Long Training Paddle

Last year, on April 16th, I had plans to go for a 15-mile paddle with Nick Bryson. But I fractured my radial head (left arm) on the 15th - which is how my skateboard wound up in Sayulita, Mexico, courtesy of Mike McDaniel.

This year, sans skateboard, things are going better. I've been working up my mileage and, today, I did my first 20-mile paddle of the year - an annual milestone.

Lately, most paddles have been in Monterey, from San Carlos Beach. I was feeling like a paddle at my home waters was due.  I was up at 5:15 a.m. and planned to be on Carmel Beach before 6:30. I had everything organized, easily heading out the door only slightly late, at 6:20.

It was an especially gorgeous morning (in case you weren't up), so I brought my camera. [Click on photos to enlarge, hit <esc> to return.]

I've admired this low-tide view often. This seemed the perfect time to take the shot.

But I dealt myself a delay. I noticed a couple of days ago that my GPS mount was getting loose from my board (it's held there with dual lock tape). My neglect was rudely pointed out to me as I paddled through the Carmel shorebreak. Fortunately, I always attach the GPS lanyard to my water bottle cage, saving the GPS. But that didn't stop King Neptune from claiming my GPS mount. After I found a place to nestle my now unmoored gadget, things got underway.

Sunrise beams on Pescadero Point.

Where not to paddle.

The entire paddle was sun-soaked and mostly windless. It began at low tide and ended at high tide.

I love the out and back high mileage that Santa Cruz offers, with so much gorgeous coastline. In Carmel, without a paddling partner, I restrict myself to staying somewhat closer to land, and prefer not to round Pescadero Point and head for Cypress Point. But the scenery is so amazing, I didn't care about doing laps. It helped that Stillwater Cove's kelp bed was still passable, and it got better as the tide rose.

I settled into a sustainable pace. Once I get underway, I can always rely on this to clear my mind's clutter. Getting into the physical and out of the cerebral on regular basis is something that helps make my life especially good. 

But today, there were so many other things in addition to paddling to enjoy and draw inspiration from. And I wasn't alone in thinking so. There were several kayaks, two Monterey-based dive boats, two divers venturing out from Stillwater Cove on bodyboards, and a stand-up paddler.  I couldn't help but pull out my camera ...

Stillwater Cove, down below.

I take Joe Bark with me everywhere I paddle!

One kayaker told me about how good salmon fishing is this year.  Now, if I could just learn to like fishing and figure out how to fit that into my next 20 miler ...

Celebrating 2011

It's been an unforgettable year.

I got into downwind paddling (wish I would have started that years ago!), broke my arm (I sent the skateboard to Sayulita, Mexico), paddled some fun ones -- including another Jay Race, Pier-2-Pier (gotta), Kauai's Na Pali Coast (HUGE thanks to Kanesa) and the Island-2-Island relay (that's Channel Islands -- HUGE thanks to Kathryn). And then there's the endless support I got from DeeAnn!!!!

That just left the Question: How to end an epic paddling season?

Answer: An epic paddle with friends out to Point Lobos, followed by Mike McDaniel’s way-epic Mai Tais and lots of amazing food. Thanks to Mike ("M2") and Mile 22 (check 'em on www.mile22.com and like 'em on Facebook -- there should be a 'way like' button') for getting us together.

A solid south wind was on, so we had to work for it. But when we got close to Point Lobos, we were completely sheltered from the wind. We just hung out there in glass and amazing light. The paddle back to Carmel Beach was a fun downwinder.

Click on any photo to enlarge.

Operation: Occupy Carmel Beach begins

The Preoccupied.

Granite windbreak

Perfect timing over a temporarily submerged rock!

Someone's looking forward to snowboard season!

Absolutely nothing serious.

Navigating Around the Monterey Peninsula

For me, San Carlos Beach is the best attraction on Monterey’s Cannery Row.  It’s an easy place to launch a paddle, no matter the swell. There could be a pounding shorebreak in Carmel, but San Carlos Beach will nevertheless deliver. The diving community knows this: it’s a popular weekend splash, year round. 

Smile, and pretend to not be nervous.

Speaking of diving, Mike McDaniel made the comparison depicted with captions below:

Paddling: minimal equipment

 Diving: WAAAAY too much equipment!

I have paddled with friends from this beach up to Lover’s Point and surfed the bumps all the way back. And several years ago, I paddled with Paul Wetterau from Carmel Beach to Spanish Bay – a paddle we both enjoyed immensely but have not actively sought to repeat. Today, we were going to go the whole distance around the Monterey Peninsula and into Carmel Beach, about 14 miles.
Predictions for conditions were promising: light northwest winds, modest 2-4 foot northwest swell, incoming tide.  In the small park overlooking the beach, Mike McDaniel, Nick Bryson and I readied our paddleboards amid the divers and their carefully laid-out equipment. We took a few extra precautions, including cellphones packed in drybags. Our launch occurred around 7:15 a.m. in glassy waters under gray skies.

"Let's do this!"

And they're off ...

Hey, what are those dorks doing?

And that was the last we saw of them, officer....

Well, that's the end of the photos. Mike didn't take the camera on board, and DeeAnn understandably left the scene.

It turned into a rough water paddle, and it got more challenging as we pressed on.  I had been hopeful that we would be catching swell after rounding Point Piños (Monterey Bay’s southernmost tip), but instead we were going cross-swell rather than downswell much of the way.

No matter. I’d do it again tomorrow in the right conditions and with the right paddlers. It was magnificent.  I have often run this entire route on land, through Pebble Beach, Asilomar, Pacific Grove, all the way into Cannery Row. I have run the Big Sur Half Marathon (Monterey through Pacific Grove and Asilomar) six years in a row. I have surfed out there, too. It’s one thing to see this spectacular coastline from roads and trails, but quite another from sea. It was very interesting to sort out familiar landmarks from the perspective of being in the water. And all of the sea creatures were benign, at least the ones we could see.

That modest northwest swell interacted with the bays and points in ways that caused cross-chop and currents. We got our first real taste as we approached Point Piños. There’s a buoy out in front of the point, and it’s a good idea to stay outside of that – inside, there’s no telling where a rock will jump up out of the water. I found myself imagining that, with very little research effort, any number of documented shipwrecks through the remainder of our route could be found. (check http://shipwrecks.slc.ca.gov/ShipwrecksDatabase/Shipwrecks_Database.asp) Whatever is down there was interacting with waves and currents in ways that slowed forward progress.

I was expecting Point Joe to be the worst. Pebble Beach Company has thoughtfully constructed and maintained a lookout there. A sign describes: “the restless sea.” That’s poetic, but, on most days, a brief glance in the direction of the actual ocean at Point Joe will reveal its very dark mood. The reef is shallow, it extends very far out, and it magnifies swell and backwash from what must be something very close to 300° on the compass. In other words, it’s a mess. But today, its mood was more favorable than usual.

It was Cypress Point that dished up the worst. Nick noticed a large circular current. I noticed that I needed to sit up for a moment to ward off seasickness. I also got bucked off my board, but was able to maintain hand contact until I could climb back on.

Once beyond Cypress Point, the swell began to line up for us. But by then, I wasn’t quite up to surfing it. As we progressed, the surface improved. Pescadero Point came into sight, and as we rounded it, things really smoothed out. Our last two miles turned into an easy and fun ending, and the sun even broke through.  Finally, we could knee-paddle again.

In the end, we didn't go fast, but I felt this one for days afterward. I have a whole new appreciation for my home waters, Carmel Bay.

Thanks to DeeAnn for the pictures and to Mike McDaniel for those great captions!