twenty minutes or so.  After three hours of battling, freezing and pure boredom I called it quits on an alright set wave.  As my luck had it the wind stayed down till two meaning I could have gotten some fun Strand.  The one time I didn’t gamble I lost.  Oh well I still got a few keepers.
3-23-17 AM Session: 3-4+ ft, Rincon
Time in the Water: 2.5 hrs
waves surfed: 22
Miles Driven: 30
Yesterday my interview went so well that they called me in at 10 am to make me a rather lucrative offer.  Just when I think I’m out I get pulled right back in.  I hate the fact that this evil thing called money constantly forces me to do what I don’t want to.  Feeling rather demoralized having once again compromised my scruples I headed to Rincon.  There was a bit of short period WNW mixed with a lots of wind swell.  It was a bit more mushy and broken up then I would have like, plus the crowd was a bit heavy for what was on offer.  My boy Angers was out and there really were not any other options.  I paddled up at Indicator.  Despite the wind there were some real bombs up there.  I figured with current would just float my way down.  I ended up having a sick surf.  My first two drifts I was in perfect groove with all the good ones.  On my last drift the wind took a bit of a turn to south.  It didn’t take long for the point to become complete trash.  Hoping maybe the wind had went east down in Oxnard I went in and ran to my car.  From what I could gather the wind was onshore everywhere south, onshore at all of the points too.  For whatever reason the surf gods  wanted to fuck everyone in the 805 today.  Gabe called from El Cap and said the wind was shit there too.  Whatever, I still got mine.  
3-22-17 PM Session: 1-3+ ft, Lead Better
Time in the Water: 1.5 hrs
waves surfed: 26
Miles Driven: 52
I got up ready to surf then i got a phone call for an impromptu job interview. And at this point, normally I would brush off something like this and just go surfing. But being the case that my financial situation is less than stellar I decided to take the interview. It was for a small company in Carp and I must say it went quite well. I know I wanted to take a break from the food industry, but I guess cooking and catering is the only work I’m cut out for. Since anytime I apply for those jobs I get called back. Being in Carp already I decided to have a look at Rincon and despite the fact that there should have been waves there conditions were pitiful. Hoping that the wind swell might of been better South, I had a look at Little Rincon and Pitas to know avail. Over it I cruised home and figure I have a look in front of my house and fish it. So around 6 o’clock I had a look in front, sure enough there was a little wave coming in at Lead Better. The point was packed. While looking at the beach break, I noticed there were some kill-able peaks coming in. I paddled and found a few fun ones. It wasn’t long though before a couple of guys decided to paddle and sit on me. It didn’t matter, I’ve lived on this break so long that no one is getting waves off me. Especially that crowd. As it started to get dark the crowd at the point died down and I paddled over and got a few. Far from an epic surf I was stoked I paddled. Besides, it’s really “special” when I get to surf in front of my own house.
3-21-17 No Surfing: 1-2+ ft
More small conditions was the news today.  It was rainy, cold and uninspiring plus with two Jalama days in a row I couldn’t really justify spending more gas for less then chest high surf.  Instead I stayed home and put my head to grindstone on the job hunt.  If anyone out there has some money making opportunities please hit me up.  The well is running dry fast.

3-20-17 PM Session: 2-3+ ft, Jalama
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 25
Miles Driven: 126
After yesterday I sort of had the Jalama bug in me.  I ended up oversleeping a bit and all reports from down south were less then appealing.  I saw that there was SE winds and still some solid swell up there.  I was hoping with the low tide and wind that I could get some good ones at Tarantellas.  The swell had dropped a tiny bit from the day before and the sets were not really hitting T’s well and most were breaking right on dry reef cause of the lack of size.  Unfortunately the tide as way too low for cracks as it was just small and mushy or closed out.  I had a feeling it would get a lot better as the tide came in.  I hunkered down for the wait.  Around two a noticeable tide push was apparent.  The wind was still a tad too side shore for it to be great, but there were a few sets and I had made the drive thus wasn’t going home empty handed.  I paddled and the conditions were about as annoying as I had thought.  As the session wore on, tide filling in and wind began to calm down it got worlds better.  It was still a forced paddle, but there were some gems if you were in the right place.
3-19-17 PM Session: 3-4+ ft, Jalama
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 24
Miles Driven: 126
No one can ever dispute the fact that I am not a true Santa Barbarian road warrior, especially when then winter has come to a close. My girl and I had to be up north for a new exhibition opening at the Santa Ynez Valley Museum & Carraige House.  I must say it is a magnificent little museum portraying early life in the valley.  The place is totally worth a visit at only $5 if you are in the area.  I know I will go back.  After the we made our way over to Solvang to meet some of her family for a little wine tasting.  All this worked out perfectly for my plans to get a few at Jalama on the incoming tide just before dark.  We got there just as full high was approaching.  conditions were glassy and there was a solid combo of SW/NW swell in the water.  The campgrounds looked fun, but seeing larger ones down the beach we made the trek to Cracks.  Sure enough it was solid chest to head plus with no one out and and beefy.  Pumped I was all over it.  There was a tad too much backwash on it since the beach is so steep there at the moment, but besides that it was really fun.   Best Jalama I have gotten in quite some time.
3-18-17 PM Session: 2-3 ft, Santa Clara River Mouth
Time in Water: 1 hr 20 mins
Waves Surfed: 23
Miles Driven: 64
Last night Gabe came into town and pretty much everyone I know was at the Wild Cat getting gnarly for St. Patrick’s Day.  I had bought this green 70’s style polyester suit last year just for the occasion.  Last year was when I was supposed to have worn but I had gotten very ill and was unable to make it out.  This year was a must.  It was more then a fun night and out and a bit of a ruckus after party at my place as well.  The morning was super small with the very low tide and lack of swell.  We sat around and watched a bit of the Snapper comp since it was finals day.  Of course when one watches surfing it pumps him up to surf.  When the mens side was finished with the quarters and they were putting the women in Gabe and I decided to head south for a grovel.  Surprisingly the River Mouth had some decent little waist to chest high south peaks coming in up and down the beach.  No one was out and it was clean.  The only down side was the fact that they were pumping the harbor making the water absolutely gross.  Still we both had a good time hepatitis aside.
3-17-17 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Silver Strand
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 32
Miles Driven: 78
Feeling much better I got up and set out for a surf.  I heard the wind was hard SW down in Ventura so I had a look at Rincon.  It definitely looked fun for my fish.  The crowd was bit heavy for what was on offer and there was a crew of 10 groms about to paddle from some where down south.  From there I checked everything along Sea Cliff to no avail.  Despite some fuzzy intel in the form of a third party that Strand was shit I made the hail Mary play anyway.  For once my diligence paid off and The Bowl had some fun cleanish peaks with a light crowd.  I was out there and moved right into a full on tear.  It was super fun and I got into a really nice rhythm.  If it wasn’t for the cold water I could have surfed it all day.
3-16-17 PM Session: 2-4+ ft, Silver Strand
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 28
Miles Driven: 78
Last night was a rough one for me.  I have been dealing with a bit of a stomach bug the past few days, probably dirty ocean related.   My discomfort kept me up for the lion share of the night.  I slept in and really was not even considering going for a surf considering the meager readings on the buoy and lack of quality for conditions.  Ryan called me around 1:3o and said he heard Silver Strand wasn’t bad and breaking through the high tide.  After the morning nap I was feeling a bit better and decided to give it a go.  I checked the North End and it was a little mushier then I would have liked, plus I don’t really care for that side any how.  I saw lots of white water down by the Ship and drove over for a look.  Though it was a bit more disorganized the waves had more throw to them and there were only three guys out.  It looked really peaky and fun.  I was on it.  I had a few decent ones and even a good barrel right off the bat. Then the tide began to steadily drop and the wind came up bit making conditions less then ideal.  Still I stayed out and grinded through a few more.  The water was freezing and it wasn’t long when I succumbed to it.
3-15-17 No Surfing: 1-2 ft
Miles Driven: 56
I had…wait for it, a JOB INTERVIEW today.  I took off February to surf and if one was to take any month off in 2017 (I know it’s just the start of the year) it might as well have been February.  I don’t think the waves dropped below chest high and nothing but good days at all the points and/or beach breaks.  I only missed one day of surf the entire month and that was due to some really stormy conditions.  Anyhow, now it’s March and spring time conditions have really begun to set in.  That being the case it is time for me to find a new employer.  After all surfing has not fit the bill in quite sometime and it’s not like Surfingruinedmylife.net is paying the rent either.  The position is for a kitchen manager at an organic juice company.  I actually really like the hours and responsibility not to mention the outfit.  With any luck they shall bestow the job on me.  Following the interview  I headed to Rincon in search of a fish sessions.  The wind was up pretty good making it the only viable option. Unfortunately it was really small even for my fish and a the tide still a bit high.  I took a look at Emma if not for any other reason then to waste some time. Of course it was way too windy.  I headed back to Rincon for another look and with the lower tide it was slightly better.  The crowd had gotten a bit thicker as well and way too many long boarders for my liking.  I could have maybe gotten a few, but I wasn’t in the mood to float around for the two plus hours that would have taken.

3-14-17 PM Session: 1-2+ ft, C-Street
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 20
Miles Driven: 64
The morning was foggy and buoys looked rather small.  Rather then get stuck with everything too fat on the impending five foot high tide I opted to sleep in.  Around one I headed south in the hopes of some small south peaks at River Mouth.  The wind was a bit too hard.  I did find a bunch of sea glass while checking it.  Considering my options I diced to just take my fish to C-street since I am still learning the thing anyway.  It was about knee to waist south peaks with a bit of a bump on it from the wind.  There were only three guys out so I paddled.  The fish did what it does when its small.  Still I think I may have made this one too big for me.  There is way more testing to take place.
3-13-17 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Santa Clara River Mouth
Time in Water: 2 hrs 15 mins
Waves Surfed: 31
Miles Driven: 64
I really wasn’t sure what to expect this morning.  After a look at the buoys I saw that there was enough south and lingering NW swell to warrant a drive south to Ventura Harbor.  Another foggy day I must have lucked out for a little window of sun right when I was checking it.  The left I was surfing yesterday still had a few and there were only two guys on it.  Meanwhile the right up the beach had easily eight takers.  Ryan met me and we paddled.  We must have jumped in right as the dead high lull was setting in cause it got super inconsistent.  As the tide began to drop things improved a bit, till it got too low and then began closing out.  I found a few decent lefts that stoked me out for the day.

3-12-17 AM Session: 2-4+ ft, Santa Clara River Mouth
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 25
Miles Driven: 64
My girl and I headed down south for a little bit of surf/beach day.  We had hoped the fog might lift earlier down there as it often does.  Of course it was socked in like Santa Barbara.  There was a fun chest to head plus wave coming in up and down the beach.  The crowd was solid, but there were plenty of waves and peaks to be had so everyone was rather spread out.  I found a little left that I basically had to myself, maybe occasionally sharing with two or there other guys.  Then a crowd of like 12 kids showed up like they were dropped off on a bus and clogged my spot.  After that another ten guys paddled over. I had already had my fill and decided to call it a day.  Later my chick took me to this cool little river off the 154 and we capped out the evening with a little sunset dinner and bottle rose’ on the beach in Gaviota.  I would say it was a pretty awesome day.
 3-11-17 PM Session: 2-3 ft, Little Rincon
Time in Water: 1 hr
Waves Surfed: 17
Miles Driven: 59
Last night after a bottle of wine and a few glasses Prosecco of  Bizzaro, my lady and I decided to hit the Wild Cat.  With that as a solid alcohol base it wasn’t long before I found myself in Fancytown.  I spent the majority of the day recuperating.  Finally at around 4pm I decided to try and get the motivation for a surf.  Rincon looked solid, but was absolutely packed for the inconsistent peaks coming through.  I looked at Little ‘Con, but it looked small and soft for the five guys that were on it.  Pitas also looked like shit, it was too low for Emma and I couldn’t find parking at Hobsons.  With all that in mind I went back to Little Rincon and paddled my new fish.  I made this one a tad larger, 5’5 with a bit more width and volume.  Being a bit hungover and behind the eight ball, plus the conditions average I couldn’t get the best feel for it.  I may have made this one a tad too big for me.  I still have lots more testing to do before I can make that an actualization.
3-10-17 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Emma Wood
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 39
Miles Driven: 56
The plan was to wait for the tide to drop a bit then head to Rincon and try out my new fish. Then my boy Rob hit me up around 9 am letting me know he was going to be shooting at Emma.  I figured I would cruise out there, get a few then move on to Rincon.  I ended up frothing super hard as it was solid chest plus, glassy and barreling.  I had a couple of sick little shacks worth taking to the bank.  Then there were plenty of rip-able ones too.  The sand there is still far from epic, but hopefully it is getting there.  I ended up surfing so hard that I burnt myself out for the rest of the day.  I have to save something for tomorrow.

