A single drop of seawater magnified 25 times (via thisiscolossal.com)

We know the ocean is home to some of the weirdest looking monsters on the planet. It's a big place, after all. But did you know that a single drop of seawater is also home to alien-looking critters too? They're just invisible to us because they're microscopic. If your a surfer then you might have some of these critter up your nose...

The photograph above, taken by David Littschwager, is magnified 25 times to reveal all that could be hiding inside seawater: crab larva, cyanobacteria, diatoms, copepods, chaetognaths, fish eggs, marine worms and more. All in the water we take a dip in for fun and immerse ourselves in for relaxation and even swallow for refreshment. Fun!

You can read more about which creature is what here.

SEXPAND

One Hour of Surfing in San Diego Condensed Into a Single Short Video (via laughing squid.com)

by Brian Heater at 3:40 pm on May 23, 2014

San Diego filmmaker Cy Kuckenbaken edited an hour worth of surfing video into a a single shot, choosing the best rides and removing the time that separated each one. The idea was to make the experience exciting for the viewer, while maintaining a sense of how much can occur in a single hour of surfing.

In most surf films, the riders are so talented and the waves are so good it becomes an abstraction from the average viewer’s/surfer’s experience at an average break. On the other hand, watching in person can be very slow and depending on the swell there may be long stretches when nothing happens at all. This video is a playful attempt to split the difference and reveal just how much can actually happen in an hour in an otherwise nondescript surf spot with non professional riders.

Kucken posted a making of video, to show exactly how the “time collapse” seen in the video was accomplished.

STRANGE RUMBLINGS IN SHANGRI LA

 

GLOBE Brand

Published on Jun 25, 2014

STRANGE RUMBLINGS IN SHANGRI LA
Directed by JOE G and featuring GLOBE surf team riders DION AGIUS, NATE TYLER, TAJ BURROW, YADIN NICOL, DAMIEN HOBGOOD, CREED MCTAGGART, CJ HOBGOOD, ALEX SMITH, NOA DEANE, BRENDON GIBBENS, and MORE - STRANGE RUMBLINGS IN SHANGRI LA is a modern surf film that documents an unforgettable worldwide journey from the frigid shores of ICELAND to the sultry coastline of MOZAMBIQUE. From well-known spots in EUROPE to exotic islands off the coast of BRAZIL and into DEEPEST INDONESIA, this is their greatest adventure yet.
Be a part of the journey as Strange Rumblings in Shangri-LA roars to life this summer, premiering during the U.S. Open of Surfing on July 31st, before heading off on an international tour to Australia, Brazil, France, Japan, and across the U.S.A.
The anticipation is growing, the excitement is building...there are Strange Rumblings in Shangri-LA.

Each year I set a few goals related to surfing: May 2014 Goals

Eric Cedeno, Porto 5-9-14 by Shell Shot

I’ve been tracking my surf habits since January 2012. I’ve refined my surf stats to show how often I surf or don’t surf, where I go, and what boards I ride. It seems like May is the month that I surf the most. I think there are a few reasons for this:

• The water is starting to warm up
• The weather is nice (some heat waves)
• Longer days so I can go surfing after work (*during the winter I show up to work in the morning in the dark and leave work in the late afternoon when it’s dark)
• There are 31 days in May (plenty of opportunities to surf)
• There’s usually waves around

This year in the Month of May I wanted to surf more than last year (2013)

Eric Cedeno, Porto 5-9-14 by Shell Shot

May 2014: I had 32 surf sessions in 29 days

May 2013: I had 26 surf sessions in 15 days

May 2012: I had 13 surf sessions in 10 days

I had the longest surf streak in the last 20 years

I surfed 25 days in a row, 5/7 thru 5/31. It would’ve been 30 days in a row (5/2 thru 5/31), but I didn’t surf on 5/6 because it was just too dangerous out there for me. The wind was just nuts. 

South Bay Surf 5/6/14

It looked like victory at sea out there and I just watched it until a couple of guys decided to give it a try. If I had my 7'4 with me then I might've given it more serious thought and could've ended up paddling out, but I didn't. Over the hour that I spend shivering in the relentless wind I saw two guys catch just one wave each. Each wave was at least double over head and made me happier that I was on dry land and not fighting the current and choppy surf for survival.

