It's All About that Surf
As a surfer you've no doubt heard the words:
"It was windy today down at the beach! The waves were up."
And Captain Correction would say "Well actually ..."
The wind at your local break has very little to do with the size of the surf at your local break. The waves you WANT to surf actually come from very, very far away.
Here's what happens before you catch a wave:
☀️ The Sun
A fusion reactor in the sky, aka "The Sun" creates light that takes approx. 8 minutes to reach the Earth.
💨 Creates Wind
Sunlight hits the ocean, heats up the air above it and creates wind.
🤏 Then Small Waves
The wind forms very small surface waves at first.
🌊 Turn Into Swell
When the wind blows long enough, the small surface waves organize into groups called "swell".
🧳 Which Travels
The swell travels in the direction the wind was blowing and marches across the ocean (hopefully towards your beach!).
✈️ A Long, Long Way
After a long journey, the swell finally arrives at your local beach where it hits shallow water.
💥 And Breaks
The shallow water forces the swell energy upward and forms a surf-able wave.
🏄 At Your Spot
You claim one of these waves, and you surf the living daylights out of it! Shreddd til dead.
🤗 You = Happy
After you surf the wave, you had a blast but you can't remember it (a well known phenomenon called Post-Wave Amnesia).
So, the BEST case scenario is that there is NO wind at your local spot, but there's a lot of wind that's been blowing for a very long time hundreds (and even sometimes, thousands!) of miles away.
Now that you have a better idea of where waves come from, read on to find out what swell period is and how it can be the difference between an epic session and just an average one.