Break 41 - Bell's Beach

Saturday 16th July and it's a rather cold 5 degrees Celsius as Sam and I head off down the West Coast about 7.40 am.  Today we are going to Bell's Beach - the home of surfing in Victoria.  We get to Bell's a little after 9.00 am and its bloody freezing as we get into our wetsuits.  The surf is average - about 2 ft with occasional 3ft and the sets are a fair wait.  There are two blokes out in the bowl section of Bells (Rincon) and that is where Sam and I head out to catch a few. 

Sitting out at bell's is magnificent with the natural amphitheatre of the cliffs surrounding the beach and the water and today the sun is out, although a coastal fog makes it hard to see past Winki Pop on the left of Bells.  The water is dark and very cold - must be close to only 10-12 degrees and Sam let's me know he can hardly feel his toes after we have been out about 10 minutes.  There are even at this hour probably 30 tourists around the car park with their cameras, although if they were looking at the two of us there are no highlights to photograph. 

We are probably out about 30 minutes before a decent wave comes through and I paddle hard and get on.  I get up to me knees and then I find myself on the wave and going right kneeboard style.  I get up as the wave breaks and get a ride into shore - I enjoy it but I have to do better than that at Bells.  Sam gets on a wave and is dumped as he takes off too far into the wave.  He then finds himself trapped as perhaps the best set of the day rolls through and he is pushed back for about 10 minutes waiting for things to die down and they do and he paddles back out. 

After about another 10 minutes I get onto a nice wave, with great shape and head down and right and the wave seems to have great shape on the right as I turn up and try to go down the line - the wave dies however and I just turn out the top.  I have caught a good wave at bell's though and I feel really good.   Sam is still battling though and I suggest to him we head in and he is very happy to do so.  We get back to shore and walk up the steps to the car park and you can't help thinking when you go up the stairs at Bells about all the great surfers who have walked up the same steps - MP, MR, Parko with his great win this year, Slater and Fanning etc. 

Getting changed in the car park it is freezing and you have to be hardy surfing in Victoria in winter.  We head into Torqay for breakfast and its a ripper - Bombora Cafe opposite the surf shops.  Sam has french toast and a couple of hash browns and I have an egg and bacon roll with great coffee - fantastic and it's a great end to a good morning.