I agree with suba. This winter was average with only a handful of memorable days. For me, a successful winter generally has a strong correlation to rainfall statistics. Easy to look back at watercorp stats and it's very accurate as to which months were good. E.g. a classic case, June 2013 had 44mm, average is 175.5mm. I remember you all going on about the great sunny weather and offshores, but that coincided with small swell and straight banks for like six weeks straight. And for me September 2013 was great, 144.2mm, average 81.3mm. I remember in the last week or second last week spending over 20 hours in three days. Sept 2014 with 77mm was ok but nothing special with only a few good days. Still got plenty of days in but only one or two that I'll remember.
^ pretty interesting Legion.
I thought 2014 winter was great, as was 2013. Perhaps you guys have forgotten the el nino / drought years prior...?
The wave where I do all my metro surfing was the best it has been in the past 4 years by quite some stretch.
Select to expand quotebirdman89 said..
The wave where I do all my metro surfing was the best it has been in the past 4 years by quite some stretch.
Yea Ive had some awesome surfs this year south of scabs. A few at Trigg 
It's all good for me. Just gotta adapt and look for opportunities, even in the crappy years. I still surfed plenty but for whatever reason not many super good days. Sometimes that might mean lots of good days but nothing special.
E.g. I remember a day in 2013 when the forecast (and actual) was for only a 0.5m-0.7m swell but ridiculously long period (smicko's favourite) and from the north with northerly winds sometime in winter. Winds at my local were NNE, so just enough to be offshorish. Swell wasn't blocked by a stupid island. No-one predicted how good it would be and the graphs "lied", so only about three or four mates out, 3', occasional 4' (not bjshack scale), all afternoon.
That was special because it was unusual. Got lots of usual, expected days this year but nothing unusual really.
I felt that the trigg banks apart from the obvious exclusion were average this year compared with normal. OK, I had some good days there including a surprising one or two and even ventured to scabs on one or two unusual days but in general I wasn't impressed. A classic example is the point, which has struggled for a fair while. Not that I look very often but I haven't seen it happening for a while now. Did it even form properly last summer?
You guys have seen them before, but I shot these during the 2013 winter months and I was out in the water almost every day during those months and there were so many days with waves like this. Sure, it's far from world class but it was decent fun and I still think it topped this year.
...and there are so many other pics and video clips.
Select to expand quoteLegion said..
It's all good for me. Just gotta adapt and look for opportunities, even in the crappy years. I still surfed plenty but for whatever reason not many super good days. Sometimes that might mean lots of good days but nothing special.
E.g. I remember a day in 2013 when the forecast (and actual) was for only a 0.5m-0.7m swell but ridiculously long period (smicko's favourite) and from the north with northerly winds sometime in winter. Winds at my local were NNE, so just enough to be offshorish. Swell wasn't blocked by a stupid island. No-one predicted how good it would be and the graphs "lied", so only about three or four mates out, 3', occasional 4' (not bjshack scale), all afternoon.
That was special because it was unusual. Got lots of usual, expected days this year but nothing unusual really.
I find that pretty hard to believe (the part about you having three or four mates that is).
Maybe this year was a bad one for scabs/trigg compared to 2013, where i surf was all time.
The last 3 years have been better than normal in winter I reckon...there was a run of 3 or so years before that when it was just ****e...say around 2008 to 2010...
I thought this year was pretty $hit too, from Cott north at any rate. There was several days where I drove from Mullaz to Sandtrax on a booming swell and couldn't bring myself to go out anywhere, either due to wobbly backwash or overly enthusiastic ****tards everywhere.
Crew were raving about Meets but every time I checked it it was pretty much just closeouts, not A-framing like it used too.
Dewars had some all time days but with all time crowds. In fact I'd go as far as saying that I surfed it about as good as I ever have a couple of times this year.
Wedge was $hit, too big and too deep, banks are still ****ed now and it will be years before the sand is back.
Flozza had the odd glimmer of glory too, one afternoon whilst waiting on a meeting at Clancy's I watched one lucky sod just getting shacked off his nut for over an hour on his lonesome.
