A quick question...

General Discussion
1

Not a design or manufacturing question, but a california surf question. (I figured this would be the more likely place to come and get a half decent straight answer- fingers crossed here.)

I’m writing a piece of fiction that takes place somewhere between Tijuana Sloughs and Oceanside- probably more precisely between Blacks and Sunset Cliffs- and I would like to write that the character “spent winters riding the big winter swells that originate…” where? Where do the majority of epic swells that hit that stretch of coastline originate?

Hopefully thanks in advance.

2

Aleutians?

3

the Aleutians

4

Thanks. Actually what I’d witten but I had to double check just to make sure I wasn’t being a complete dumbass.

5

well, you could have written “Pineapple Express” and you wouldn’t be too far off.

We get plenty of those westerlies too, just not as epic form…

6

I’m always open to new and better wording. Writing about surfing you do tend to run out of viable concrete terms and end up having to introduce the multitude of “spicoli-isms” to the average reader to keep things from becoming too monotonous.

7

“Sick dude!” I mean, “I understand” you could always throw in some pictures to get the

word count up and to avoid the issue altogether, lol. (conversion factor: picture=1000words)

This is with a little too much west, from a place at the end of my street:

Way less close-outs with the Northerly component…

…good luck with the writing!

600×575 29.7 KB

8

“North Pacific” would cover most of California’s winter swells.

9

Word. Gracias.

10

I’ve got a couple more, but I forgot one.

What about the Roaring Forties? Am I way off base thinking that swells generated there would hit the southern California Coast?

What kind of fish would a kid catch off of Crystal Pier? (or O.B. or Scripps, I suppose.)

11

Well, it’s cause and effect. The Roaring 40’s is that zone in the southern hemi that blows

fierce all the time, like between Antarctica and Australia or Antarctica and South Africa.

Low pressures get pulled into the 40’s and then they “spin off”- some of those spin off

near New Zealand and if we are lucky head toward us (SoCal) for a few days. During that

time swell can be produced. If we are lucky, those swells weave through island chains

like Tahiti and produce “Southern Hemi Swells” we get at south-facing spots in Southern

California. Spots like the Wedge go richter and Trestles fires.

Kinda tough saying the source IS the Roaring 40’s/50’s, but maybe the vehicle for some

swells…

As a kid we caught Queen Fish (small croaker), Perch (both barred and surf perch), Opal Eye,

and sometimes a Halibut, Corvina, or Bonita- Nowadays I’m not sure, a Smelt? a streamer of

toilet paper? I’ve seen people reel up Crabs, Lobsters, and even Abalone (with fishing poles!)

certainly not with intention! plus lots of kelp.

12

Thanks.

13

nothin betta then a point of departure

from the far and wide northern pacific

the basin tha spawns the stuff of dreams

the storms decend the imalayas

onto the waiting flats

off the eastern slopes of asia

the latent heat of the circulating waters

of the southern oceans near the equator

runnin north must be tempered

the chilled zephers and torrents of crashing

cold COLD air begin to work the

confrontation into a lather

spinning like dancers locked in a whirl

out onto the wide dancefloor of the body of water

named for tranquil grace,sometimes.

a fire hose left un attended

has a will unpredictable

or a garden hose for that mater

when the pressure is increased

it will spray in fits and sarts to and fro

up and down in uncanny precision

soaking the smallest corner

of the entire space

the surf generator

is the hose

that is mixing winds

the very warm and the super chilled

ais make winds way strong

that back flush th northern latitudes

in winter to balance the

suns westward heated air flow

like that hose

points itself at coastlines thousands of miles away

with land mass small and greater blocking

the surf ,children of the wind and waves,

unravel on the shore .

as to the poetry fish

the magic fish of the california seagrass

it has been assigned the name of an italian revolutionary

if I am not mistaken

Garibaldi

this fellow of the environ appears like

a glowing orange yellow light beneath

to be caught or not I dont know the parameters

but for the green california waters

be it baja or not

the lite of this wonderful sight says san diego

too me.

prognosticaters will say

with assurance where each

wave originates

and even choose to argue the fact

but the mystery will remain

wow what a wave

wher dit come from?

out there.

…ambrose…

14

Ah see now that was a nice piece of poetry. Mahalo nui loa.