Friday, the 23rd of October was a nice looking day. I was just about to start painting my house (an ongoing project) when I got a phone call. It was my friend, Steve The Dream Thomas, with a live surf report. He was at the Lillian St. beach access (aka, the Laundry Mats) and he informed me there was a nice little swell that only a couple of stand-up paddleboarders and longboarders were taking advantage of.
I was in quite the dilemma. Paint the house or go surfing? Duh, I’m going surfing.
Air temp was about 70, water temp in the low 60s. There was a very gentle, slow rolling swell with a knee high wave you could ride for quite a long ways. On top of that there was no wind and the waters were very calm.
I actually needed a day like this to build up my confidence. The waves were easy to catch and I got good practice staying on the board as I finished out and turned around. In addition, I was able to paddle along with a pod of dolphin that weren’t too far away. Always a thrill.
The swell eventually quit around high tide so headed back home to see if I could get any work done. That didn’t last long because I soon had to pick up my son from elementary school which leads me to my second beach getaway.
I decided to take him, a friend, and my 4 year-old to the beach to play. Just in case I was given the opportunity I brought my fishing rod.
The kids went immediately to building a sand fort at the base of a washed up tree. If there’s one thing I can rely on with my kids at the beach is that they’ll find some old flotsam and start creating something. That distraction is just what I needed to start fishing and it went relatively smooth for 3 hours, which might be a record for us. I even caught a speckled trout, but not a keeper.
Once again it was a good day to be alive on the Outer Banks.