October is traditionally the time that weather patterns begin to shift around my hometown of Homer, Alaska. Along with a bunch of rain, cold weather, and slush, October brings the first real westerly winds that push waves into the Kachemak Bay. After about five months with very very little to no surf, all of a sudden there’s a chance of a lump rolling onto the beaches. This is a great time of year to surf as much as possible in Alaska since the water is relatively warm (just above 50 degrees Fahrenheit) and you can’t complain about the air temps either.
I just returned from a week of surfing in Yakutat (more on this later) where it’s much warmer both in the water and out. After a nice two day break for my sore back and arms, Tuesday (10/7/08) brought some head high faces crashing into Homer. There was a record number of surfers in the water despite the close-out beach break conditions. The photo above was taken before I ran down the beach and paddled out. As the tide rose and the hours ticked by conditions improved and we actually ended up with some pretty nice clean barrels. Fast steep drops followed by a nice cool water sinus flush.
The next morning was even better – that report is next.
Scott,
Looks like a nice start to your site, and to the surf season for that matter. Hope we get another session tomorrow!
Mcfish
Thanks McFish.
Got what you asked for! I was down on the beach looking for the lost fin around 7pm around low tide and the swell was all but gone. Hopefully it will reappear monday.
Hi, my name is nathan and this winter surfing sounds like a blast. I’ve never been on a board before but it doesn’t scare me. Can I hook up with some one in Homer over Christmas break who will show me what the North Pacific has to offer?
thx for any response,
Nathan in Fairbanks
Hi Nathan,
The ocean calls the schedule around here. If there is waves we surf, if not . . . well, we just think about it a lot. Winter time is the right time so there will likely be some waves in December. If you are around feel free to email, but no guarantees.
Scott the site looks great…. needless to say, but the shots are excellent! Keep posting, its my only relief while I’m away….
Thanks Brad. It’s funny to think you are down there on the warm ocean fantasizing about surfing these freezing stormy alaskan waves! Funny, but I can totally understand.
We got some surfing in yesterday, and we are hoping for some swell this weekend too. There was about a week of nothing though so you haven’t missed much yet.
Scott,
Thanks for your blog posts and picts. My name is Jeff Crotts (37 yrs old) and I just moved here this summer – so I’m new to Alaska but grew up surfing on the East Coast and some in California. I live in Anchorage and am interested in surfing here. It there’s any way to connect over surfing I would really appreciate it. My email is jeffreycrotts@sbcglobal.net.
Thanks,
Jeff
Hi guys-
I’m visiting my sister in Homer this weekend 10/9/09 and was hoping to do some surfing at the spit. Any of you know where I could rent a dry suit and a surfboard? Was thinking about buying a used surfboard and renting a drysuit in AK. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!
Hey scott,
I am a california boy living in Nome Alaska for the summer. I want to surf!
No waves here tho. I know the season isn’t right, but was wondering if you had any ideas of places to go or any advice. Thanks!
Take care man.
-Mason
Never imagined the swells would be so gnarly. Keep up the good work. Later