Lonely low tide reef
DogMan's Links
Low tide beach, low tide lineup. Lonely low tide reef
It's just about dawn. Unlike the past three weekends the sky is clear and glowing with promise of a great day about to happen. A minus tide is coming within the hour and already the salt water has drained from the reef. Dark, slimy rocks poke through the puddling water, some of them peppered with black shiny mussels and others feathered with brilliant green sea grass.
Distant lineup. 
Just be careful of the rocks. No one
No one is in the cove other than the DogMan, who is himself preparing to pick his way over the reef and to the lineup. The lineup has shifted with the extreme tide, so much so that the normal take-off is nothing more than a raging boil of surging water of shallow rocks. But no matter, there are new spots from which to catch waves and ride while threading through the exposed parts of the reef. Just another challenge, right?
A left? 
Shallow water right. Numerous
In fact, all along this forgotten stretch of coast there are numerous lineups where none exist at normal tide levels. There is a left that is trying valiantly to peel from the next point to the east. There is a beach break where there wasn't one earlier, or will be later. But the best bet is to sit just east of the normal spot, at the tip of the reef but further into the channel.
Another left where there wasn't one before. Unridden
From this location, waves roll by in sets every five minutes or so. The lonely surfer at the lonely low tide reef has his pick of them all. And so waves are ridden, and waves go unridden. No worries, the stoke is growing as the sun rises into the early morning sky. Curiously, there are no otters or seals making themselves obvious. However, the usual pelicans and gulls are everywhere.
The right at the normal lineup. 
Feathering and going both ways. Responsible
After too many waves to count, and roughly 90 minutes of water time, it's nigh for leaving. The weekend is just starting, and there are many "responsible" things to be doing. But the early morning juice is a perfect start to a perfect spring weekend in Santa Cruz.
Looking through the rocks. Evidence
On the way out, the pictures in this column are collected of evidence that:
1. No one was on it other than the DogMan. 2. The tide was way low. 3. The waves were peeling at many different places along the reef and beach in DogLand. 
Last look at the low tide reef.
CU Out There,
DogMan
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