If it's your time, it's your time. No amount of genuflecting in the back of the van will help you. No amount of posting insane threads designed to anger others will assist a mortal body. Neither will the kiddies help the one who has brainwashed with not-free surfboards; those kiddies will be running for the sanctity of the precinct house. Having mentioned that Swellinfo surfing-related aspect, ahem, I will say this: I absolutely live for DP. Best time of day. In CR, por ejemplo, DP is when the bus hasn't pulled up to disgorge the hundreds of kooks yet. DP is before the sun becomes skin-killing intense. DP is when the wind is often light, and there's glass all aboot ya (PJB!), and there's still a camaraderie with the few other people in the water, and those sunrise clouds are gorgeous .... & the waves....the clean, magnificent waves are yours to pick as you please.
All the time- except when it's closing out and huge in the winter... But then again it never closes out in Belmar,NJ
its all about knowing your limits.i only go out when I know I can make it in on my own,board or no board,after getting pounded.there are no houses where I surf.i see a lot of people who have no business out there and paddle out into a thick crowd thinking they are safer.i would love to surf with a few extra people for safety wise,but around here u have spots like this.u can surf break (a) by yourself and risk it,or u can surf break (b) with 30 people out.theres really no in between stages out here.its either solo or completely crowded. last time I surfed was a secret little bar in sandy hook.i love it out there in the winter,it is desolute land out there.if u wanted to drag race through the snow,u probably could,and could probably fly right into the bay.its a surreal feeling like u left civilization behind,when u go deep deep in sh,not just the first few lots.i surfed alone,and was probably the only soul on the island,and if I got in trouble they wouldn't find me for a few months til I washed through the inlet. sometimes in the winter u get these nice real mellow swells that barrel,but not all over the place.little current,designated takeoffs,like u can paddle straight out without duckdiving once,paddle to the left and ur in the spot to get barreled.being in the water is the best practice u can get.if ur a novicer I wouldn't recommend paddling out solo in winter.even if ur infront of 100 people,no civilian is jumping in after u
I surfed ai for a few days this week and I was it...not one soul on the beach, nothing but me with no signs of humanity - just surf, dunes, trees...no buildings, trucks, roads...nuttin but me and little waist high waves that were actually fun...felt like heaven....if it was overhead, would prefer to see a few souls only when the water is cold...can get creepy when it's big and very cold and no one around for miles.
Surfed a quite a few larger winter swells alone snapped a board on one particular day...was a long lonely swim to the beach. Taking off my suit after that swim, in the cold, and it quickly becoming dark was brutal...
I surf alone about 2/3rds of the time. Not by choice, it just tends to work out that way. More so during the winter. But last Saturday afternoon, I went by 1st Street (VB), and there were 20-plus people out there. Ended up going down the road to Dam Neck where there were only two of us out. As was pointed out in another thread, one of the benefits of this Forum is that it gives those who generally surf alone the opportunity to communicate with other surfers. Even if it's just BS-ing. Also, it can help at times maintaining the stoke during those long flat spells and other miserable conditions or when recovering from injuries or illness.
I got sketched out years ago at the end of a late afternoon session surfing El Estero on the Tamarindo river. When I paddled out mid-afternoon the waves were fun and mellow -- stomach to shoulder-high and mostly clean. It wasn't too crowded and most people left before an amazing sunset but two strangers and I hung around shooting fish in a barrel. As the tide filled in the waves got better and better and the three of us couldn't bear to leave. As it got darker the conversation turned to what we all had heard and read about the estuary, that it was chock-full of caiman and that they're active at night. We laughed about it and kept surfing knowing that a nip was unlikely. The two of them eventually paddled back in but I took a few "one last" lefts farther out into the river mouth. Before I knew it the ocean, sky, and shoreline all merged into darkness. I could see the lights from the houses up on the hill but I couldn't make out many shoreline features and I wasn't paying attention to which houses were above the estuary and which were above the beach. I paddled toward where I thought the edge of the river met the ocean but it felt like I wasn't going anywhere. I feared that the tide was pushing me up into the estuary and that I'd come ashore in a dense thicket full of teeth. Why did we just talk about caiman?? I sat up for a bit and tried to get my bearings but then I heard the splashing. Do caiman even make noise? I panicked and made a beeline back out toward the sound of the waves but on an angle toward the town lights and didn't stop until my fingers scraped the sand on the bottom. I didn't even see the beach until I ran into it. The darkness was wild. At the time it was the fear of the unknown thing lurking just over there, even if it didn't exist. In my head it was just as scary as the time I camped in the Rockies and heard heavy sniffing around the tent at night, but the splashing was probably just fish. The sniffing... not sure...
A day at the break alone is a great day in my opinion. Unmatched serenity. Just know your limits before you paddle out, don't try to learn the hard way
I do it all the time in Rockaway NY, got in a fun session this morning. Here, if the water is below 40 and the waves are marginal, there may not be anyone else out. I'm a little more cautious (being knocked out is a death sentence), but the fact is that even if it is crowded, I wouldn't count on the help of a stranger. Also, when the water is 37 degrees, I doubt someone on the beach (who isn't wearing a wetsuit) could even get out to help someone in trouble without jeopardizing his/her own life. If you're not a good surfer and a competent swimmer, use some common sense and don't go out alone. I work in the ER and trust me when I say you don't want a tube down your throat.
spent all last winter surfing alone. Many days completely alone. Surf at night in the summer time alone too sometimes. Both give the greatest feeling
Noticing Others I am always going to the beach alone but will also not go in unless there are others in the water. Personally I keep an eye out for others just for my personal safety/etiquette...Dont want to be in others way or drop in on someone. But if I'm out with 3 other guys and all of a sudden I see 2...then I will usually look to see if they are paddling out or on their way up the beach... Just me.
Many times! I love surfing alone or with just a few out. Just walk up the beach at Chincoteague and you're alone. Especially in winter. I do have to tell myself; "Not allowed to get hurt!"
I have complained about surfing alone and tried to invite people to surf at my break with me. The "no one on the beach, no one in the condos" gets old quick and detracts from my enjoyment out there. I miss hooting with friends and the general camaraderie of surfing and sharing the stoke. I think people who praise surfing alone as some badge of whatever don't have to do it regularly. By the way, if anyone wants to hit up 70th street tomorrow..
i usually go to surf by myself but these damn things called people always show up.... haha anyway, killakiel and i have been paddling out together recently and scoring waves by ourselves for the most part including today. the specific sandbar we were at today was really fun. been awhile since we've had a day where it was dead offshore like that. if you read this, thanks again for the ride home killa!!
