Given these strange times we find ourselves in, I thought it might be a good time to share some classic books on the ocean. We're all gonna have plenty of time to read over the coming weeks and months so why not read about the one thing that stills a troubled mind, far from the madding crowds, the sea.

Barbarian Days-A Surfing Life by William Finnegan is a classic!
I've loved this book from page one. It's the classic tale of a surfing life well lived. Finnegan (Bill) takes us through his life from the early days in the States to moving to Honolulu in the late 60s where he really starts to hone the craft, and beyond. While his ability to describe the thrill of surfing waves is exceptional, his take on life and the all-consuming passion that is a life chasing waves, and the ocean is reassuring.

Finnegan describes finding Cloudbreak in the late 70s after hearing whispers about the mysto left - probably one of the first to surf it;

"We climbed a big hill that rose behind the village. They didn't see a lot of tourists here. The trail was dusty and very hot. A few hundred feet up, we came to a good lookout spot. We turned and trained our binoculars on the tiny island across the channel. We were looking straight into the wave. It was coming from the northwest, having wrapped nearly 180 degrees. It was a long, tapering - a very long, very precisely tapering - left. The walls were dark gray against a pale gray sea. This was it. The lineup had an unearthly symmetry. Breaking waves peeled so evenly that they looked like still photographs. There seemed to be no sections. This was it. Staring through the binoculars, I forgot to breathe for entire six-wave sets. This, by God, was it."


If you get a chance, do yourself a favour and read this. It'll stop you going (half) mad while you're sitting around the house.