June 2015 Surf Sessions
6-30-15 AM Session: 2-4+ ft, Jalama
Time in Water: 3 hrs
Waves Surfed: 45
I got super into finishing my book last night thus was up until nearly 4:30 am. I know I have problems. Anyhow Ryan woke me up around 8ish looking to cruise with me to Jalama. I was not expecting much, but promised at the very least it would be better then Ventura and a fun day at the beach. We got there and the marine layer still pretty thick allowing for very glassy conditions even though it was so late in the morning. Cracks definitely had some sets with a light crowd dispersed among three or four peaks. At first I found it to be a little weak for my liking. I quickly made some adjustments in my surfing and a full fledged rip fest ensued. It was a fucking ball out there good times.
6-29-15 AM Session: 1-3 ft, Emma Wood
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 28
Ventura was a bad choice. I knew Jalama would be on again today, but I had some errands to run and other shit to do in my life that I have been putting off for quite some time now. The report showed some swell down south, enough anyway in my opinion to make the trip and after reviewing the forecast it looked like the best day for the next week or so to go south. I cruised to the Harbor thinking it would be at least solid chest. River Mouth was a mess and so was New Jetty. On top of that it was fucking small too and crowded. Over it I ran a few more errands in town there before ultimately desperation paddling Emma Wood. It was super small wind swell coming through on the north peak, but there was just enough to power and lip to make it rip-able in the G.I. Joe meaning of the term. I went in for twenty, had some fun and snagged a few more. I am definitely doing Jalama tomorrow. I realized too this morning that I miss managed my money and am just going to barely make rent this month. I guess its bread and water for the next week till I get my next pay check. Oh well.
6-28-15 PM Session: 2-4+ ft, Jalama
Time in Water: 3 hrs
Waves Surfed: 47
There comes a time in life where every surfer most make the hard felt choice of leaving his girl friend on the beach for dead in pursuit of good surf. This afternoon was just such instance for me. Actually it was a first since I rarely bring a bitch in tow. I was not expected much more then wind blown waist to chest high wind swell. Upon getting to Cracks there was a bit more swell than anticipated and it was way cleaner as well. Stoked I paddled and found some really fun ones despite the fact that I was lagging a bit still feeling under the weather. As I was about to quit for the day the wind miraculously turned off shore. I mean that just doesn’t happen this time of year. With the tide push it became barrel city. On top of that Killian and all the boys paddled out and I wanted to nab a sickie for the crew. Alas a wicked case of last wave syndrome set in and I was just being a full on donkey out there. finally after over 45 minutes of jockeying around the line up I looked back at the beach and saw my girl standing with all her shit packed with a very unhappy face on. I paddled in and sure enough she was pissed. Its understandable she had to be back in SB so she could get to bed early for her 5 am work day. Ain’t jobs a bitch? Such is life. Would have all been worth it if I had got that magic barrel though.
6-27-15 No Surfing: 1-2 ft
Glad to see that summertime is now in full swing gracing us with absolute shit for conditions. Rather then grovel trash I opted to accompany my lady friend into the valley for a little Solvange Danish breaky. After that I had to work a wedding at Firestone Vineyard in Los Olivos. I was disappointed in the venue found the inside dining area among the casks to be a little cramped and a tad on the innocuously potent side with the odor of the fermenting grapes. As mush as I love that smell of the forbearance of great wine to come I would rather not dine with it. The outside areas were also average at best. I guess I am still searching for my own personal epic venue. The gig went off with out a real hitch other then the fact that it was a 9 hour ordeal with five courses. Money in the bank right?
6-26-15 No Surfing: 1-2 ft
What can I say for myself other then that knowing that the surf was going to be shit and that is forecast to be that way for over a week I made the executive decision to get completely black out drunk at the Wild Cat last night. So much so that I woke up in my full suit under my coffee table at 3 pm still wasted. I had completely missed my work day. Sorry Trevor, Sorry. Bizarro said it was fine since we were so ahead anyway had I showed up it would have been a short and otherwise worthless day of pay. My lack of propriety paid off for everyone. Oh except for me since I am still recovering. Getting old is tough.
