My First Surfing expedition as a student at Humboldt State University.
5:45 am, we shuffle out of our Humboldt State University dorm room, pile into the back of an old pickup truck, amidst empty beer cans, clumps of surf wax, and lack of seat belts. Trying to navigate through miles of dense fern forests, with coffee shop- chit chat directions, and the slow hum of “Neil Young- Cowgirl in The Sand.” in the background.
After scaling one lane roads, inches from a rocky free fall, we pull up to a wall of white. With the fog not allowing us to see how large the waves were, or feel how frigid the water is, made our stomachs sink far past the initial, “Shark City,” realization.
The first dive was brutal, 1000 needles forcing their way into my cheeks, flowing into my ears, and sending my core temperature south for the winter.
I washed up on the shore unable to feel any of my anything, ice- cream headache pounding against my skull walls, toes, fingers, and lips were a flash- frozen blueberry blue and hypothermia was already setting in. After vomiting, a few pushups, and rolling in the warm black sand, my core temperature rose just enough to reflect on the waves I was able to catch.
As we pull away from the parking lot, I can’t help but stare out the window into the empty fog bank. Taking my smile from ear to ear, picturing myself floating on top of a dark green universe, not a worry in this world, hundreds of miles away from the warmest bodies I know.
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