5.3m Action, Pea Island Just South of Oregon Inlet

Yesterday, a south swell came out of nowhere, and seemed to mainly hit the northern beaches starting around Pea Island. Avon reported flat conditions, while Pea Island, and points north saw a chest high set swell. There was a lot of energy offshore throughout the day in the form of heavy thunderstorm activity, so perhaps that is where the waves came from.

Caleb J and I caught it at the first washout about 5 miles south of Oregon Inlet. Conditions were sunny skies (for a while...), juiced 5.3m SW wind, and a chest high set wave. Early into the sesh, the surf lined up nicely with fun hits and multiple turns; however, as the clouds rolled in and the wind became spotty, the surf weakened and got weird with disorganized peaks, and kind of a jumbled mess. An odd "cold wind" mixed with the warm SW creating dead wind zones, especially on the outside. I did not sail too far out as these dead zones seemed to widen the further from shore I went. In the surf zone however, the winds remained on tap. Water was chilly in the upper 40s to low 50 degrees, though no booties or gloves were necessary. I wore my cap/vest combo, but left the cap off my head.

Shot some wide angle GoPro footage (with fresh batteries) using the chest mount. Enjoy!