I surfed a few spots that I haven’t been to in years

Huntington Beach 5/25/14

Huntington Beach 5/25/14: I got good parking and paid $5 bucks to insure I wouldn’t get another parking ticket like I did on 5/16 at Porto. I paddled out on my 9’0 and caught a few waves, but knew I needed to swap out to my 6’10. The waves were fast and section and it would be best to have a board that could duck dive to make the paddle out a bit easier. So I went back to the car and swapped out to my 6’10- So much better. There were plenty of quick bowly lefts that my 6’10 was great for. I had a few really good waves. I was paddling for over an hour straight, catching waves and trying to stay ahead of the current that was constantly dragging me north. It felt like the take off’s were really fast and I liked that because it was good practice. The last time I was there had to have been in 2011 with Cliff and Rolando. Its weird how time flies.

Eric Cedeno, Manhattan Pier 5/26/14 Memorial Day

Manhattan Pier 5/26/14 Memorial Day: We drove around for just over two hours looking for parking. Manhattan pier looked fun, but no parking. Porto had the cops blocking off the entrance so again no parking. Ended up going back to the pier and battling it out for a spot on the southside of the pier. Some lady took the spot I was waiting for, she didn’t care about whose turn it was or that her kids were in the car and learning how to cut in line, cheat, steal. I’m sure one day she’ll get what’s coming to her, or maybe that’s already happened and she’s still upset about it. I suited up and took out my 6’10 while my wife waited for another spot to open up. She didn’t have to wait long, maybe just another ten minutes. I was stoked to find only three other surfers out in the water and the lifeguard was doing a great job keeping all the swimmers out of the surf area. The surf was a little tricky, and it took me a few waves to really get dialed in. Since there was only three other guys out it was easy for my wife to spot me and she took a few pictures of me surfing. 

Eric Cedeno, Manhattan Pier 1992/93

I think the last time I had picture of me surfing Manhattan Pier was back in 1992/93 on a rare occasion when my mom took me and my friend Stephan there and she snapped a few pictures. I thought about that when I was out there and tried to remember that last time I surfed the Pier. I think it was about four or five years ago with my friend Skip, but I can’t really tell. The water was warming up and I was having a great time. I focused on the oncoming sets and tried to let go of the hassles of parking that was eating at me. All in all I have to say that it was worth it. I know there were very few spots in the South Bay that had only 4 people out surfing at that time on Memorial Day so I had to count myself lucky, very lucky.

Don’t always believe Surfline

The tallest people in the world must work for Surfline.com

Surfline is good for a few things: Tides, swell direction, and sometimes surf cams. After that you really have to get off your computer and go to the beach and look at it. There have been plenty of times in May that Surfline was way off. Like Tuesday 5/27, Surfline was calling the pier 1-2 so I figured I'd wait for the late afternoon high tide push. I could tell by the walled sets that the tide was still pretty low as I suited up and grabbed my 6'10. There was only two people on the outside and two people on the inside with foamy boards and just after I paddled out they all left and I was alone at the pier. I caught a few really fun waves that had 4 to 8 foot faces. The take off was still tricky, really fast even for the South Bay. On some waves it more like a no paddle take off / air drop. After about an hour another kid in a green wetsuit paddled out and said that surf report was calling it 1-2. I agreed it was definitely bigger than that. The biggest sets were breaking almost at the end of the pier easily a few feet over head and were sucking up so fast that they were almost impossible to catch and if you did get one it was sure to close out real fast. As the tide filled in the shape got a little better. My arms were getting tired for all the paddling so after getting hit by a fifteen wave set out of nowhere I decided I'd better call it a day before I hurt myself. So I took a medium size left and connected it all the way in to the shore and got out. I was surprisingly comfortable out there in the over head surf and felt like I was improving my surfing skills.

I used my Costa Rica philosophy to get thru some crappy surf days

Back in March I was in Costa Rica and I got an ear infection that almost put and end to my surfing for the rest of my trip. The doctor told me to stay out of the water and keep my head dry to help the healing process. Of course I listened to the doctor and made every effort to keep my head dry… even when I was out surfing. I had a good surfing streak going back then and figured I would just go out and catch a few waves, maybe just three.  That philosophy of just catching a few waves (just three), help me keep my surfing streak going in May. There were a few days that under normal circumstances I would’ve just gone home and not paddled out at all. Sometimes I would get surprised to find the surf was better than it looked from the parking lot or from shore. Other times it made me appreciated all the other days were the surf was bigger and had better shape. 5/23 was by far the worst surf of the month for me. I checked out a few local spots, too small not breaking. I thought Porto might be breaking but didn’t want to do the drive so I headed south and checked out Torrance. It was a little better, but not much. I looked at it for a while and then found free parking and looked at it for a while longer. Finally I forced myself to paddle out. All I wanted was just three waves to keep my surf streak going, I caught 5 waves that hour then got out. That was probably the crappiest surf I’ve been in for a long- long time. For the most part I tried to keep and open mind and just be happy with whatever waves I got and my ability to catch a few waves. If that doesn’t keep me motivated then knowing that my surfing streak will only continue if I surf in those crappy conditions, that usually works.