3-9-17 AM Session: 2-4+ ft, Jalama
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 22
Miles Driven: 126
Life is all about decisions and this morning when faced once again with another day of shitty surf I was besides myself on what to do.  I really didn’t want to go back to the Harbor and sit in that cesspool again.  Jalama was offshore and wind reports for the day up there were rather light.  I the only thing working against me were the tide extremities.  I had not been up there all winter and was interested in checking out the sand.  I cruised north and when I got there the swell was all cut up.  There most have been some serious wind out to sea cause although not wind the waves were all broken up.  The camp ground was the cleanest, but also rather weak looking.  I made the walk down the beach.  Tarantellas had one guy on it, but the waves were hitting the reef funky.  Cracks also had one head on it and it seemed like a some what kill-able A-frame coming through.  I paddled and immediately remembered how much colder the water is up there in the spring then down south.  I thought my fingernails were going to pop off.  Turns out there was way more back wash and wobble on the face then one would like making it very tough to surf.  I managed a few decent ones, but over all the session was a lot of work.  Still it was a wonderful day up there.  The air had to be like 70 and sunny.  There were all of these little water falls running down the cliffs and everything was as green as can be.  Though I didn’t score it was worth the trip for the vistas if not anything else.
3-8-17 AM Session: 2-4+ ft, Santa Clara River Mouth
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Miles Driven: 64
Waves Surfed: 22
I had decided to meet up with this guy Rob to shoot some photos this morning.  He had contacted me through my instagram and I’m always down to try and get some shots so figured why not.  Of course whenever I decide to get up early to beat the wind it decides to get on  it early as well.  There was easily 5-10 knots of NW wind tearing through the line up.  There were some solid ones coming through and it looked as though there were a few lefts to be had.  We made the most of the crap conditions, which only got worse as the tide dropped and wind got harder.  My boy John and I struggled to get anything worthwhile.  The water was a disgusting black and smelled like vomit.  I almost threw up on my first duck dive.  The quality was fucked due to the harbor dredging and it is going to continue till the end of the month.  I literally stunk on the car ride home.  The water was a tad warmer those still bone chilling. As bad as I thought it was we still managed a few photos. A day surfing still beats a day not.
 3-7-17 AM Session: 1-3 ft, Rincon
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 21
Miles Driven: 44
I really need to start getting my ass out of bed earlier.  For now on I am going to make a serious attempt to be out the door by 8:30 the latest.  It is officially wind season and if I want to actually get some fun waves I need to get out of the surf sloth I have been in the past year and beat the wind.  I had a look at Rincon cause there was still a fair amount of wind swell in the water and yesterday it looked like it wasn’t bad there when I was driving home.  There were some small weak wind swell lines.  I thought I would have a look at Pitas just so see if it was focusing the short period energy up top as is sometimes the case with these small wind swells.  There was a wave there with two guys on it. It was fun enough looking and I probably should have just paddled it with the dropping tide.  As I was checking the place I felt more and more onshore wind and after yesterday’s Silver Strand disaster I just couldn’t trust it.  I decided to go back to Rincon and ride my fish.  Though small and absolutely terrible for a short board on my fish it was rather fun.

3-6-17 AM Session: 3-4+ ft, Silver Strand
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 15
Miles Driven: 78
The only up side to all the wind that kept me out of the water yesterday was that it created waves for me to ride today.  Sure enough there was lots of steep wind swell in the water.  It was a little to short period and steep to make the points great.  I heard Strand had a chest to head high wave with alright shape.  Though not epic there were some clean peaks with a light crowd on the south end, thus I paddled.  As per usual as soon as I hit the water the wind picked up out of the NW and steadily trashed the conditions that were far from good to begin with.  I picked off a few though most were just weak peaks that had nothing to offer.  The few good ones I did get were fun just wish it could have lasted a bit longer.  I suppose I better get used to surfing trash for I think we are in for a pretty meager spring.