6-25-15 No Surfing: 1-2 ft
After last night I was hoping for a fun morning session, but the cam looked pretty dismal. I was feeling rather tired anyway and rather ruin the buzz I had from the fun surf the previous night I opted to sleep in hoping for a slight rise in wind swell for the evening. The waves never came up after I got off from work. Over it I decided to just do a little maintenance in my garden.
6-24-15 PM Session: 2-4+ ft, Emma Wood
Time in Water: 1 hr 15 mins
Waves Surfed: 20
Ahh Emma Wood…I never thought I would be so glad to be home surfing windy chopped up wind swell on the toll booth peak. After days of the unfamiliar down south my home waves were a welcoming in sight. Trevor hit me up and claimed it was firing. Bizarro and I set out for the last hour of light to try and get some good sunset perspective images. For as bad as it looked I had a ball out there and finally felt like I was in a rhythm out there. Good times and even better to be back where things make sense.
6-23-15 PM Session: 3-5+ ft, Blacks Beach, San Diego
Time in Water: 1 hr 45 mins
Waves Surfed: 24
To be honest I was highly unmotivated to surf again today. It was my last session in SD and West was eager for a send off surf. When I saw the crowd of cars on the street my motivation was completely lost. Living up north for as long as I have now I guess I have forgotten just how many surfers there are in San Diego County. Sure enough the crowd was an easy 75 strong with the sets even more inconsistent then the previous night and there was a shit cross wind. Most of the sets were a bit stretched also. To get around the crowd we surfed the most northern peak, a wave which I have never surfed all that well. With that tone the session was set and carried out. I found a few, though nothing spectacular. Unfortunately for me that just about how my entire trip down south was this year. It was nice to have a change of scenery and it is nice to know I am still very happy up here in Santa Barbara.
6-23-15 AM Session: 3-5+ ft, La Jolla Reefs, San Diego
Time in Water: 1 hr
Waves Surfed: 14
I was over walking down to Blacks this morning and with the increase in the swell I decided why not see what some of the reefs had to offer. It was the mid morning gentleman’s shift anyhow meaning hopefully lighter crowds. Wind and Sea was packed, no surprise there, Bird rock was too high and small. I looked a bit south and saw some of the the lesser know reefs had waves. The search was on till I found a small, but palatable left with only three guys on it and room for one more. I suited up and as I was walking down to the spot some idiot parked smoking a joint in his car says to me “you know this is a secret spot”. I was like “don’t worry I’m not going to blow up this spot” and kept on walking. How can you call a wave a secret when it is in perfect view of the road and has a public access trail to it? Idiots. Let me give away a secret spot up where I live, its called Rincon Point. The wave was far from any good to be aggro about. The take off was shifty as fuck, most waves died out and the reef was super hard to read. All that was nice was the fact that it wasn’t crowded.
6-22-15 PM Session: 3-5+ ft, Blacks Beach, San Diego
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 24
West wanted to get in an evening session and considering more swell was supposed to fill in I was game. We dropped Bizarro off in La Jolla and hit the surf. Sure enough there were some solid over head sets. Unfortunately those sets were easily 30 minutes apart with very few waves in between. What resulted was one of the slowest session I have endured in some time. I had some sick ones, but I hate sessions where more time is spend sitting then surfing. Looks like I have two more sessions left in me before it is back to Santa Barbara for work on Wednesday. Honestly San Diego was fun but I am more then ready to go home.
6-22-15 AM Session: 2-4+ ft, Blacks Beach, San Diego
Time in Water: 3 hrs
Waves Surfed: 31
All I can say is that its hot here. Maybe Santa Barbara has spoiled me, but I never remember San Diego being as hot as it has been this trip the entire time I lived there. Even the ocean is a crazy 70 degrees. I cruised down to Blacks solo for a change and there was definitely a rise in wind swell with the same south energy we saw last night making for some decent conditions. It looked super fun from the beach, but I just wasn’t picking the good ones. I did manage a few. Overall I was a bit tired and just never really find my rhythm out there.
