Surfing with the Dolphins

I’ve been fortunate to live near the ocean for the majority of my life. At the age of nine my family moved from inland to within a few miles of the coast in New Jersey. At thirteen I was hitchhiking to the beach with friends every day during the summer months. It was during that summer I became hooked on surfing. At twenty-two I moved to California, where I remain to this day.

Independent employment has given me the opportunity to make my own schedule and surf when I please. Life is good. While it’s always a pleasure to get wet and wash away worries in the ocean, surfing with the dolphins is an extra special treat. However frequently it happens —and it happens frequently— it never gets old.

It’s one thing to watch a pod swim by, sometimes pausing and spyhopping their landlubber counterparts, and another thing entirely to actually watch them surf. They are incredibly graceful and powerful creatures. I’ve surfed waves along with them, and it’s an exhilarating experience.

I was once in Manhattan Beach (California) when the waves were double-to-triple overhead and closing out. It was unsurfable for humans. Everyone was watching the ocean’s raw power when the dolphins showed up and decided to put on a surfing clinic. There were far too many to count. Taking off on huge waves a dozen at a time and bursting through the back twenty feet into the air as the waves closed out. This show continued for forty-five minutes with no wave left unsurfed, and then they were gone. One of the most spectacular things I’ve ever seen in my life.

Photo and video ©Ed Ward. Video and image shot with GoPro Hero3+. Video edited in Photoshop

A Short Video Clip of the Typical Dolphin Experience