Winter Storm Riley Surf - A Taste of What's to Come

Will Wake Up for Waves

Dawn came early this morning. After a 5 hour rock climbing session yesterday my body was a little tired, but after missing the morning offshore winds yesterday, there’s no way I was missing today. After getting word from a friend that Delray was a little all over the place this morning (looked good late morning though!) I decided to head to my nearest inlet. I was expecting a little more North to be in the wind today so it seemed like a safe bet.

The inlet had some good waves coming through the outside, but the inside didn’t look to appetizing for the particular appetite that I had today. It looked like an outside break only session, and maybe even middle of the inlet day (see first image below). I decided to head a few minutes south to Deerfield. Local knowledge definitely paid off, and I was greeted by some decent looking waves

At first glance the waves looked about 3-4 foot, semi-glassy, and a little bit mushy with the tide. A couple of sets were coming through in the 5ft range every 5-10 minutes so I made the call to suit up and get out in the lineup. Weather was a little cold so I did the wetsuit shuffle at the car after choosing my weapon of choice for the day (5’4″ Hypto Krypto for anyone wondering).

And on the Second Day, There Was Surf

Winter storm Riley did not disappoint once in the lineup. The session started out a little wonky, but the outer reef was holding the swell, and the offshores were peeling the waves back. The tide was rising as the morning progressed, and with each passing moment the swell filtered in more. By 9:30/10am, the swell was in the overhead range on sets and people were getting rides all the way to the beach.

A good surfer was easily able to pack 5-6 turns onto the open face before they got to the inside section to hunt for a tube. I saw plenty of people packing tubes on the inside as I was paddling back out from a previous wave/tube.

The Surf Kept on Rising

By the time high tide filled in, the wind stayed offshore, and the swell really pushed in. I watched from down the line as surfers took off on waves 4-5ft overhead, and crank out turn after turn as they passed. Longboarders and shortboarders alike were getting the craziest waves, although only a select few shortboarders were sitting on the far outside with the loggers.

This swell so far was the best swell of the season, and this wasn’t even supposed to be the best day. It should be holding steady for the next few days before slowing down by next weekend. This doesn’t happen for Florida often, so be sure to soak in the sun and carpe the heck out of that diem when you make it out in the water this week!