6-21-15 PM Session: 2-3+ ft, Blacks Beach, San Diego
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 24
Last night West, Bizarro and I cruised downtown to the gas lamp district in search of a party. We ended up at a club called Flux. It was billed as the “it” club here in SD and why that is completely alluded me. The place was poorly designed, way over crowded and music too loud. For a dance club I found more people standing around then dancing and there was a couch in the middle of it taking up choice real estate. About the only good thing I will have to say is that the drinks were strong and the well liquor was quality. The prices were comparable as well. Despite the shit club we still managed to get Fancy and I blacked out way before leaving and woke up on the floor under Bizarro’s coffee table this morning still in my suit. Needless to say we got a late start and I decided to just do the evening glass off session with West. The NW wind swell dropped out leaving just a trace south that was super inconsistent. When it did trickle in the sets were solid. I found a few fun ones and it was a splendid sunset.
6-20-15 PM Session: 2-3+ ft, Blacks Beach, San Diego
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 31
First day in SD and I decided to take things a bit slow. West met up Bizarro and I and we cruised to Blacks. There was not much in the water besides some minor wind swell and background south and the wind was on it but there were still a few. I saw a couple of solid sets, but when I paddled it was mushy and gutless as fuck. It was crowded as well thanks to good old international surfing day. Some kook ass old man on a long board decided to take a personal vendetta against thus burning and getting in my way every chance he got. Dude even pulled my leash on one. If there were not life guard witnesses on the beach it would have easily went to blows. Surprisingly the water was piss warm. I think I could have bare backed it. We actually did manage to get a few shots despite how bad the waves were.
6-19-15 No Surfing: 1-2 ft
I could have found more grovel surf at Ventura Harbor this morning. Because I am leaving town for San Diego for a few days I decided to hang out and handle some business this morning. Its a good thing I did too cause when I went over the boards I wanted to bring on the trip both had minor dings that needed attending to. The forecast is nothing to exciting but Blacks should have a waist high plus wave everyday I am there. With warm water anything will be a treat. Different surroundings are always a welcomed idea. In Santa Barbara summer sucks so it always all about the road trip.
6-18-15 AM Session: 1-3+ ft, Santa Clara River Mouth
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 32
I wanted to surf today and had a hair appointment at 3 pm and woke up a little late making Jalama a no go. There was a little more south in the water then the past couple of days and I figured the Harbor would have something to grovel. Sure enough New Jetty had a fun left but about eight guys on it with inconsistent peaks and rising tide kept me from paddling. River Mouth had lots of mixed peaks up and down the beach with only three guys on it and on the higher tide it has actually been more surf-able out there. I paddled and managed a few waves. Unfortunately the wind was on it and got steadily worse as time went on. I found myself trying to pick a semi-decent last wave in total crap which led to a serious case of last wave syndrome. Still a surf is always better then no surf at all.
6-17-15 No Surfing: 1-2 ft
More flatness and a lack of motivation to drive up north again for less then stellar conditions had me decide to take the day off. Instead I did a bit of thrifting where I scored some new books. After that I did a bit of work in my garden followed by cooking a nice dinner. I did a ricotta prosciutto wrapped stuffed artichoke in pomodoro sauce over a bed of arugula with acini pepe in a raspberry vinaigrette.
6-16-15 PM Session: 2-3+ ft, Jalama
Time in Water: 2.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 48
After a little beach nap and chill I saw still some very fun waves with a tad light wind. No one was around leaving the entire place to me. With the incoming tide some really fun sets came through. I had ball and even found a barrel or two. All in all another great day at the “J”.
