Mavericks! Everybody's gone surfin'

The Mavericks surf contest was called for 13 February, and big-wave surfers from around the world converged on the coastside. For weeks, locals have been second-guessing the contest organizers about when the contest would take place... the surf rising topic mentions the buzz, and gives a little history of the spot.

Early on the morning of the 13th, Wm and I made our way out to the Moss Beach bluffs, which are just north of the Mavericks surf spot. The waves were rolling in at a good 35 feet and destined to get up to around 50 feet by contest's end.

What makes this surf break so huge? The entire Pacific Ocean is roaring in to shore, then whoop! suddenly trips over the underwater reef and over it goes, tumbling over itself in a spectacular way.

An early-morning wave, about a half-mile southwest from our bluff-top perch:

A  few of our fellow spectators in the early morning; the crowd doubled by mid-day:

 

Pelicans cruising overhead, looking prehistoric.



Here's what it's all about--surfer Zach Wormhoudt (photo by Don Montgomery):

 Amazing.










You can see the whole photo gallery at the Mavericks site: http://www.maverickssurf.com/buzz/photos28.php

Storm signs, wolf moon, flowers

The January storms got wilder and wilder. Rain sloshed down in torrents, wind tore trees loose, waves pummeled the coastline.

This sign on Mirada Road at Miramar took a beating:

Getting to the post office in Granada was a drenching experience:

29 January brought us the wolf moon -- the first full moon of the new year. It was spectacular. When a full moon occurs during the perigee (the closest the moon gets in its orbit to the Earth), the moon looks its biggest and brightest. It was a cloudy, blustery night, but the heavens opened to give us this glowing glimpse:

Then the rains paused and the sun shone on the oxalis that dances in neon yellow across coastal hillsides.

We called oxalis sour grass when we were kids... sucking on the stems gives you a definite pucker.

And of course you can play in the fields of oxalis when you want to, even when you grow up.