The Thursday Stoke!

Check out these epic waves!

Yes, I'm stoked about the amazing everyone-at-work-thinks-I'm-at-a-lunch-appointment-but-I'm-really-surfing-with-my-bros surfing session we had at the inlet on Tuesday!

It's Thursday and I'm still stoked!

You can clearly see in the picture above the super glassy, chest to head high peelers that were rolling in out in the background behind my 9'8" Anderson noserider!

Or perhaps not. There was a rumor in town that the surf was really fun. Only one obvious problem.... due to the fog you just had to paddle out and find out for yourself.

Text messages are great when you're friends with a lot of surfers. If there's good swell in the water your phone will start blowing up with messages of wacky named surf spots, wave information and sometimes unintelligible jibber-jabber that only surfers "get." Tuesday was one of those days. It started at dawn, about 7 a.m., as my phone sounded off. It was Dees. He's already at the beach. He can hear the surf, but not see it. There's no wind and he just "knows" it's good. He doesn't want to paddle out alone, but I'm due at an 8 a.m. meeting and can't join him. Surfing alone is usually not a big deal unless the conditions are dangerous (i.e. Hurricane swell), but surfing alone in heavy fog is just down right spooky. It is sort of like surfing at night, only you can still get sunburned. You can't see the beach and your only indication of the direction of land is the direction of the waves. Dees drives down the beach until he finds parked cars, paddles out and finds some strangers to surf within sight of, which is less spooky than being alone in a fog bank.

I attend my meeting, which sucks, and then sneak out for "lunch." I rendezvous with Norton and Tennessee Jeremy. Norton is a flight instructor and doesn't have another flight until 3 p.m. Tennessee Jeremy is a student and is in between final exams. Surfs up!

For the longest time it was only our threesome and of course the dolphins and spotted eagle rays that decided to say hello between waves. The rides are long, clean and perfect for noseriding. We have no idea if we are drifting or even what direction we are drifting. If it were a point break there would be no way to triangulate ourselves to the point. Sound seems to carry better through the fog, perhaps due to the high humidity/precipitation? We cheer each other on wave after wave and hear other surfers off in the unseen distance doing the same. It's one of those days where it's hard to leave the water, but work beacons. We leave the water and return to our lives, but with huge smiles all around. My feet are sandy within the socks inside my shoes and my hair is tangled, damp and salty. As I return to work a couple co-workers that also surf give a nod of approval for they "know." And the other co-workers? Well, who cares what they think.

Yes, I am stoked. The windless fog is my friend.

Here's another picture of the epic day of surfing at the beach!