Well, we have had one of the coldest winters on record, with water temperatures in the bay getting into the lower 40’s! With March approaching, the water has finally crept up to 60 degrees and hopefully getting warmer very soon. The beachfront surf season has been lackluster as well, but spring is approaching and booties, gloves, and hoods will be stored away, where they belong 🙂
The 2017 tanker surf season was busy, but unfortunately, I had to cancel nearly 50% of my charters, due to waaay too much wind. I would like to briefly address the wind issue in relation to tanker surfing, as compared to beach surfing. People who have inquired about tanker surf charters or who have had their charters canceled seemed to have a difficult time understanding the dynamic so here is a brief explanation-
Any bay fishing guide or recreational boater who spends a lot of time traversing Galveston Bay will tell you the conditions in the bay can go from sheet glass to complete mayhem with as little as a 10 knot sustained wind, in a matter of minutes. Galveston Bay is a large body of water that is very shallow and surrounded by land. Bay waters can get angry with little time and little wind, especially when you mix that with boat wakes from the numerous ships, tugs and barges, shrimp and oyster boats and all the other vessels that traverse the second busiest port in the country. A typical center console bay boat is not designed to handle such conditions but a large tanker or container ship, for example, wouldn’t even feel it. Due to this, a large vessel wouldn’t have to slow down to handle all the wind waves but a smaller bay boat would. In choppy conditions, we can not keep up with the ships or their wakes. Bay chop is also known as “angry seas”. That means that chop waves are coming from different directions: all at once. When it is choppy in the bay, it is difficult to even see the tanker wakes: much less catch and ride them. We call it a “rodeo ride”. You can armchair quarterback it all you want, but it sucks, for a lack of a better word. Nobody wants to spend time and money trying to surf tanker wakes in choppy, angry conditions and no boat operator wants to man the helm in said conditions either. An 8-knot wind on the beach is nothing other than a little texture on the wave face but in the bay… I will find mystery screws on the deck, see four disgruntled faces on the boat and will sometimes have lost an inch in height at the end of the day. Again, it sucks. If the Captain says it is too windy…trust me, it’s too windy.
Another important point worth noting is knowing a person’s surfing ability before they book a charter. Tanker surfing is not for beginners! You must honestly consider yourself at least an intermediate LONGBOARD surfer and preferably an advanced one. Despite all the preconceived notions that tanker waves are slow, small, predictable and mushy, they are very challenging to catch and ride. Photos do no justice to the experience. If you are thinking about booking a spot on my boat, be honest with yourself about your skill level and come with your A game as far as paddling and riding a longboard! You will not be disappointed! One last thing…NO BANANAS 🙂
