Thanksgiving Morning.
I woke up this morning knowing we had a bit of change in direction of the swell from N/NE and some new
N/NW coming in. I know that Sunset Beach last night was beatiful, the last one out of the water just
as darkness enveloped the island of Oahu on the North Shore. And on the drive back home, I knew
I was going to be back in less than 12 hours for my last surf. And I knew what had to be done. I had
to surf somewhere else.
I've checked from Laniakea to Sunset and back, stopping for the last seven days at Pipeline and Rocky Point
to check it out. Most of it has been unappealing looking, hugely crowded, or just poor conditons
for the swell direction. But last night I made the conscious decision to take on a spot
in the area, if not Pipeline and Backdoor, which I really wanted to do, then maybe somewhere inbetween.
I pulled up to Pipeline at about 8 a.m., there was morning sickness all up and down the coast, watched for a bit,
then went to Sunset Beach. Where I saw Owl Chapmen in his car, as usual, with the huge red gun
lashed to the roof. And there were only four guys out. Kind of tempting. But no, no, no. This is not
the plan. So I made my way back to Pipe.
Where things started to clean up a bit, maybe about 45 minutes later. The sun was blasting down really,
really hard again, another scorcher of a day, Thanksgiving Day. And by the number of guys in the water
strung from Rocky Point to Rockpile, you'd think it was a Saturday morning and not a U.S. holiday. The swell
direction had just enough change in it to bring these places to life all of a sudden. Not perfect, but showing
some size, conditions improving minute by minute, and me getting more and more nervous. As I put on my gear
I said, well, you know, everyone including me needs one more serious dose of adrenaline or another new challenge. There's no more
Sunset morphine drip leftover from Sunday. So don't wuss out, bite the bullet and paddle out somewhere different
and challenge yourself one more time on this island.
I watched. Looked, timed, checked, watched others surf and paddling around the big rock right in front of the break,
Backdoor was working every 15 minutes with a makeable, sizeable pull-in barrel. But the problem was that
50 guys were out. Most of them were on that. Off the Wall was also pretty crazy. To the west Rocky Rights
were pretty much firing and you could see the pros just ripping it to shreds. Pupukea was doing its thing
with not too many people on it. It was almost an option.
The area between Rockpile and Rocky Point is extremely different than Sunset or Lanis. It's two different
animals. And I admit, I was putting off taming this beast almost all week. But that had to end. And today,
my last day on Oahu before I leave for Maui, and then unfortunately home, was it. Do or die. Face the music
and see if you can play it.
Sunset and Lanis have had their moments. I saw plenty of barrels and nice sections and steepness. But nothing
like Pipe, Backdoor, Rockys or Ehukai (AH-yoo-Kai). Mark talked about surfing Ehukai when he came back from his
trip. He didn't paint a clear picture for me, really. It's an "aside" to Pipeline, a consolation prize or area
for the masses to gather while the kings and queens
enjoy the main arena. And it was very crowded. But I had to do it. The difference between the spots I've been
surfing and this area - it's hard to describe. Waves in this section of beach, commonly referred to as
the Seven Mile Miracle, hit the reefs only 50 yards from shore and pitch and barrel and just
open up and dredge and break boards and bodies and occationally bounce people off reefs and kill them or stuff
them into underwater lava rock caves. That was kinda on my mind a bit, too. Especially on my last day here.
THE LAST WAVE
The photograph of me was taken by Rocco of hawaiianswell.com.
It was the last wave, incredibly, that I will ride on the
North Shore until I return again. I think that is somewhat amazing, co-incidental, incredible, incredibly lucky,
and I feel so unbelievably fortunate to have met Rocco and chatted and got to know each other before and after I
was in the water, which was only for about an hour or so.
It took a long time for me to set it up. I'm picky as hell when it comes to waves, which is sometimes
good and sometimes bad. This was a new type of break, a new type of wave, there were lots and lots
of close outs, lots of people, lots of locals, and lots to put together to try and set up a good
shot and get a good ride. I also made the switch from DP to the Rocket. Going down from an 8-6 to a 7-2 is a pretty radical change.
I paddled for a few to get a feel for the bottom contour and the way the waves were breaking compared
to other spots. Not seriously going for them, but "practicing" if you will, for the one that did eventually
come, or that I chased down. I remember taking off in a really critical part of the wave and
almost a bit too deep, but I liked what I saw down the line and decided to committ all the way. Then there
was this harrowing moment when this guy was right in front of me as I started down the face of the wave,
and I had to zig to the left and lose more ground on the face because of this. I thought I was going to have
to straighten out immediately, but as it turns out I cut it really close to the guy (not on purpose),
and the Rocket held true to it's name and propelled me down the line to some clean face, even for just a
little while. Like I said, it was pretty hard to find one and connect it from the peak to the
channel, if you could call it a channel. It's more like a little nook that you MIGHT be able to escape through
getting out for the first time, or back out after a ride.
The feel to the wave, the speed, the clarity of the water, the way you are only 50 yards off the beach -
it's all different, and it's all good. While I've concentrated on waves and spots that I seem to have
really taken to, it's unfortunate that I am leaving. Because if I had a few more days, or even another
week, I'd be surfing exclusivly from Rocky to Rockpile and getting to know the waves in this area much,
much better. It's really a second challenge, and trying the waves in this area of the North Shore made
my experience almost double the pleasure, although the challenge remains for me to feel more comfortable
in this stretch of beach. It only comes with putting in the time. Am I sorry I did not put more time in
here? No. Every time I looked, I did not like what I saw. Swell directions were just wrong most of the time.
Even today, I did not like the way Ehukai looked
and drove away, only to come back and find it almost acceptable, if that sounds like the right way
to put it...other people drove away and came back and went right out, so it wasn't only me feeling
that way.
Don't you just LOVE that photo! It was such my goal to have at least one photo of me surfing
on the North Shore during this trip. Rocco, man, thank you for your kind Aloha by remembering my email
address and getting me the photo this evening for my website. My family and friends will be completely
wowed by it for many years to come. It's a memory of a lifetime I can share with everyone.
Speaking of paying dues, you know, I guess I must have paid the check early at my first session at Lanis
when my new leash broke and I had to swim in 300 yards and the Rocket almost got eaten by the lava rocks
in the west cove area, before being saved by two grommets. Because quite honestly, I never
wiped out, got worked, or felt like I was getting worked, nose dived, side slipped down the face
and bounced, bounced off the reef, no reef rash, nothing. I got used to the power at Sunset Beach
and got caught by a NW rogue peak wave twice and dragged into the impact zone and worked twice,
but I held onto DP with such a death grip and then scrambled to the generous channel
that it seemed like no big deal. Quite honestly, part of my training before I got here was improving
my hand and wrist strength by using those things you hold in your hand and squeeze until you can't squeeze
them anymore. I would sit at home at night thinking of Hawaii, watch some surf videos, and squeeze those
things. Everything I did to prepare paid extremely high dividends and returns.
At the end of the ride the wave pretty much closed out and exploded all over the place and I thought I was going
to get bounced off of the Rocket and worked. But I was determined to either make it to the channel, or
as it turned out, pretty funny, I rode it all the way to the beach! When I kicked the board back so I wouldn't
get thrown on the sand, I was like, well, that was a really good wave. Maybe that would be the Last Wave
I should ride? I was torn between going out and getting more, or calling it on that wave. So I called it.
Because I had something else to do back at Waikiki as well.
You know what the key to getting that wave at Ehukai was? Black's Beach. When I was watching and stretching
out a bit, you know, I said to myself, heavy paddle out, big shorebreak, looks like a big beach
break. So pretend you are at Black's and paddle like crazy, chase peaks until you find a spot,
then stick there and let one come to you. And that's EXAAAACTLY what happened. It was almost
like some type of foresight or something. Amazing. I did the same thing with Sunset, which contributed
highly to my success there. I used all the skills I've aquired from surfing Sunset Cliffs and Windansea, morphed into one
approach, to conquor the Sunset Beach conditions I placed myself in. Which leads me to a final thought
about everything, then on to the rest of my Last Day.
It has always been said that surfers come to the North Shore to prove themselves. I came to ride some big (or larger than I normally would ride) waves,
almost not looking to prove anything to anyone, other than the fact to ride waves. Not small waves,
big waves. Not huge Hawaiian waves, but big waves for ME. With over 26 years of time in the water, I was
way overdue to come and do this - and without trying to prove anything to anyone, I have in fact proved
to myself and other surfers who know me, that yes, I made my pilgrammage over Thanksgiving, and I once and
for all proved that I could do it. Alone or with someone. That I came to the North Shore, timed it pretty
well, used all my forecasting and physical and mental abilities for this sport, adapted to the conditions,
found places that I excelled in, that challenged me beyond my limits, and introduced me to the true
Hawaiian Scale of surf, whether this is measured in feet, increments of fear, adrenaline or success.
