I've been watching this guy named Ben Gravy on youtube. He's a surfer in New Jersey who makes video and loves surfing novelty waves- waves that weren't meant to be surfed, usually small gutless waves found in weird areas like harbors, bays and rivers near docks or rocks. http://whalebonemag.com/top-10-novelty-waves/

^heres an article to show examples.

 

Anyone know of any novelty waves in brevard that might break during weird swells, wind or maybe are produced from boat wake? 

Summer is here and the forecast is looking bleak.. probably not good for any novelty waves that might break around here. But anywho, I'm prepared to grab a softtop and chase a barge or cruiseship around to ride a wave.

Any thoughts?

Does inside Canaveral jetty ever still break? (not that anyone's allowed in there any more...when did they really start enforcing it?)

Gravy is a LEG-END! For the boys! Yewww!

Welp. Saturday, 2 buddies of mine and I decided to grab our kayaks and head out for an ocean kayak paddle since there were no waves again. We put out not far south of the jetty and headed about 7/8 miles north of it. We kept seeing off shore ocean 'runners' way out where we were - at that point we couldn't tell if they were going into shore as swells. And then eventually we would watch them head into shore up where we ended up with obvious white water cresting at some point farther in (cant really tell what the deal is from behind a wave that far out I learned), so we followed them in. Kept getting closer to shore and became convinced they were rideable. I began to whine aloud repeatedly that we had broken a cardinal rule - going to the beach without some kind of surf equipment ('just in case').

By the time we had gotten to what would be called 'outside' I was convinced it was loggable at least so I dug in for steam and decided to go for it. I've surfed kayaks before, both on the lagoon and in the ocean (where I learned another cardinal rule - 'the surf is no place for a boat'), so I had a basic recollection on how it goes (sketch). Lean WAY back, brace HARD with your paddle. Jam your feet into the foot braces. Boats want to broach then snap-roll at the end of a wave.

Well, I actually caught that thigh-2-waist high wave into shore on my 13 footer and didn't roll it. Buddies hooting and hollering from the 'outside.' I never doubted me. My 2 buddies then started to get into it. We caught wave after wave wherever this was (THEY el-rollo'd their boats about 3 times each - gear floating every where - it was a hoot).

Next time I am at least throwing the sponge and some fins in the back of my boat. (And bringing the bloody GoPro)

As an aside - we kept invoking Bob Freeman and wondering if those ocean runners (waves in just one spot several miles out) were the 'Shoals.' Not sure. But we remember how to get there.

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Brother, when you get a minute, could I get a list of the words that trigger these fits?


Hey. Where are we going? (And what are we doing in a hand-basket?)


Edited: 05/29/2017 at 04:23 AM by LagoonSurfer

Not sure that this one qualifies as a novelty wave, but back in the day some used to surf the Pier after dark. On the north side, the lights would shine right out at the end of the pier, so on the right swell you could sit just out past the end and catch that bowly peak that would form right there and work back towards the pier. Worst problem was all the lines from the shark fishermen that you could barely see till they were in your face! Also on the south side there was a light about halfway out that would illuminate the mid-inside section that would break towards the restaurant. Many good sharky times!

I'd consider Monster Hole a novelty wave. Especially if you get lucky enough to catch it good. It feels like you're on a surf trip when you catch it good there. I've been watching Ben Gravy too and he has a video surfing inside the Sebastian Inlet Jetty. Pretty cool!

We've seen clips of groms surf'n inside the inlet off the 'north' jetty 'left' some however, we've also seen the inside of the 'south' jetty 'right' peeeel'n many times but am pretty chickens--t to dip me toes in 'round 'dere. It just gives me visions of "Dory's" big buddies smil'in up at me whilst I be gitt'n set t'slip over da gunwale t'git me sum yeeeowch man

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ola ~

I remember reading about people surfing " The Barge" a mile or so North of lot 13 at Playalinda, I've never made it past the stairs at #13, my eyes are scarred for life!!

My coworker says the barge is still there (he doesn't surf but has fished there during the Summer flat spells) which surprised me because people were surfing it in the 70s from what I heard, I wonder what kind of wave is there now, anyone know?

that little spit of sandbar off the eroding island just west of the locks in the Banana Lagoon. 

Give it a check next fall> winter during a B.I.G. North wind...

 

http://whalebonemag.com/top-10-novelty-waves/

Link Fix.

Fun idea, I'm diggin it!

The most 'Novelty' wave -- that almost never happens -- in Florida that I can think of is Peanut Island.

Good one, DaveFL!  I've had the good luck to visit the south side of the inlet, once.  

How about the boat channell west of kiddie pool, 5 or 6 sportfish boats might make a wave somewhere on that north side

I've seen the tide pool at the inlet ride able on a giant, wind driven swell.

I've seen the inside of the inlet break across the sandbar on the north side during outgoing.

Marty surfed the Banana river during a tropical storm.

And I've seen the inside of Monster Hole break right by the south jetty. Short rides to dry sand, but it is a novelty.

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I was right.

I just scrolled to the bottom and there was the inside of the inlet.