6-16-15 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, Jalama
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 41
There was a certain amount of deliberation on whether to even bother. South was still small and north had a definite chance of wind. I wanted to surf and decided to just get in the car and go for it. Sure enough thanks a very slow moving construction vehicle on the Jalama road it me almost an hour longer to get to the beach then anticipated and by then the sheep were grazing. I drove and it wasn’t like I had anything else to do so I walked to Cracks and paddled. Actually despite the wind there were some chest high plus bowls and it was quite rip-able with some very nice ramps. I would say it was definitely worth a surf. Enough so that I decided to hang out for an encore.
6-15-15 No Surfing: 1-2 ft
I could have gotten up early and found some peaks up north this morning. After a night out last night I was a bit tired and sort of was over all the effort it takes to go that way for the average conditions. In addition I had plenty of chores and errands to catch up on since there has been so much surf and the fact that I have been working a ton. Today I finally had a chance to get lots of shit done. I dropped off some dry cleaning, bought a few sick outfits then went home to straighten out the apartment and pay some bills. I must say it was a rather productive day. Back on the surfing bandwagon tomorrow.
6-14-15 PM Session: 2-4+ ft, Jalama
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 25
I decided to have a lazy Sunday with my chick entailed an extended stay in bed followed by a late breaky. The winds looked light so we decided to cruise to Jalama for an afternoon session. Unfortunately the winds decided to come back with a vengeance this avro. I was there and decided to at least give it a paddle for posterity. It was all sorts of terrible. I would like to say it beat not surfing but in this case I am not sure.
6-13-15 AM Session: 1-3+ ft, New Jetty
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 28
It was Saturday and considering things were rather fogged in and the wind forecast to be light I had a leisurely morning in bed before making my way down to Ventura harbor for what I assumed to be an all out grovel session. When I got there New Jetty had some fun looking waist high plus runners coming off the Jetty with only two guys out and it was glassy. It was way more fun then I expected. Shit a real set even came in that I managed a sick little suck up tube on. Keeping the ball rolling one surf at a time.
6-12-15 PM Session: 2-3+ ft, Jalama
Time in Water: 2.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 48
We decided to make it an early day in the kitchen and rewarded all our hard work with a staff Jalama outing. Trevor, Bizarro and I roll up to the “J” stoked for an afternoon in what I have decided to be a new sort of paradise for me. I am stoked that Trevor is getting back into surfing again. Lucky for him he has me around all summer long to bug him and keep him keen. It was a tad bit smaller then the past few days only about chest high with the occasional bigger set. It was pretty consistent with plenty of rip-able peaks and a light crowd at Cracks. We paddled and at first it took a few waves to make the adjustment to the smaller conditions being I have not really surfed anything under head high in almost two weeks. Once I got in the groove a rip-fest ensued. There were plenty of ramps out there and the game was in the air. I even found a few barrels. Jalama is just such a magical place.
6-11-15 AM Session: 2-3 ft, New Jetty
Time in Water: 1 hr
Waves Surfed: 11
I had to work for Trevor and Westmont today giving me only a little bit of time for surfing today. This being the case I found myself Ventura bound. Unfortunately I had overslept just a bit not expecting it to be as fun as it actually was. I cruised to the Harbor and New Jetty was fucking going below sea level and barreltastic. Yeah I made that one up, but it sounded cool. It was only about chest high with the occasional bigger set. I ate shit on my first three in a row. The waves were a tad bit too small to be breaking in such a ferocious way and not surfing anything under head high in the past week I was definitely taken off guard. After those I got into a groove and nailed a few drainers. I wished I could have surfed longer but duty called. Work with Trevor was fairly easy and then I got out of work at Westmont with two free hours pay since they double scheduled me with another fellow employee. Since he drove in from Lompoc I gave him the shift. I was over it anyway. Today was officially my last day at Westmont for the summer I have decided to take a step back and enjoy myself for the next town months. FUNEMPLOYMENT BABY!!!!