3-5-17 No Surfing: 2-3+ ft
We had made it to Carmel the previous afternoon.  That night we hit the town.  So far every trip to Carmel I was left unimpressed with any of the eateries I had visited.  This time we decided to try out a Spanish place called Mundaka.  I picked for both the menu and the name.  How could I turn my back on a resturant named after one of the best lefts in Europe.  I must say the place met all of my requirements for a pleasant evening out.  The wine list was impressive, the food wonderful, the service friendly and diligent and the dinning atmosphere splendid.  If you are in Carmel I would highly recommend Mundaka.  I even got to meet the owner Gabe, who was a chill guy indeed.  After that we stumbled upon a little night life spot named Barmel.  How I missed this place in all of my trips to Carmel is beyond me.  It was like a small bar/club, where the drinks were solid and DJ on point.  We got sloshed, danced, made drunken asses of ourselves and then went home.  Next morning the wind was rain were up trashing the surf.  We got some breakfast and headed back south.  Anything with any size was all torn up and anything clean was tiny.  Even though I didn’t score any real surf on this trip I had a great time with my lady anyhow.  As a matter of fact I would say it was the most fun I  have ever had in Carmel.

3-4-17 AM Session: 2-3 ft, Pico Creek, San Simeon
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 26
Miles Driven: 134 (not based on round trip)
I was intent on getting some waves on the way up the coast.  As usual when its small I set my sights on the Big Sur area.  I knew there were all sorts of issues coming from the Carmel side but had hopes I could get just far enough north from the San Simeon side to find something to surf.  A very recent slide had the PCH closed at Ragged Point rendering the route useless to me.  I called Gabe who knows that area better then me for some advice and I had a look around.  I wanted to surf Light House, but the quality was poor and a crowd of angry elephant seal bulls made me think twice about leaving my chick on the beach while I surfed.  I  had saw some beach break peaks at Pico and went back there.  Though small there were a few south lines coming through with the incoming tide.  I found a few meager lefts and made the most out of the slop on offer.
3-3-17 No Surfing: 2-3 ft
Last night for whatever reason my car alarm decided to keep going off for absolutely no reason what so ever.  This kept me up till around 2 am till I finally got over it and disconnected my car battery.  Of course something like this would only happen right before I was about to head on a road trip for the weekend with my girl to Carmel for our one year anniversary.  I got up and instead of cruising for some waves down south I was bound for the dealer to see if they could figure out what was the problem.  Six hours of sitting around a dealership later to my surprise…they couldn’t find anything wrong with the alarm, or my car’s electrical system.  They did find a nail in my back tire which was lucky for me and helped me to decide to take my girl’s car instead of my own.  From what I heard all I missed was more small waves at the River Mouth.

3-2-17 AM Session: 2-3 ft, Santa Clara River Mouth
Time in Water: 1 hr 45 mins
Waves Surfed: 26
Miles Driven: 64
The small south decided to stick around thus I headed back to Ventura Harbor.  The wind was on it when I got there, but just like yesterday it backed off enough to give me a window to paddle.  Of course there were a handful of others who had the same idea thus crowding the few meager peaks that were working.  I took out my fish cause it looked really mushy.  As it turned out the way the wave was bending on the sand bar I could have totally short boarded it. Despite the crowd I managed a few.  Overall it was pretty poor quality.  I suppose it beat not surfing and considering the shitty forecast I might as well get used to it.

3-1-17 AM Session: 2-3 ft, Santa Clara River Mouth
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 17
Miles Driven: 64
I woke and though I still felt a tad weak my  health had improved greatly.  There was some new south swell on the buoy and what looked to be the first south of the season.  The wind was offshore and predicted to stay light in Ventura thus I cruised.  When I go to the Harbor the wind was constantly changing direction, everything from side shore to offshore to onshore.  The only other option I had was to drive south to Malibu and take my changes with something off the PCH.  I wasn’t in the mood for that kind of mission, especially being just on the mend.  There were a few waves coming through and it looked like there was some decent sand all the way past the River Mouth down by McGrath.  Since I was not really impressed with anything breaking on the River Bar I decided why not go for a little walk down the beach.  Well that is a paddle across the very wide mouth and then a walk.  I was right there was a sand bar just north of McGrath.  The wind was side shore/offshore at this point.  I jumped in and found a few small shacks right off the bat.  Then the wind died and it became somewhat rip-able then it picked up super hard onshore tearing it to shit.  The current sucked forcing me to paddle the entire time.  Overall it was far from an epic session by any means, but it was nice to get back in the water.  It is the first of the month, which had me contemplating if I should try yet again for the elusive perfect month.