which looks pretty and all, especially in a picture as opposed to, say, just outside your window. Didn't paddle a bit even though the San Juans arguably have some of the bestest, prettiest paddling anywhere. I wanted to, I really did. But the cold sucked my will to paddle as much as it sucked the warmth from the rest of me. I think I'd be ok if I lived in that sort of weather. Really it wasn't that bad and the snow melted off within 24 hours, largely thanks to the rain I guess. People in Wisconsin and other really cold places no doubt would snicker at my lack of fortitude. I of course would snicker at their lack of short sleeves and flip flops in January, but whatever.
Last week my brother-in-law invited me down to Santa Cruz with him. He surfs (on a board, not in a boat) and figured I could do my thing (paddle) while he did his. Surfing my boat in the same break with him wasn't even talked about. It's likely, albeit not certain, that I would have been beaten bloody by the locals and he'd be forced to deny me 3 times.
It was just a beautiful day. Winds were like 5kts and it was in the 60s. The swell was pretty big. NOAA had a place called Pleasure Point at 11 1/2 foot and 16 seconds. I ended up staying pretty far offshore going around Soquel Point. I've only been there once before and I don't know the waters very well. It shoals up a bit and it was breaking rather a ways out.
So basically it was a quick out and back 5 mile paddle that took about 2 hours at a get-there-whenever pace. That's shorter than the drive there and back, one of the reasons I tend not to do short paddles. If I'm going to put that much carbon in the atmosphere I'd like it to be for a more substantial outing. I took my camera with me of course. I didn't take pictures though. Dead battery. I really must be slipping, that's never happened to me before. Anyway, no pictures from me but the day looked something like this:
Gotta love the sun.
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