Oh and I forgot the wave just off of buoy 4 out of Port Canaveral.

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I was right.

 

http://whalebonemag.com/top-10-novelty-waves/

 

 

Such a shame the north side of the canaveral channel is off limits.  From the map it looks like east or south swell can make it in there pretty easily and break at the tip of the N jetty as well as the SE facing beach area at the base of the N jetty, channel side.  You can see sand built up at the tip of the N jetty on the short drone video on the CFLsurf homepage. 

Like many I used to surf inside S jetty on big swells back in the day.  Great times. 

 

On certain big, windy, days, the inside of the Canaveral jetties was always the first surf check stop, , , ,

Way, way, way, back when, before many of the "improvements" at Sebastian (mid 60's) the "kiddie pool" could be rather choice.

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Dora Hates You

exactly what im thinkin

kiddie pool at SI?

Monster Hole?

another...the mythical Canaveral Shoals

inside the rocks at nsb

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https://www.instagram.com/dj_kaye_/

Not Brevard or even the east coast for that matter, but coming once in a lifetime from the Gulf of Mexico is the inside of Clearwater Pass.  Breaks right in front of the rocks and only on massive cold front days when everywhere else is huge and choppy. Perfect waist\stomach high point break.

Surfed it once as a kid (I'm 36) and haven't seen it break since.

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We're all here, cause we're not all there!!

Caught the point on cape san blas aka cape sandblast last June and it needs just the right wind And swell angle and the sandbar to be right at the time but obx style barrels running down the beach for 100 yards under the right circumstances.. apparently even better options reachable by boat in the same region. really fun locals too, great mix of Redneck and surfer stereotypes

Dont know if its true but i heard years ago like 15-30 years ago someone got their leg bitten off or killed surfing inside there?Anybody know bout that?

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Learn to read a buoy and check your winds and tides!!!

Also not on the east coast but I've once seen an un-named inlet on the gulfside breaking like a miniature snapper rocks barreling inside the inlet just off of the rocks and pilings, not for the faint of heart. On the other side of the inlet there's a rare left sand point with serious mangrove roots sticking out of the water. Back to Brevard I've seen the north side of one of the spoil islands in the river hold a rideable right probably from a boat wake and your LB fin would probably be scraping the sand. Now if we could only get a giant boulder to put on the shoreline somewhere in central/south brevard I'm sure we would have a novelty dream wave

I love that- 'A' boulder! You're probably right. Any little change to our bars makes a yuge difference in quality, normally 'round here,  a minor change helps closeout walls shoulder up a tad longer! Gotta find me a rock,,, hmm, ain't no ROcks aroun here though~  

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ola ~

 

dunno, but I've seen video's of it reeling like kirra on giant windswells

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https://www.instagram.com/dj_kaye_/

I have surfed inside the rocks at NSI.  The surf was well overhead on the beach, windy, and pretty hard to get out. The inside of the jetty was breaking right off the tip and peeling into the inlet with a giant overhead right.  It was really hard to paddle out, so we walked to the end of the rocks after everywave and jumped in.  Had to paddle constantly toward the rocks so we wouldn't get pushed too far into the inlet.  The wave would break hollow then shoulder up with a steep face that broke the full length of the jetty then just disappeared into the deep water.  It was super fun and challenging.  Luckily it was not very crowded, maybe 7 guys trading waves, no snakes, everyone hooting the other.  Would love to see that wave again....

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Not in brevard, but Typhoon Lagoon seems like a novelty wave to me

Also not in brevard, but the Snake Run at Kona up in Jax is pretty awesome. Not a wave I know, but I loved going there when I was a kid

Sebastian Point

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"Surf everyday as though it were a gift!" -- John Holeman

Another "not in Brevard" is Matanzas inlet. I've surfed the on the north side of this, but never in the actual inlet...but have heard tales that it does break there.

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"Surf everyday as though it were a gift!" -- John Holeman

Didn't surf it. Used my surfski.

Buoys were reading in the neighborhood of 10' and 17 seconds. I don't remember the name of the storm. It was 2010ish. I didn't try to launch off the beach. I launched at the marina on the Ponce side and paddled out through the inlet on the tail end of a really full flood tide. It was breaking all the way across the channel at the end of the north jetty, way out there, even on a full incoming tide. I made it out the inlet between sets. I paddled up to sunglow and then rode back since the wind was pretty stiff north east. It was scary big out there with 3-5' wind waves on top of that swell.

Anyway, I surfed inside the south jetty on some reall long rights when I came back in the inlet. It was probably head high for real surfing. breaking all the way through the inlet. Would have been harry on anything other than the surfski I was riding. There was so much water moving that paddling a surfboard would have been almost impossible.

 

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Edited: 06/01/2017 at 12:20 PM by scombrid

Aren't all waves in Brevard

"novelty" waves ?

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add a signature since I'm here in profile anyway

Thanks for all the responses! Gonna check some of these out. Especially if the wind kicks up during a summer storm I could see alot of these breaking. Those trails down at the inlet west of the tide pool, I think if a big south swell came through with some boat wake that would be an sick little left. was watching mini runners down there the other day.

