Top To Bottom : Skewed Skyline, Jordy Smith, Adam Robertson, Josh Kerr, Kelly Slater
We’re one day closer to the long awaited release of the official trailer for WAY OF THE OCEAN : Australia, which is set to drop in September. While were gone for the weekend, have a poke around the site at some of the older posts and videos to pass the time. New desktop wall papers, art and video on the way next week. stay tuned . . .
A Humpback whale in South Australia splashes around for the lucky few on the beach below.
Its pretty amazing to see such a big “fish” up close and personal. Humpback whales generally reach between 40 and 50 ft and although harmless they can make you feel pretty insignificant. The humpbacks were almost hunted to extinction in the past but with the help of a whaling moratorium there are now almost 80,000 around the world.
Every surfer dreams of finding a new spot or a secret wave they didn’t know existed. The thought of such a thing is what keeps us searching in spite of the recent technology that has made it easier for everyone to search from the comfort of their home computer. Sometimes its doesn’t take an epic wave to satisfy this notion, just a good old wedging beach break with a few friends. That’s exactly what we found when we set off for a hike down a long path none of us had been down before.
The great thing about Australia is that there are so many headlands and little nooks all along the coast to explore. Being from Southern California, where any bend in the coast is likely to have 44 friendly faces bickering over who had the last set wave, this option to explore untouched places is extremely refreshing. As we headed down the long slippery, rocky, winding trail, we encountered lots of big hairy spiders and a few snakes. We knew something good had to be at the end of the road with all the hazards involved. There wasn’t a whole lot of swell at first light and the headland we were scoping appeared to stick out a bit like a catchers mitt, hopefully acting as a swell magnet.
After a good 45 minutes of ducking under webs, we got a glimpse of the ocean and to our surprise there was actually some whitewater down in the small cove. As we got closer we could tell that there was a pretty good right bouncing off the rocks and dumping on the shallow beach. Its hard to tell how big a wave is when you see it from a distance and there is no one out, so we could only guess that it was surfable. Down on the beach the delightful sight of spitting tubes came time and time again in the same spot and we had a session on our hands. Exploring can be fun.
In case you missed it, here’s another look at WAVE CLOUD SAND. A short film that was made on the off days while filming for WAY OF THE OCEAN. There are lots of updates coming this week and the count down to the official trailer begins. . .
Waves are not only in the ocean. Looking out towards the front of a thunderstorm where different temperatures and winds meet, a perfect cylindrical wave is formed in the sky.
Click one of the links below to download this desktop wallpaper. enjoy-
1680X1050 (widescreen)
Although we have seen thousands of perfect waves peel off during the last year of filming, it never gets old admiring the different forms of unique perfection the ocean can create.
One day of left over footage during production. D’Bah was pumping and Asher Pacey found the goods. These clips didn’t make the cut but soon you will get to see a glimpse of the ones that did. The long awaited official WAY OF THE OCEAN trailer is coming soon, stay tuned . . .
A look at two turns that happened thousands of miles away from each other. Ryan Hipwood throws buckets on a tropical wall in Queensland while Adam Robertson slices through a cool South Australian wedge.
The Great Barrier Reef is one of the seven wonders of the natural world, and pulling away from it, and viewing it from a greater distance, you can understand why. It is larger than the Great Wall of China and the only living thing on earth visible from space. The worlds largest coral reef system contains an abundance of marine life and boasts of over 3000 individual reefs and hundreds of picturesque tropical islands with some of the worlds most beautiful beaches.
The Great Barrier Reef has long been known to and used by the Aboriginal Australian and Torres Straight Islander peoples, and is an important part of local groups’ cultures and spirituality. Tourism to the tropical setting in the coral sea generates AU$ 1 billion per year. And yes , there is surf on the GBR. Its extremely fickle and a mission to get to, but when the elements come together in the right places you could find yourself your own indo like barrels draining down a remote reef hundreds of miles from the nearest crow just as Asher Pacey and Josh Kerr did awhile back.
As production rolls on things have gotten very busy and blog updates have been few and far between. Here’s a quick look at some of the sights from the last week. There has been a lot of swell and we have been on the move so there is plenty of photographic bliss on the way as well as a few film clips to fill you in on all the happenings over the last few weeks. Check back soon for a full update or make it easy and subscribe to the blog and stay in the loop.
We have once again seen the seasons change and with Autumn now in full swing, early morning sessions mean crisp offshore wind and clear skies. As the days get shorter, the dawn sessions become more frequent as do the deep low pressure systems that come swirling through the the southern ocean and roaring 40′s. Winter swells are only a short time away and as we cling to the last few drops of warm water and enjoy the beauty of Autumn, have a look at why this is such a special time of year.
There is always down time when relying on the ocean for swell. The trick is to make the most of the down time and find something fun or productive to do. With the combination of a small wind swell and crazy morning light, Josh Kerr took to the water and then to the air to make something out of nothing. Its always good to have a few down days to make you appreciate the good stuff and build up anticipation for the long range forecast. The fact that the ocean can change dramatically overnight is part of the allure that keeps our heads filled with hope and intrigue. What will tomorrow bring . . . .
Ocean Facts