I believe, here on Oahu, that I have exceeded my wildest imagination, caught one of the largest waves
I have ever surfed at Sunset Beach...I could go on and on and on. My Last Wave at Ehukai will be forever
remembered just as my first 20 foot face at Sunset. Good lord have mercy, how will I ever be able
to not think about all this sitting out in the lineups back home? I think after I get
home I'm just going to chill, order up some photos, and put them up next to the shots of me that I have
from Windansea and Todos Santos and Sunset Cliffs on my walls, and realize that, yes, I did indeed prove myself
in Hawaiian waters on the North Shore in 2006.
GOODBYE WAIKIKI
There was one thing that drew me out of the water at Ehukai. It was getting a bit late. And I stopped at
Lanis and Haliewa to surf on the way back to town, but you know, Rocco, the photo, the wave -
I wanted that to be my last wave.
The one surfing thing I did not do was go out at Waikiki on a longboard and that has been bothering me.
So I quickly went back to the South Shore, dumped all my stuff in the hotel room, and ran down to the
Hans Hedeman School of Surfing and supported a local school and former pro surfer, and rented a log
for two hours. I paddled about 300 yards offshore, covered in suntan 45 SPF lotion, a full sleeve
rash guard, my UV hat and a pair of trunks and (NO reef walkers!).
The view of Waikiki is absolutely not to be missed from the water, and I actually sat and counted
the number of high rise/hotels on the shoreline and lost count at about 50. Now you see, this is the second
time of the trip that I surfed both the North Shore and the South Shore in the same 12 hour period. I arrived
on the 17th, surfed Ala Moana Bowls until pitch black, then the next morning I was surfing Lanis at about
9 a.m. Today was the reverse, North Shore first, and escape the absolutely mind blowing heat and humidity
by floating only about three feet above reef just in front of the Outrigger Hotel. It was so very relaxing,
given the rush of the wave at Ehukai, the hurried drive home, and thinking about packing up the boards
and getting ready to leave tomorrow morning.
It was the second time in seven days that I felt like, for an hour or so, that I was actually on vacation.
Like I mentioned in another entry - this surfing stuff isn't vacation. It's so much physical and mental
work that it's insane, especially alone. Having a bro with you is another thing altogether, maybe it would only
take half the energy, half the driving, half the prepping, half the checking the surf. But it's all been
on just me. And for about 30 minutes I forced myself not to think about anything except how beautiful
Diamond Head looks from the water, as I laid down prone with my head cocked to one side, no waves,
dead calm glass, atrocious heat - and just cleared my head. This is where it all started for surfing for the
most part, and I was very happy with my decision to actually get out on the
log and check things out. The heat/temp was so hot I had to keep splashing water onto my head
and the rash guard to stay wet and cool.
I have many hours and thousands more words, but I have to go. It's 30 minutes till close time for the cafe
(11 p.m.), and I have to upload the pages and photos and check to make sure it's all up and okay,
and as far as I'm concerned, this has been such a HUGE success doing these updates. It's been a really
important and fun part of the trip. I mean, good lord.
It's costs me $20 a night for seven nights in a row, two hours a night, of my vacation, to keep you
all entertained! And don't wonder why you haven't got a post card, because baby, these pages
have been it. And if you think I've had ANY time to write ANYTHING ELSE, especially by hand,
you're wrong! I've barely had enough time to sleep.
On to Honolua Bay. Swell's coming up more from the NW, but it might have enough wrap to at least
give me a taste. With my luck so far, I'm certain Maui will throw some waves up for grabs for me,
hopefully. I've behaved myself, prepared myself, proved myself. Now please give me some relaxation
at my hotel, and some waves at the bay.
I don't anticipate having such excellent internet access there...I hope I do...and I hope you all
get to read updates...but Maui is pretty laid back and country-like and probably is not like Waikiki at all,
where I walk out of my hotel and in 50 steps I'm plugged in.
God look at that photo. Thank you hawaiianswell.com/Rocco. I'm blown away. Aloha, Oahu, may I return
to you some other time, even more prepared now that we've gotten a bit aquainted. Goodbye from Kuhio Ave.,
and Paradise Computers, where I have, ironically, been doing these updates.
Dinner tonight: Keonis. Thai pigout. Sa-Tay beef. Creamy ginger soup. Wild forest currey with coconut
milk, pineapple, red chillies, chicken, garlic and basil. Too full, no dessert. $30 bucks.
- Cliff, leaving Oahu, Aloah, Mahalo, etc., etc., etc. And of course, I owe a LOT to DP
and the Rocket. Good lord have mercy. Those boards are the bomb. Performance beyond my wildest
expectations.
WOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-Hooooooooo!!!
- Cliff
