A view from the California Coast

I took this video on Sunday morning, extremely high tide, many sneaker waves washing in. Several people nearly got washed out while trying to take photos. Note the amount of sand moved on the beach, the stairs and life ring station are half buried under sand.

The new web site I designed for Liz Anah.

Liz Anah escaped from New Jersey at a young age, never looking back. Her spare, smoky vocal style and simple but unforgettable songs grew out of a journey that included stops in Michigan for school, a pilgrimage to an Ashram in India, and serious hard time teaching in the Oakland public schools. Liz Anah’s music has a kind of gritty innocence. Her songs are direct, potent stories of real-life heartache and shattered love, powered by an indomitable optimism that demands attention. (Excerpt from her website bio).

Liz's new CD realease 'Fade to Black' Photography by K.Stokes

I met Liz Anah through other local coastside musicians, namely Montara locals and good buddies Mark and Mike (The Fourth Street Experience). One night at Cafe Lucca open mike, Liz and I got talking after her set, she knew that I designed Mike McCalls CD ‘The Lone Cypress’ and worked with him on several photo-shoots. She told me that she had a new CD nearly ready for release and that she needed a design for the cover. We took it from there and agreed that I would shoot her for some promo shots and her CD cover and re-design her website to fit in with her new look. I’m really pleased with the result (so is Liz)! Visit the website www.lizanah.com it features several shots from the photo session taken one very cold day around the HMB boat yards. Liz wanted a gritty urban look, but also wanted to retain a feminine feel, I think we achieved what she was looking for. The final CD cover image was taken toward the end of the session in the afternoon light. ‘Fade to Black’ is Liz’s first CD release and you can get hold of a copy on her web site by clicking this link.

Coastal Cuisine. Gone.

Coming home from work last week hungry and too burnt to cook I decided to swing by The Mavericks Roadhouse and pick up one of their tasty burgers for me and the missus. Imagine my disappointment and frustration to find the place shut, or as the website puts it ‘Gone to the beach’ for the season (in this weather?). WTF? Why? This just says to me that they don’t give a monkeys ass about the local trade, tourists are all they care about. The main road sign has even been pasted over with another sign directing any hungry customers to the mothership HMB brewery. So I now have to wait for Spring for the place to reopen, maybe I’ll go to La Costanera instead, wait, it’s Monday they are shut to. Argh!

These shots were taken by me from the bluffs which are about a mile from the wave, thanks to the Canon 600 mm lens my buddy Michael has lent me I was able to get some half decent shots of some of the first heat waves. It’s great to see shots of the pit from a boat close up, but these distance shots really give you a sense of the scale and magnitude of these waves. The surfers truly are modern day gladiators! Enjoy my photos, by clicking the full screen viewer.

I saw this video on coastsider.com and had to share.

Montara Beach Report 2/9 from Kevin Stokes (Coastsider) on Vimeo.

A short video report showing the damage to the sandstone bluffs on Montara Beach sustained during the recent high tides and winter storms.

Here is the second installment on my ‘Waves and Riders’ surf photography series, this time the shots are mainly from sessions shot during the big storms that have been hitting the NorCal coast. I hope you enjoy (be sure to click on the ‘Fullscreen’ button in the middle of the image box to enjoy the work at full size).

Styrofoam covers a Pacifica Beach. Photo © Ian Butler

This problem just gets worse and worse, we must enforce a styrofoam ban NOW. Make your voice heard by clicking here. Take a look at John Mayburys Peninsula Coastside Blog entry by clicking here.

Surfer Bart WIllems attached a cam to the nose of his board and paddled out to catch some waves at Mavericks, great footage, and as close as most of us will ever get to riding one of the waves out there.

Jeff Clark. image ©yahoo.com

In June 2009, Jeff Clark, the man whose name is synonymous with the infamous big wave, ceased to be Contest Director of the Mavericks Surf Contest run by Mavericks Surf Ventures. The sad irony here is that the company he helped form in 2003 to promote and be an ambassador for the wave, the sport, the contest and Mr. Clark himself, seems to have turned on the man who started it all over 30 years ago. Since then Jeff has been very quiet on the subject hoping to settle his differences with Mavericks Surf Ventures and it’s CEO Keir Beidling in private.

Sadly, it seems that Jeff’s vision of keeping the Mavericks Surf Contest true to honoring his spirit and passion for surfing has failed in the face of corporate sponsorship dollars and broken promises. He now has to resort to a legal approach to settle the dispute.

The Mavericks Big Wave contest is still waiting to be called at the time of writing (the 24 competitors now call the start), huge swells hitting the coast promise an exciting competition if Mother Nature allows the right conditions. The question has to be asked, can corporate sponsorship demanding a return on their investment and the true spirt of big wave surfing ever live comfortably together? Personally I think not, especially when Mother Nature holds the ultimate trump card of game on, or not.

