January 2, 2014 Thursday

Stinson Beach	South of the Lifeguard Tower
10:00 am to 11:30 am	2' to 3', sets to 4'
High tide (7.1 ft at 10:40 am)	No wind
Warm and sunny	Fun session

First Session of 2014

Son Kevin and I were on our first surf session of the year, heading for Stinson or Bolinas. We came out of the forest on the Panoramic Highway and got our first glimpse of the sea. There was no white water at Bolinas. I mean zero, zip, nada; not at the Channel where there is always some white water or at the Patch. Surf forecasts were for a small NW swell with a "King" high tide (7.1 ft). Within two seconds, Bolinas was out and Stinson was our only choice.

At Stinson the waves looked like fun: small clean glassy curls, mixed in with a few larger close out walls. Jim the Stinson carpenter turned sculptor was sitting on the beach checking out the waves. I hadn't seen him in months. Jim grew up in Stinson and is an excellent surfer, but due to a shoulder separation he couldn't go surfing and was facing a few more months for recuperation. He pointer out that waves were good, especially at the peak just south of the lifeguard tower. We agreed.

While suiting up I thought that the conditions were perfect for me. I haven't surfed in three weeks and my arms were weak, the waves were "fun" size, small, glassy and good shape (no fear factor), and the weather was warm and sunny. I knew it was going to be a good session.

The waves didn't disappoint — frequent clean peelers breaking left and right. Catch a wave, paddle back out and immediately stroke into another one. With no wind, the surface was glassy smooth and no body else was out there. "Where is everyone? Where are the locals?" We couldn't believe it. The nearest surfer was 300 yards north of us. We had a great time. What a perfect start to the New Year.

The Searches

Two incidents of searches occurred today -

A tall thin stranger approached me as I was walking down the beach with my board before entering the water. He looked stressed and nervous. He asked if I had surfed here long — about 25 years I responded. He then requested that I keep an eye out for a bracelet that he had lost. He was visiting Stinson and went body surfing yesterday. He recalled that his bracelet felt loose, and sure enough after being pounded by a set wave, it was gone. He mentioned that the bracelet was special, made personally for him by a Buddhist monk in Viet Nam. He searched and searched yesterday and continued looking this morning. He posted notices all around the park offering a $175 reward.

"You just learned a hard lesson my friend," I said to him and pointed to my ring finger. "I always take my wedding ring off before surfing. The cold water causes the skin and fingers to contract. Thus you can't wear jewelry into the water."

I don't think he appreciated my comments. When we exited the water he was still searching and stopping others to inquire if they had seen it. Note - as of January 16th, one of his notices was still posted on the concrete slab in front of the showers.

All during our session, a huge red Coast Guard helicopter flew overhead — back and forth, up and down, out to sea and back again. They were obviously searching for someone in the water. They didn't fly over land or close to the cliffs. It must have been for someone who went overboard. After an hour a Coast Guard boat showed up and anchored a hundred yards offshore. Whatever they were looking for, they did not find it. We could still hear and see the helicopter as we changed out of our wetsuits.

"Kevin, this is a good application for drones — air-sea recues." With small inexpensive pilotless aircraft, the Coast Guard could launch fifty of them, cover a much wider area and keep the search going for a longer period of time. Each one could beam its video to a central site where a small crew would view them, all this at less cost. This will happen soon.

Kevin and I agreed, today was a great start to the New Year.