2011/12 is still my pick for the best waves of at least the last 15 years. Our first proper NW storm since May '94 and then cyclones in summer. You've seen these before too but.....
mikemaxted.blogspot.com/2011/08/lucky-lukes-luscious-lengthy-left.html
Well from my point of view I got out plenty of times this winter, but did not have any 'all time' sessions... and this Spring and the start of summer have been the worst in memory for us metro weekend warriors. Look at the cams for today and then the forecast over the weekend. Just miserable...
2011 Winter was okay as far as the "waves" between ST and Cott.
Obviously not choice destinations but I remember a few days during that winter when we had storm swells that produced some decent drainers of surprising size for that particular stretch of coast.
I haven't seen those kind of waves at those spots since then.
We are all too old and picky....go back to grom days.....any wave is a good wave
i for 1 reckon local Scabs winter was prett damned good....I surfed lots as a weekend warrior and school holiday commando
agree with Smiko.......nth secret that's not so secret owes us u few but we did get a shhhhhhhhhh spot pretty good a cupla times
sweeeeeeeeeeet potatoooooooooooooeee making spring more enjoyable and this weekend looks ok if you don't mind wind and bank less banks
Have only been back in these waters for a few years, but woah, if this was a good year, I'm gonna top myself.
NOt really, but jeez it's crappola...I'd forgotten how bad it can be. I was definitely spoilt before.
On a different note, anyone seen the Punta Galea Challenge? They are surfing super-mega-rhino-chasers!! Ridiculous!!!
My only hope for a surf before I fly out to the second my god forsaken coastal town in the country is for a local wind wave over the next few days.
How far we fall.....
Select to expand quotesubasurf said..
My only hope for a surf before I fly out to the second my god forsaken coastal town in the country is for a local wind wave over the next few days.
How far we fall.....
Sorry to tell you, but not even the school kids are chasing a wind-wave in this soup today... it's just plain effed. Low tide and the swell is still struggling to come through. I just cycled from Hillaries to Floreat to have a look at the coast - 56min going South; 26min heading North!!! Did not see a single kiter either...
Thankfully I have a boat to take out on the GBR....outter reefs are bound to have some swell.
Where are you gonna be based Scooby? Give me a bell if you like, I've lost your number. I lived on a boat over there for a couple of years, there's some epic waves.
Lots of sharks, crocs, currents, jellies and other **** that'll kill you but EPIC waves.
Best winter I ever had, went to the goldcoast for a month scored kirra, and heaps of waves within two hours south of there. Came back surfed September between two cray fishing towns north a lanno for a few weeks epic... Had a few quiet weeks late September one memorable down south trip... Unnamed locale....wound it up with a couple weeks in the mentawais..., ran outta cash went back to work... No waves for four weeks faaaark
Select to expand quoteGPA said...subasurf said..
My only hope for a surf before I fly out to the second my god forsaken coastal town in the country is for a local wind wave over the next few days.
How far we fall.....
Sorry to tell you, but not even the school kids are chasing a wind-wave in this soup today... it's just plain effed. Low tide and the swell is still struggling to come through. I just cycled from Hillaries to Floreat to have a look at the coast - 56min going South; 26min heading North!!! Did not see a single kiter either...
Too windy for kiteboarders. Epic for windsurfers
Everywhere was going off
Yep windy, but a fun wave still non the less this morning.. Chilly breeze though
Will be working out of Cairns. I don't specialize in tropical organisms for the most part, prefer working in temperate waters (more interesting). But the gf is over there training divers so figured I would go over there and do some work on tropical sharks.
The sharks and crocs don't bother me...but the jellyfish. Petrified. I react very poorly to cnidaria stings so I'll be diving with an epipen and in a full wettie/stinger suit.....which as you guys know, goes against everything I believe in hahahahahahaha
Did the drive up to Trigg this morning planning on going for a snorkel....too much water moving around so no vis. Was watchign the absolute 5hit-fest at the point. 30 people almost literally shoulder to shoulder scrapping over dickheight crumblers. Sad times. Ohwell, yelo coffee and spandex drive 'fauna observation'.....good times.
