Saturday morning brought J-Dog back to camp. This time the drive was a bit longer, but in his trusty Toyota with a kickin' stereo, driving is a pleasure (I speak from experience). When the Saturday morning cereal was drained from milky bowls, the three of us headed down to The Haulover to see what Mother Nature had planned.
Despite the vehicles lining the parking lot, topped with windsurfing equipment like overgrown piles of dirty clothes, the wind was not a'blowin. But it was sunny and clear, and that was something new for us here in Hatteras thus far. We hiked over the dunes to the Atlantic side, surfboards in tow, and played in the waist-high waves for a few hours. The water was the color of a Bombay Gin bottle...clear blue and clean right down to the rippled sandy bottom. The waves were clean breaking right and left, and even a few shoulder-high sets rolled through, all the way to the beach.
Buddies in the camper.
And the dolphins came to surf, too. Just feet away from our boards, the huge, sleek creatures arched over the surface, checking us out. We restrained Jay from kicking any of them.
In the afternoon, windy it became. Good this was. (Oh no, I've been taken over by Yoda). Jay got out in the water and completed phase two: the body drag. As the wind got tired, Brant and I ended up walking, with three boards and two kites, downwind through the sound. It was perfect for learning; it was nearly impossible for riding. The wind stayed right on that cusp where you convince yourself there's enough to go out, but in truth there simply is not.
Sunday the wind picked up a bit more. We shared the beach with eager windsurfers excited to find the invisible force cooperating. One of our parking lot companions, when not on the water, was bedecked in surgeon's scrubs that matched his green speedos. Watch for this fashion trend at surf spots and windsurfing scenes soon...it's sure to be a hit. J-Dog made some great progress, and on his last run before he had to head home he tackled the board. The late afternoon winds popped up to the low teens, and spoke of what was in store. The weather radio spoke of it too: a nor-easter was moving down the coast, slated to front on Hatteras early Tuesday morning.
All the rage in the windsurfing fashion industry.
Monday morning broke beautifully clear and calm. I'm not going to repeat what that means for extreme activities. One cool thing happened Monday, though, we got some coverage in a N.C. paper, The News & Observer, covering our recent hook-up with Zoom Culture. It's always fun to see your name in print!
Tuesday we woke up and it was blowing. Really blowing. We headed early to the lighthouse, and as the wind wasn't insane, and the waves were still do-able for me, we rigged up some kites and I took my first try at kiting in the open ocean. Now Brant (and every other windsurfer, sailor and person familiar with the open ocean) says that the rolling hills of water past the surf line are "chop." Until now my interpretation of the word "chop" was small disturbances on the surface of the water, and I'm thinking big chop is like two-feet high. Well, some of this chop was as tall as me! I'm still not convinced. Anyway, the chop was a new challenge for me, and my upwind ability was humbled. One step at a time, you know.
A bit later, Steve and Paul, two really good kiters in the area, showed up at the lighthouse. Winds were easily pumping up to the thirties, the kind of wind where your car door will get bent if you're not careful when you open it. Steve lost his 6.5 kite when the winds gusted up, and Paul and Brant helped in the rescue unit. Later on, we all headed to the sound, and though the wind had not let up, all three of "the boys" got out and tackled the wind. If I had gone out there I would have been blown to Florida by now.
Darkness finally brought the expression session to a close. I'm hoping the winds will stick around, but maybe to a lesser degree so I can get out there, too. I've had enough practice playing spectator. But if they do maintain velocity, hopefully there will be some great wave sailors taking advantage of it! The swell is supposed to come up to huge along with the wind! Crazy Hatteras...fall begins!