Glass Beach (via thisiscolossal.com)

File this under I had no idea this existed. During the early 20th century residents of Fort Bragg, California chose to dispose of their waste by hurling it off the cliffs above a beach. No object was too toxic or too large as household appliances, automobiles, and all matter of trash were tossed into the crashing waves below, eventually earning it the name The Dumps. In 1967 the North Coast Water Quality Board closed the area completely and initiated a series of cleanups to slowly reverse decades of pollution and environmental damage. But there was one thing too costly (or perhaps impossible) to tackle: the millions of tiny glass shards churning in the surf. Over time the unrelenting ocean waves have, in a sense, cleansed the beach, turning the sand into a sparkling, multicolored bed of smooth glass stones now known as Glass Beach. The beach is now an unofficial tourist attraction and the California State Park System has gone so far as purchasing the property and incorporating it into surrounding MacKerricher State Park. (images courtesy digggs, matthew high, meganpru, lee rentz and linked to sources. via kuriositas)

Surfing after Dark - With and Without Bioluminescence

Red tide sweeps through southern California, an algae bloom spreading phosphorescent phytoplankton up and down the coast. The bioluminescence does play a role in the food chain—it’s a defense mechanism. Apparently the glow not only deters natural grazers of these dinoflagellates, but also attracts those organism’s predators, who, like us, are attracted to the light. The scientists say it isn’t harmful, contrary to most rumors. Red tide looks and smells dirty, but the bacteria level in the ocean stays roughly the same.

Some avoid duck dives and head dips to keep their insides algae free, others freely ingest the water, curious if it will glow on the way out the next day. Regardless, it’s inspired many to throw their wetsuits on for late-night sessions lit by the sparks of the algae, where every wave feels like a science experiment.

SURFER Magazine caught up with Dr. Peter Franks of UCSD’s Scripps Institute of Oceanography for more information and to double check that we won’t get sick:

Many are claiming this as one of the heaviest red tides in decades. What’s your theory on the cause of such a strong bloom in the area?

The organisms that form this red tide are phytoplankton—tiny single-celled plants. Like terrestrial plants they require light and nutrients to grow. It is likely that this red tide was preceded by some sort of injection of nutrients into the upper layer of the ocean. This could have happened through an uplifting of the deep, nutrient-rich waters by a variety of physical forces. Some of these forces are local (enhanced mixing) and some are remote (winds off Baja). At this point we don’t have any conclusive evidence to support any particular mechanism as being responsible for the red tides we get in Southern California. It is likely a very complicated combination of physics, chemistry and biology. We have been getting red tides in this region since before recorded history—they are natural phenomena—but they are very difficult to sample because they are so unpredictable.

How long do you think it will last?

The organisms forming this red tide are very sensitive to turbulence. So if we get a particularly windy day, the red tide might disappear in a day or two. The red tide-organisms are also being eaten by other organisms, and killed by bacteria. Once the mortality becomes higher than their growth rate, the red tide will disappear. It could be gone in a day, or it could last a month or more. It is as unpredictable as the weather.

How would you explain to a surfer that red tide won’t kill them? That’s true, right?

Many red tides are extremely toxic and can kill people who eat shellfish that concentrate the toxins. This particular organism contains no toxins that are known to affect humans. If you drink the water you’d die from salt poisoning long before you died from phytoplankton toxins. However, the organic material that is secreted by the red-tide organisms may help to prolong the life of human pathogenic bacteria in the ocean, potentially increasing the possibility of being infected by one of them. Many people have written to tell me that they suffer an allergic reaction to red tides. I have never heard of this being investigated carefully, and it would be worth trying to identify the compounds that people are reacting to. They may be from the red-tide organisms, or they may be from bacteria or other organisms that grow during a red tide.

Have you gone in the water at night yet?

I haven’t (I’ve been traveling) but I’ve heard wonderful stories from people who have been swimming in the red tide at night. It’s seriously spectacular! But don’t go in alone—it’s dangerous to swim alone at night. 

And if the Ocean doesn't light the way for you then you still have a few options. Check out the future of night time surfing: