One Week, Two Epic Surf Sessions At Opposite Ends Of The Pacific Ocean
5,423 miles separate the island of Tavarua in Fiji from Half Moon Bay on the California coast. Over the last week, both spots have enjoyed some pretty epic conditions with some all-time performances. Two totally different swells—one an offseason South Pacific pulse born in the Underworld, the other, a late-season northwest from up in the Gulf of Alaska, the surf experience is equally different. Fiji’s Cloudbreak was big, blue, tropical and about as perfect as a wave can get. Meanwhile, Maverick’s was even bigger, possibly heavier, and definitely way more cold. But the tie that binds the two big-wave sessions on opposite ends of the Pacific is just how pristine the conditions were.
Cloudbreak got the party started on March 7. With a crew of elite big-wave surfers, as well as some top-tier, high-performance talent in the water, it was a day that left everyone calling it one of the best sessions of their lives. From Nathan Florence, to Billy Kemper, Laura Enever and the fabulous Coffin brothers, it was one of those days that would have been plastered all over a surf magazine if surf magazine’s still existed. But don’t let the perfection fool you, when Cloudbreak is thundering on the outside ledge, it’s has serious as any wave in the world. At one point during the swell, big-wave documentarian Tim Bonython notes, “There’s more boats in the water than surfers,” a testament to just how serious the wave were.
Watch: Big Wave Hero Peter Mel Scores Minute-Long Ride At Maverick's
A few days later, on March 11, Maverick’s came to life for a solid day of paddle surfing. Proving that the North Pacific big-wave season isn’t done yet, there was plenty of action on the bowl. There were some bombs ridden and beatings taken per any session at Mavs. Among the notables out were Trevor Carlson, Luca Padua, Grant "Twiggy" Baker, and Peter Mel. As winter comes to a close, it was a good opportunity to get a few more laps in at the Half Moon Bay break, and for the local crew, keep doing what they’ve been doing since the first swell hit last fall—charge.
Fiji Surf Goes 20-Foot And Perfect On All-Time Swell At Cloudbreak
With more than 25 years of writing about surfing, the ocean and action sports, Jake Howard continues to share stories, profiles and issues that shape the surfing world. One of the premier subject-matter experts in the field today, he's savvy in the ways of print, digital and social media, his breadth of work is expansive. Getting his start writing Surfline surf reports and recording the phone reports for 976-SURF in the late '90s, Jake served as the managing editor for Surfer Magazine in the early 2000s before moving on to launch RedBullSurfing.com and cover surfing for ESPN and the X Games. Over the years, Jake has also enjoyed time behind the edit desk at The Surfer's Journal, as well as the World Surf League, where he worked as the Senior Editor for a number of years. Beyond producing editorial content, Jake has served as a digital marketer and copywriter for iconic surf brands such as Quiksilver, Roxy and Rip Curl. Writing thousands of pages of copy for Surfline, he has deep SEO experience as well. The surf columnist for the San Clemente Times, Jake continues to dedicate himself to the culture and history of the sport through his involvement with the Surfing Heritage and Culture Center in San Clemente.