All of us have been anticipating the big swell for a whole week now. We all thought it was going to arrive on Saturday. Amazingly, on Saturday the whole of JBay was a flat as Lake Victoria, and I had to dig deep to eventually find a fun little left somewhere between dolphin
beach and Secrets. I checked the swell this morning and the lines were clearly visible but waves were still on the small side. After Church, the waves were breaking so big, I could see the choppy faces tower above the buildings as I drove down De Reiger road. At 14:00 I made my way to the beach with my newly acquired 6'6 Safari Spider. I got it at such a bargain, I just bought it impulsively on Saturday.
I parked the Landy at Upper Point and walked all the way past Supers to Beach Break in front of checkers. It was gnarly to say the least. The wind was howling and I had to hold onto my new surfboard for dear life. After a few hectic duck dives, I looked at was was probably the biggest wave I have ever seen at close proximity in my entire life. The lip was coming right at me! I have surfed JBay before on heavy days, but I have never seen such a big wave. I decided not to try and duck dive it because I did not want to snap the brand new board or my backbone. Instead I just slipped of my board, closed my eyes and held my breath. After I came up for breath, I was waiting for the familiar tuck on my left foot. (I am a goofy footer) Nothing. Just as it dawned upon me, a mega set rolled in. I was somewhere between Boneyards and Supers without my board and for a moment I really panicked...
You can click on the photo to see a bigger one. Those little dots in the water are very careful and jelly armed surfers.| < Prev | Next > |
|---|