The peanut island wave is one of my favorite surfing memories. When it's 15' with on shore winds creating an unridable series of death ramps, the wave gets funneled through the inlet, cleaned up and breaks in well defined chest high swells that wrap around peanut island. It's amazing. I've surfed it twice. Everyone that was their on those days remembers it like I do. We all remind each other and we always look for those conditions again.

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"One of the reasons why propaganda tries to get you to hate government is because it's the one existing institution in which people can participate to some extent and constrain tyrannical unaccountable power." Noam Chomsky.

Not Brevard but,

There is a certain "spot" in Tampa Bay that gets 200+ yds. of perfect 3' when a loaded tanker comes in, just have to know shipping schedules.

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rough and salty

 

PM sent

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We're all here, cause we're not all there!!

Don't know if it's a "novelty wave" persay, but I can vouch for the north side of Matanzas Inlet looking like a mini Indo. Last September, I drove across A1A on the way to the UF surf contest during a long period north swell. I'd never been down that way, and lo and behold, I look out, perahps a quarter mile, and it's just reeling chest high lefts off the sandbar almost like a pointbreak. I def just wanted to pull up solo, but after hearing about a kayaker that day being followed by a shark for about 15 minutes, I thought better of paddling out that far alone. Man, I think I missed out though.  

Yes that wave gets REALLY good, similar to monster hole with the monsters!

I saw the video of the kayaker and the shark actually attacks his paddle....twice!


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I troll 2L.com to be a better person in real life

Here's the video...



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"Surf everyday as though it were a gift!" -- John Holeman

Is it coincidental that even some of the best "novelty wave" setups are stalked by sea monsters? Monster Hole, NSI inside inlet, Matanzas - I guess the commonality is that monsters like their food delivered in a current. Nature seems to balance risk and reward fairly well. 

Yes! That's the vid which was the same day! Imagine being "in" the water with human parts for paddles in this situation?

This novelty thread is novel. 

 

Can vouch for many of these listed except the Canaveral Shoals. That is holy grail for Brevard and Im never gonna eff with that.

There is always a wave to ride if adventurous enough though.

Shoal islands in the IRL have always been rideable in small craft advisory conditions (but not really fun).

Inside the Jetty, NSB, and SBI can get rideable log waves if youre willing to jump of the rocks and fight the dragging current. (At 17 yrs old it was worth it, not now!) Small wave, but it is cool to do in high school days...right of passage type shit).

The Barge, well I can tell you all that Ive checked that spot dozens of times and only seen it break once. This was years ago and no telling what the bottom contour is like there now. But if you are young and adventurous, and have a solid crew that is willing to scope and chart, the thing to do is get a camping permit from Canaveral, and learn and study the break together. It might not break the first time, but sitting around a campfire looking at a map/gps/beers is a right of passage that can form friendships for lifetimes. Maybe next trip or maybe next decade. Do it. And dont post about it. (Well maybe here).

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Where is Playalinda?

There's a jetty in Pinellas County normally considered a winter cold front spot, but on a south ground swell, a true wedge can form there.It has a sidewave that bounces off the jetty, which you can ride until it merges with the next wave coming in and BOOM it jacks up into a wedge with a nice barrel.I've seen it barely rideable on the other beaches but next to the jetty, there will be a head high wedge.People rarely surf it, I usually have it to myself, the skimmers know about it tho.

As for Clearwater Pass, I've caught it going off many times, it used to break more often than people give it credit, you just had to be patient and time it right, I still check it almost every cold front, just in case.My first time there in the mid 90's I caught it head+ with 100 yard barrels peeling down the seawall, I know Lost... has footage of that day, there was someone on the hotel seawall filming and the Lopez brothers were out there.Not for wussys, it can break real close to the rocks, which you have to jump off of to get out to the peak next to the pilings, and the currents can be prettty strong.This spot hasn't broken well in a few years tho.I did surf the mouth of the inlet this winter, right behind the new Opal Sands hotel but it was mushy.

Another Gulf Coast novelty wave was Sand Spit, the Inlet mouth between Sunset Beach and Upham, hasn't broken well in years but it used to break like a nice rivermouth spot.We've had many novelty waves over here with all our nooks and crannies, if any of you old timers remember Upham used to go off, it was THE spot of south county, and also Murbocks, Sandbags and the Gallery in Belleair Beach area.Beach Street is still one of my favorite waves in Florida.But there are still spots that are not your typical Florida beach break over here, a few point breaks and one true reef break that is fairly unknown for some reason, so I won't name it.You really have to know the coastline over here, and you can really score, too bad it's so inconsistent :-(

And what about Pumphouse, that place can get sick!

There used to be a wave that would break in Naples when the gulf was VAS from a cold front or during a storm swell back in the old days inside and around the north corner in Gordon's Pass. Not sure if it was refraction from the rocks on the other side of the pass or just wind protection alone, but before they dredged the pass again and ruined it ....what a fun wave. It would jack up around the first little wooden piling structure, break, and peel all the way (100yds or so at best) around the corner 90* before hitting the boat channel and disappearing.