A much needed break...

Winters can be long here, with periods of intense weather and extended time indoors. It can leave you longing for summer and thinking it will never end! One interesting fact is that while everyone else is experiencing the coming of spring in March we have our heaviest snow month of the year.
Yesterday Les and I got together and surfed Graveyards. It is inaccessible in the winter by road, the only way to get there is by airplane or skiff. Les owns an air service, alsekair.com, and flies to surf spots at times but prefers to go by skiff.
The sand at the surf spots can change here radically because of the massive seas that come in in the wintertime. Graveyards right now is looking the best we have ever seen it due to the changing of the sand. We surfed it alone with 6-9 foot swells rolling in and Les got a few rides of 15 seconds or longer. The waves were so long and perfect I was running back up the point instead of paddling.
It was a much needed break and the first time I have gotten to surf with Les, he has been hammered this winter with flying jobs and scheduled maintenance. We both had one of the best sessions of our lives and a real blessing at this point in the year. The Father gives good gifts!
Here is a scrapbook page that Allison made of me coming back from a winter surf, enjoy!

Vans surf team in Alaska

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UTWBxjmeV_8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=792bwph6XZo

Here are a couple of videos from Yakutat last fall when we were in LA. The funny part is every summer tourists get stuck in that exact spot. Also, it is about 7 or 8 miles out of town through bear infested woods so you really don't want to be walking back without a rifle. One guy in town, ex Force Recon marine, was doing a run through there and had a bear charge him. He ended up 30 feet in a tree with the bear going crazy at the bottom of the tree, shaking, clawing and biting the base of the tree. He did 2 tours in Iraq and said that was the most frightening encounter of his life, bar none. Moral of the story, let people know where you are going and be careful where you walk and drive in the summer.

Weather musings...

It's funny, today I surfed (first time in quite a while). Air temp 44, water temp 37, almost felt like late spring today. But go back a few days and we were down to 35 below windchill, dumped on with blizzarding snow and now at 44 with pouring rain, quite the range for under a week. Never know quite what to expect here in Yakutat. I'd enclose a picture but it is a massive slushy mess! Instead of plowing our road this morning they put gravel on the more than a foot of slush the road has become, go figure. Reminds me of the snowplow I saw once on the way to Big Bear, full speed ahead plowing dry pavement, sparks flying everywhere.

Monday Morning Devo

Monday Morning Devotional

If you don't already get this weekly devo, sign up now at http://www.christiansurfers.com/ for a free membership and devo. Dean (the National Director) does a great job of communicating godly truths that help keep we as christian surfers on track and remembering who we surf and live for, Jesus Christ. I am amped to have helped out with this week's devo and contributed a pic of Mt. St. Elias... Click on the Monday Morning Devotional link at the top to view!

Also, the latest newsletter from Christian Surfers International can be viewed at http://www.christiansurfers.net/resources/surf_report/surf_report_36.html

Pictures

Oops! Wouldn't let me post the pics, I'll try again here, it has been blizzarding and looks like we are in for about 18 more inches of snow or more before the weather warms up and turns to rain.

Pray for Quinn that he starts to sleep better at night, it has been a difficult time. Also, Allison's back has really been bothering her, please remember her in your prayers as well.

I

It's been a while...

It has been really busy with CS, winter king trolling and occasional cold water surfing thrown in. We are in the middle of another snowstorm with a foot expected in the next 12 hours. Things slow down in February with 35 below windchills (last night) and slow fishing.

Taking on more national work for CS has been fun, catching a 28 pound king (dressed) was as well. One surf session at Graveyards was memborable when our skiff dragged anchor and left us stranded with night coming on in January. Fortunately the skipper paddled down the skiff and saved us from a long paddle in Monti bay at night.

Congratulations to our West Coast RC for the birth of Madelaine! Here are a few pics I went out and took yesterday...A tree of eagles, some waves at Cannon Beach and vistas around town...