Veteran kayak surfer Kim Sprague called it “epic”.
A series of storms rolled in for the March 14-16 Festival. Wave height by Sunday morning reached 25 feet. Kayakers surfed the big wave trains. Many got “worked”; quite a few swam. Spectators were treated to plenty of action. K1 (whitewater class) paddlers showed some new moves, like the “helix”.
In past years I’ve got my best stuff photographing from my kayak. On Friday I paddled out, sans photo gear, to experience the conditions. The water-level view of the surfers rising up on the waves was phenomenal. It was too risky, though, to photograph. I stayed up on the cliff the rest of the weekend.
Click on the thumbnails above for images of kayak surfing at the festival. Check the Adventure Sports Unlimited website for the complete 2003 competition results.