Back at work after a long weekend spent in Tofino. I have to say — I’m a little bit sunburnt, very sore, and I still haven’t had a chance to wash the salt of the ocean out of my hair yet. But I feel great!

Here are some photos from our trip…

We stopped by Second Wave and the Sitka store in North Vancouver last week… Allan is looking for a new surfboard. I’ve heard both bad and good things about the Sitka surfboards (because of where they are made, in South America even though they are a Victoria-based company)… but I was pleasantly surprised by their new designs this year. Looking good!

The new Sitka store in North Van has lots of clothing and their famous hoodies of course. I love my yellow Sitka hoodie! Their entire store is made from reclaimed or recyled materials! Go check it out.

After the long ferry fiasco on Thursday — Oh BC Ferries, you suck — we headed out on the long drive to Tofino. By now we are used to it, but I remember when I used to get car sick from the twists and turns and how long it felt. Now, I love it!

There was snow on the highway on the way to Tofino. Brrrr… an indication of cold things to come. Surfing while there’s snow still on the ground.

In Tofino, the park’s always hilarious (but useful) Wave Hazard sign alerted us that the waves were “EXTREME!”. It just meant big waves for us. This weekend definitely had some of the bigger waves I’ve surfed in Tofino in a long time. Or maybe it felt that way because I hadn’t been back in the water for a while.

I was really stoked to drop into about 3 of the biggest waves I’ve caught yet on Friday at Cox Bay. Cox was definitely going off. There were some really pro surfers in the water, so definitely intimidating, but I still had a great time. It was great riding down such a steep wave. Surprisingly good conditions for Tofino.

Saturday it got even bigger and we headed to Cox again, but the waves were a bit messy. I got pummeled quite a bit, but I managed to catch a couple waves. Need to work on those paddling muscles… snowboarding all season doesn’t help those And it was cold… I needed my winter suit (5 mil) with gloves, boots, and hood just to stay warm. I could only stay in about 2 hours before my feet and hands went numb. They didn’t thaw out until I got in the hot tub. It usually takes about 30 minutes before I start feeling pins and needles in them again…

We had a nice cabin rental in Tofino, which is always great this time of year when it is super cold. This is the view from the living room, you could also walk down a wooden bridge and get into the hot tub at the end, overlooking the inlet. Gorgeous!

The weekend was filled with cooking, playing Settlers of Catan, Taboo, and relaxing in the hot tub.

Kim brought her dog Kona out as well, and we also played with her quite a bit on Chesterman’s. Chesterman’s was a bit small and not very exciting surf-wise when we were there, so we just hung out on the beach.

I was surprised to see so many tourists with rental boards out so early in April!

Didn’t see too much wildlife… just a few birds here and there, and a seal in the ocean beside us. In the summers you can usually see deer, bears, and lots of water creatures.

Long Beach was also blown out, but you can kinda see what the waves looked like this weekend. A bit messy, big, but still surfable. Long Beach is my favourite beach to surf at in the summer.

I was also glad that the weather pulled a fast one and stayed sunny from Thursday to Saturday. Sunday it got a bit dreary and rainy but we really lucked out.

Spring is coming, and soon the surf trips will begin in earnest. I can’t wait.

In other news, the Canucks start their playoff series against St. Louis on Wednesday and I am very excited. One of our friends is a very big St. Louis fan so there’s a lot more invested in this series than just the Canucks! We have to slaughter them. Wednesday I will begin my jersey wearing until the Canucks are out of the playoffs.

Stinky jerseys, here I come!