6-10-15 AM Session: 3-5+ ft, Jalama
Time in Water: 2 hrs 15 mins
Waves Surfed: 23
I actually had a day off today for the first time in about ten days. I decided to cruise up to Jalama again for a session or two. I had to be back in the Barb for a commitment by 5 so there was plenty of time. I got there and the wind was pretty hard south but not too big a deal considering such is side shore/offshore up there. I surfed Cracks where there was a light crowd thanks to the wind and some sick ones. The sets were still pretty walled but some of them actually ran as long as the “T Crack”. I ended up getting a few pretty sick ones and even stuck a huge alley-oop. There was some other guy out there I had never seen before completely destroying the place. Good times. I was chilling on the beach eating my lunch when the wind decided to come down and things glassed off. The line up was empty less a few stragglers. I really wanted to surf again, but unfortunately stupidity back in town forced me back on the road. In the end I should have definitely should have just fucked off on the commitment and stayed and surfed. I think things would have played out a bit better if I would have just stayed and surfed. Oh well…
6-9-15 PM Session: 5-7+ ft, Jalama
Time in Water: 2.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 27
I rained today!?! All day. In June that is an anomaly. Anyone who things the climate isn’t changing think again cause its starting to get weird round here. It figures it would rain since I finally got around to water my garden yesterday. After work I met up with Trevor at my place and we rolled to the “J”. He had not surfed in a while thanks to work and the new baby and with a new board dude was rather eager. When we got there it was solid over head, glassy and barreling. It looked like all the building blocks were in place for a super session. The crowd was heavy, easily fifty strong again, but there were still plenty of waves for everyone. T Cracks looked like Indo with crazy doubled up left pits running for an easy fifty yards down the beach. Stoked we tore on our wetsuits and headed out. What looked like epic drainers turned out to be way too fast and walled to actually make. I did manage to find a few decent ones but overall there were lots of close outs and lots of beatings.
6-8-15 PM Session: 3-4+ ft, Jalama
Time in Water: 2.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 47
The buoys were right, the conditions were perfect, all signs pointed to a great Jalama afternoon. The only downside was I wasn’t the only one with that idea. On the contrary, there had to be at least 40 guys spread out all over Cracks and T-Cracks. I paddled the mound peak just to stay ahead of the crowd and I did notice some really good looking pits out there. What ensued was a barrel fest that I have not experienced in quite some time. It was a bit on the inconsistent side, but when a set did come it did not disappoint. The masses could keep Cracks. Sure my spot was a bit on the closed out and racy side, but when have I not been a fan of close outs? I had a ball and I think we actually got a few good shots.
Another good day of surfing at the “J”.
6-7-15 AM Session: 2-3+ ft, New Jetty
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 23
This morning I wanted to surf. There was a bit of wind from the looks of the cam though nothing to persuade me to stay home. I got down to Ventura Harbor and it was absolute shit. Completely drained out, windy and small. In fact the only thing going for it was that no one was out. The tide was on it’s way back up which could only help things. To kill some time I called my Mom to give my condolences on our recent loss of my childhood family cat Hercules. He was nearly twenty years old and lived a great life for a cat or any of God’s creatures for that matter. I saw a few kill-able ones in the time that had elapsed and paddled. As it turned out it was fun as all fuck. A friend of mine from Rincon was out on his surf mat and it was an all out rip fest. I was on and in full command of the racy lefts. New Jetty is so similar to all the waves I grew up surfing back in New Jersey it is just like second nature to me. Work was annoying as usual, but I decided that after this week I am going to take a leave of absence from Westmont for the summer to pursue other opportunities. Look for a blog on everything soon. Just been super busy.
6-6-15 No Surfing: 2-3+ ft
The cam at C Street showed some real promise for a fun session before work and I was all set to go for it. As I was about to get out of bed my lady grabbed me and seemed rather intent on us spending the morning together. These days with the way our current situation is we don’t get much quality time as it is and it is even more rare when it is her idea. I was just coming off a sick surf the night before at Jalama anyway thus I decided to comply. My decision was maybe regrettable for a second, until I realized the wind was already coming up and I had missed the best of it anyway. The rest of the day I work at a wedding on some ranch in the valley.
