Stopped by at the Jetty as usual to see what is going on out there. It looked nice, but I want a bit more size, so drove on. When I arrived at Montara, I saw some nice breaks (for my level) happening! It is just about overhead size and did not look too dumpy, in fact, it looked more like a long board type day, so I pulled out my trusty Takayama 9'0 and headed down.
The pictures here are from the post session, and earlier the waves were bigger and sets were more frequent. There were some surfers on the South side, but that spot can jack up fast sometimes, so I went to the middle peaks.
Above, you can see a person with a board at the beach. The picture makes these wave look much smaller than they are, so use the person towards the right of the beach to compare the size.
At first, I had a lot of problem getting out. Again a lot of water was pushing in, and I felt like I was paddling a lot, but when I looked back I hardly made any progress. I got so tired of paddling that I decided to take a break at the beach. I was then ready for another get-out attempt, and I was just standing knee deep in the water to wait for a lull. Then suddenly, some additional big sets came, and that ripped a very clear channel out right in front of exactly where I was standing. I jumped over the shorebreak hump and started to stroke for the outside. Riding the rip current is always interesting because it is not really a smooth way out, instead, when you are in it, it is so turbulent there that it feels like I am in a big storm with waves coming from both direction and it is really bumpy. Definitely it would be the time to reach for the "Fasten Seat Belt light switch." I need to paddle left and right to find the valley to navigate out.
Each stroke gave me a feel of so much motion, I am literally zooming by these floating seaweeds and suds.
But, in just 5 or 6 deep strokes of my arms, I was in a complete calmness of the Pacific ocean. I looked back, I was already taken away something like 200-300 yards out. The rips are really amazing, and taking advantage of it is also something too!
There were some waves that were perfectly shaped to just glide on the side of the wave.
And they were happening just across the entire beach!
After a while everyone left and I was there by myself. I got a bit spooked out, and so I caught a decent left as my last ride and got out.
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