Good luck Jeff, I believe you have a solid case. And good luck and safe surfing to all the competitors in the 2010 Mavericks Surf Contest!

To read the man’s own words check out his blog Jeff Clark: My Word.

(If you happen to read this post Jeff drop me a line, I have 10 Montara Life questions for you!)

Plastics: made to last for ever, designed to throw away.

Plastic garbage in the Ocean. (Photo in public domain).

I received this email from Dan Jacobson, Environment California Legislative Director.

“The Pacific Garbage Patch has grown to be twice the size of Texas. That’s why we’re calling for simple steps to cut the waste that’s fueling this enormous floating patch of trash. Unless California does something about our plastic trash it will only get worse. That’s why we’re calling for simple steps to cut the waste that’s fueling this enormous floating patch of trash. Every year, California uses 19 billion plastic bags – many of which find their way out to sea and ultimately to the Pacific Garbage Patch. – many of which find their way out to sea and ultimately to the Pacific Garbage Patch.

We’re calling for a small fee on plastic bags at the grocery store, to encourage reusable bags to encourage reusable bags. Join the call. Ask Gov. Schwarzenegger to put a fee on plastic bags. Environment California has launched a new effort – The Great Pacific Cleanup — to cut the waste that’s ending up in the Pacific Ocean.

Churned slowly by ocean currents, more than 100 million tons of plastic bags, bottles, toys, containers, packaging and other junk are swirling together, forming a moving island of trash off our coast that’s known as the Pacific Garbage Patch. Approximately 80% of that waste came from land. Cleaning up the mess poses an enormous array of challenges, but a few things are dead-certain: To start the cleanup, we have to stop generating so much ocean-bound waste. And California can lead the way.” Environment California has launched a new effort – The Great Pacific Cleanup — to cut the waste that’s ending up in the Pacific Ocean.

This is not breaking news for me, I have been following this story for some time now. It just gets more and more disturbing every time I read another article. So please click the link in the story and take some action right now! For a really informative low down on the pollution of the planets five gyres click here.

Jaws in full effect, Maui, Hawaii.

My good friend Hal sent me this picture of Jaws, taken the day before yesterday. It’s insane, regular 30ft swells are hitting the Islands, we are next!

Check out the live weather, swell, and surf updates on the Mavs site, click here.

This is my latest photographic project, I hope you enjoy my work, I had much fun making it. Big shout out to by buddy/photographer Michael Winokur for lending me his badass Canon 300mm lens. Most of these shots where taken either from Montara Beach or Surfers Beach. Make sure to click on the window and view full screen to get the full effect.

Mavericks, Photo by KStokes

The buzz on the coast is that with the big swell heading our way the Mavericks Big Wave Contest may well happen next week. This year will be the first time that the competition will be without Jeff Clark calling the shots on the big day. I wish all the 24 surfers a fun, safe and exciting competition.

Growing up in England I am used to snow at Christmas time. I’m in San Diego at the moment and it’s 65 degrees and sunny. I sorta miss the snow, oh well pass the sunblock.

The lowly STOP sign

I dunno, call me a busybody or a grumpy old geezer, but I’m getting increasingly annoyed by the driving habits of some of the parents that drop their children off at Farallone School in our community. It’s not the act of making sure the child gets to school so they can get an education and make the world a better place for all, that’s an extremely good thing, nothing is more important. No, what’s getting to me is the disregard by some parents for our communities road signs, in particular the humble STOP sign. The general rule of the road states, and I quote:

“At a stop sign, you must come to a complete stop at the appropriate place. Before proceeding from a stopped position, you must check for pedestrians waiting to cross the street, and yield the right-of-way. When pedestrians are clear, you may slowly move forward for a better view of traffic and, when safe to do so, you may proceed to turn or cross the street.”

Yeah right! I witness time and time again the lowly STOP sign being totally ignored, I mean come on, the poor thing has but one function in life. The least you people can do is follow it’s one word simple instruction, STOP! I’m singling out parents over other road users in this instant because of the precious cargo they carry.  I will now climb down from my soapbox.

The big red jolly guy made a surprise visit for the kids at Montara Elementary School over the weekend, he dropped in for a visit riding a firetruck.

Volunteers gather for the briefing and split into teams.

State Parks Chet Bardo helps dig a post hole

Around twenty volunteers from Montara Dog Walkers, the Coastside Horse Council, Montara Mountain Chain and Sprocket Society and The Montara Beach Coalition joined State Park Rangers to work on various trail maintenance projects this Saturday morning for the first of the rejuvenated ‘Montara Mountain Trail Volunteer Day” meets. After rallying the wife to get up at 7.30 a.m. we walked across the open space to the meeting point by the Martini Creek Bridge. An enthusiastic crowd was gathering ready to get to work. [Read more →]