6-5-15 PM Session: 3-4+ ft, Jalama
Time in Water: 2 hrs
Waves Surfed: 37
Oh Jalama you may be a pain in the ass to get to and chore, but when your on, your on. Sure enough Jalama last night was about as fun as Jalama can be. Tons of chest to head plus bowls coming through with a light wind and crowd. I paddled out at what I like to call the Mound Peak just in between Cracks and Tarantellas since I saw a few sick ones and no one was on it. Although Cracks had a light crowd I was not in the mood to mix it up with anyone. I managed a few sick ones there before the tide got too high for the outside sand bar causing it to get a bit on the dumpy side. I made my way over the Cracks since the crowd had dropped off a bit and things began to really glass off. A rip fest ensued and I was with out a doubt pumped.
6-4-15 No Surfing: 2-3 ft
I made an effort to surf this morning though I did wake up just a tad bit on the late side. In my defense I have been working a bunch and rather hard lately. My back is still bothering me a bit as well. I made the push down south hoping to find something to surf close at Rincon or Sea Cliffs. Neither panned out thus I bolted down to Ventura Harbor, where the wind, surprise surprise was already on it. new Jetty had a few peaks with no one out coming through. I had work at 11, but really Trevor wanted me there at ten, plus I had to leave at 3:30 to go to Westmont and work some more (god life as a low income worker is quite tiresome). The meager offings seemed hardly worth the hour or the effort. Instead I bailed and just cruised into work early. I hate the fucking summer time. Bruce Brown was famous for his film entitled “The Endless Summer” in all reality he should have entitled it the “Endless Winter” since that is when the waves are good for just about every place in the world.
6-3-15 PM Session: 2-3 ft, The Staircase
Time in Water: 1 hr
Waves Surfed: 26
I had to work for Trevor at his catering company doing prep this morning and as usual I was given all the heaviest labor intensive jobs. Of course those will always fall on my lot since I am the fastest and most proficient at such. After work I decided to bolt down to Ventura in search of some waves. I was hoping with the combo swell it might be a skate park. Instead it was absolutely terrible. I saw a few waves at Tanks when I was driving by and went back there. Tanks was too high, but the Stair case had an adequate left. That wave was my bread and butter last summer. The sand still has a long way to go but I did manage to find a few nuggs. Unfortunately my mind was clouded from some current happenings in my personal life that at the moment I am not at liberty to share. With out clarity of mind I found I was a bit off the entire surf. Still it was a gorgeous sunset and night. Between the setting sun and rising full moon I was reminded that there is so much out that that is bigger and better then the minuscule problems we humans believe so impending.
6-2-15 PM Session: 2-3+ ft, Santa Clara River Mouth
Time in Water: 1.5 hrs
Waves Surfed: 17
Talk about a shitty surf. River Mouth has always been one of those waves that is either good or bad and rarely anything in between. This evening it was as bad as waves get. The peak was shifty. The sets were inconsistent. There was a strange side chop on the face and it was either mushy or dumpy with little corners to be had. Oh yeah and there was a bull shit current too. Good times….NOT!!!!
6-1-15 PM Session: 2-3 + ft, Santa Clara River Mouth
Time in Water: 45 mins
Waves Surfed: 15
I really didn’t think I was going to get a surf in today. Upon waking this morning I could barely walk turns out I tweaked my back way worse then I had thought throwing away the trash at work last night. I found myself in excruciating pain with the end result having to call in sick to work and pass the next hour in utter agony waiting for some pain killers to kick in. From there it was some stretching. Finally I decided to give a paddle for the last hour of light to loosen up a bit. River Mouth was the best of the worst though far from good. I found a few and was just happy I could even surf.
[…] June ’15 […]