Safetosea

It's Sunday, a day away from surfing to see the youngest off on an eight week camp, and a day to get into a few things I've procrastinated on.

So into the office for an hour, downloaded the shots from yesterday's waves, and a moment to get it into the blog.

As I've sometimes said, around Melbourne we have access to three coasts. Phillip Island, the Mornington Peninsula, and the West Coast. The Peninsula is sometimes called the Hoax Coast. Consisting of a long stretch of reefs and beaches facing fully into the brunt of any swell, it is usually half again as big as Bells on any given swell, and therefore often too big for anything there to handle. A few exceptional reefs can do it on their days, and when the banks are on beach break magic is there to be found.

But finding it is the key.

An endless array of tracks and dead ends has more semi secret spots in a relatively confined area than you could imagine, and local knowledge regarding tides, banks and what happens to a particular nook or cranny in a given condition means you can score or miss out by dint of one bay or street.

In a way I hate the place, but love it too, as it is the coast I grew up surfing and know it very well, so even now, when I don't go that often, at least I have an idea where to look.

Yesterday I checked this little spot. On arrival no one out so I rushed back, got into my gear and ran back down the track. Two guys already paddling out and we enjoyed a good hour and a half before it started to get very busy. Unusually I wasn't on a timetable, so I stayed out through the a couple of crowd cycles, and ended up having a great fun surf. Five and a half hours, a quiet chat with a few, dodging the odd protective local, and enjoying the sun.

The pics, the line up pre surf, and a snap just after I got out of the water.