We should be afraid of sharks half as much as sharks should be afraid of us. — Peter Benchley (Author of Jaws) [Listen and read] The classic tune to Jaws strike fear even in the most causal beach goer. As a marine biologist and surfer I spent a fair amount of time in the water…
It doesn’t sting or bite. It doesn’t have fangs or sharp teeth. No toxins, venom or poisons, It is not swift of foot, on a good day it may travel a few feet. In fact it spends decades sitting peacefully in cracks and crevices quietly munching on kelp. Among animals it is one of the…
Becoming a marine biologist is hard work. It takes dedication, perseverance, intellect and inspiration. Growing up in the 1960s I regularly watched some classic TV shows that were the source of that early inspiration and helped compel me to pursue a career as a marine biologist. If you were conscious in the 1960s and 1970s then you likely remember these…
In 2011 my brother, father and I journeyed to Switzerland to visit the small town of Valangin in Switzerland. It was like traveling back in time: in 1883 my great grandfather, Jules Ernest Tissot (1864-1915), left Valangin for the United States. A journey that would take him and his family to Ohio, Wisconsin, to a “soddy” in the Sand…
I took my love and took it down I climbed a mountain and I turned around And I saw my reflection in the snow-covered hills Till the landslide brought me down Oh, mirror in the sky, what is love? Can the child within my heart rise above? Can I sail through the changing ocean tides…
9PM. Jan. 26. it is a cold winter night and you are standing on a beach looking out over a dark ocean dimly lit by a crescent moon. A low rumbling sounds arises in the distance and grows in intensity into loud thunderclaps. Suddenly the ground begins violently rocking back and forth, knocking you off your feet. You hear landslides…
One hundred years ago, on Dec. 31, 1914, the lighthouse at Trinidad Head was assaulted by a wave of monstrous proportions. Although the details are unclear, we know that the storm that produced the waves was unusual and that the wave was greater than 100 feet and perhaps much more. The only eyewitness was the keeper of the lighthouse at Trinidad Head at that time, Captain Fred Harrington, and here is his account of the notorious wave.
The wave at Maverick’s is unique in many ways: its location, the geology and geomorphology of the reef, and the massive swells that surfers ride. In many ways Maverick’s allure is the story of its reef, which is legendary for creating both a perfect large wave and a reef seemingly designed to punish those attempting to ride it . As if the reef and wave weren’t enough you can add the fact that great white sharks frequent the area and occasionally clear the lineup with their presence. In the early days, before it became popular, surfers knew it would eventually kill people with its strong currents, long period swells, 10-15 wave sets and multi-layered inner reef full of valleys, holes and crevasses leading into a boneyard of exposed, jagged rocks. And it has.
It was the best years of our life When we were children remember what it’s like To bring back memories of the good things we once knew To be right, there’s so much we gotta do. — Iron Butterfly, Best Years of Our Life, Metamorphosis ▲ click to hear the music ▲ Listening to Iron Butterfly transports me…
Twenty feet down, murky, dark, swarming with kelp, surge pulling me back and forth, fighting to stay in place. Feeling my oxygen slipping away with my arms buried deep in a crevice as I try to reach a huge abalone. I look up and there is even larger ab just inches away. Still time. Re-position, slip the iron in,…
