The captain of the 28 ft. rigid inflatable boat I was riding on had departed from San Francisco at 6am to deliver the boat to Half Moon Bay. He headed under the Golden Gate Bridge and prepared to make the left turn and the run south down the coast. Through the fog he could still make out the giant waves that were breaking and preventing his turn. He proceeded farther offshore hoping to find the point where the breaking waves turned to rolling ocean swell. Mile after mile the waves were still breaking. After traveling 15 miles straight west, he saw his first opening and made the turn south.
Then getting in to the Half Moon Bay harbor was another feat. He had to wait for the right wave and then power down it just like the surfers, trying to out run it before it started breaking.
He survived the trip and we were able to get back out and watch some awesome surf. Some of the sets were absolutely monstrous. Click on the photo below to see the full gallery of pictures of the 2010 Mavericks surfing contest. Enjoy the photos!
