After a long time of absence, an old friend returned recently. It had been such a long time that I had wondered if she might ever return. But there she was on a sneaky Friday afternoon – standing tall under the cliff face and peeling with long lefthand walls all the way to the beach. The Blackhead left was back and as beautiful as ever.
It seems strange to fall in love with a wave, but it happens. They weave a spell of magic that is hard to define. It brings out the best and the worst in you – with enough energy to etch a place in your mind forever. The wall in my mind is a street art wall of contrast: late drops, pin dives, lip hits and faceplants, but in amid the chaos there are some beautifully peeling walls and faces so perfect any surfer could perform on them.
When the tides and the winds and the swell patterns align, the sand fills in at Blackhead Beach and produce some of the most amazing waves in Otepoti. The left is one of the best this sleepy city has: pulsed up energy straight out of the southeast and a lurching peak that grows as it stumbles in. Then a peak as wide as it is tall, framed by a perpetually lowering quarry skyline. From the peak the wave peels off as fast as you can manage with a familiar face of arcing walls that demand attention. If you're lucky you'll kick off the back with another memory etched in your brain. Or you'll get a 50/50 sand/saltwater rinsing (also etched into your head). It's a place of magic.
On assignment for another project, I spent the best days of this last mega swell nestled up against the Southern Alps at Lake Heron Station in Canterbury. It's a beautiful place of open valleys, vast foothills and twisted and impossible peaks. It's a challenging landscape, but the people who live and work here are inspiring. Nature rules here and it's not so much about conquering her as it is about understanding her.
More swell on its way: check the latest forecast here.
See you at the beach ... Derek
PS My mate Glenn Sutton is preparing for "the world's toughest footrace" the Badwater 135 – a 217km running race from Death Valley to Mount Whitney in California. To help raise funds for his 2015 race, he's running for 24 hours at Bayfield Park, Dunedin from 10am on Saturday, June 6 to 10am Sunday, June 7. Join him, share a lap and support this inspiring Dunedin athlete.
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