September 9, 2014 Tuesday

Bolinas	Patch
9:00 am to 10:30 am	2' to 3', occasional 4'
Mid upcoming tide	Slight NW cross breeze to no wind
Air temp: 55 to 60 degrees	Water temp: 63 degrees
Overcast to patchy sun	Fun session

I was sitting inside on the north edge of the Patch when one of the rare four-foot walls came through. I turned and stroked into it just as it was breaking right of me. I jumped up to my knees, cut left, shot through the first section, then stood up, stepped to the middle of the board and cruised through the second section. To my surprise the wave kept building to the left. I stalled a second while the curl jumped up again. I leaned into it and glided through the third section. The curl kept building and I kept going. I stayed in the curl until it was about to crash into the rocks at the base of the cliff. I pulled out over the top as it collapsed on shore within a few feet of the cliff. What a great ride.

This morning the weather radio announced 3 ft south swells at 14 seconds. "Good, the south swell that came in over the weekend was still in the water," I said to myself. "There should be waves."

When I arrived only a few cars were parked on Brighton Ave, not a good sign. Russ the stand-up guy was changing after his session. He reported there were a few good waves but the tide was coming up fast. Hank, who had just come back from checking out the waves, said there were a few rideable waves, it should get better and he was going out. I went up to Terrace Road to take my morning photos. No one was at the Patch and one surfer had just entered the water at the Channel. Later I learned that was Archie, that's him in the photo above.

The strong south swell and the upcoming 6.1 ft tide had created a beautiful left peak that continuously kept building until the waves crashed against the cliff. For thirty minutes, Hank and I had the Patch to ourselves. The surface was smooth as glass, the water was warm (63 degrees) and two to three foot nicely shaped waves were coming through. I watched Hank connect of a good one that he worked into the inside curl near shore. I scored on four to five good left curls, one after another until the high tide pushed the water up against the cliff and killed them.

After the lefts had died, I moved inside and south to go for the rights, the only waves that were breaking at that point, and slowly the incoming tide killed them also. I had to exit the water by 10:30 to meet with a fence contractor at noon about an estimate on fencing in our yard – now that we have a dog. I figured I would work my way in by moving inside and trying for the rights. It didn't happen. Within a few minutes the rights disappeared, but I sat there and sat there hoping for one more set. My efforts soon turned to exercise; I paddled from the south side of the Patch to the start of the seawall at the base of the ramp to exit at the Playpen, the patch of sand north of the wall. At lease I managed to give my arms a good workout.

As I walked back to the ramp I looked back at the Patch, by now all the waves had died, and there was still another hour to go before high tide. Hank and I had caught the wave window, and at 10:30 it slammed shut hard.

Archie was at his car when I returned. At first I didn't recognize him. He called by name and repeated his. Then I knew who he was. Though he lives in Mill Valley he prefers Linda Mar and had been going there these past few months. He claimed that with winter coming on he would only come to Bolinas and that I would be seeing a lot more of him. We chatted about the Kahuna Kapuna Surf Contest held at Linda Mar every summer. He mentioned that he would be in the 70-year old group, the same as Jack and I. Next summer, all three of us will be in the same group and the competition will be fierce because Archie is a good surfer.

I made a quick stop at the Gospel Flat Farm Stand at the outskirts of Bolinas for strawberries, carrots and broccoli. Of course it was another beautiful morning in Marin.