You know you are on the right coast when you find yourself amongst surfers from Hawaii and California in your home break. August through November marks hurricane season for surfers on the east coast. This means plenty of waves, cold water and crowds. Surfers from all over the world take part in tracking swells on the east coast of America at this time of the year. Last week when shooting Long Island surfer Doug Milstien I could not help but notice the diversity of surfers in the water: Surfers representing Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Brazil and some others who’d made the 7 day cross-country trip from the Sunny State of California.
As far back as I can remember me and my brother Trevor have been trying to devise a plan of tracking secluded swells. Then, good friend and surfing buddy Nick Testa presented the best idea I have ever heard of. Nick’s father owns a single engine four passenger plane. The idea was to take the plane along the east coast when a swell hits to seek un-crowded waters. Our first attempt came during Hurricane Danielle but prevailing winds made take off more than impossible for the four cylinder plane. Our next opportunity came from Hurricane Igor. We loaded up the plane and set a course along the North East State of America.
The following morning we took flight out of Farmingdale Airport and headed further north. We first flew along Long Island New York. The breaks were anything but empty. All we could see was hundreds of dots in the water. Flying over crowded Surfer’s “Top Ten Surf Towns” in America, Montauk NY, our search continued further north. We were all eager to view the breaks of Block Island which belongs to the state of Rhode Island. All three of us have always read of an amazing left with unimaginable long rides. As we approached the island all we could see was line after line moving towards the island with very few dots in the water. We were soon approaching Block Island Airport and making preparation for landing.
Once on the ground we were all keen to get in the water. Finding a taxi was more than easy when exiting the airport. You could tell this was a small island that thrives off of surf tourism. We just had no idea as to the extent of their personal profits. Judy was the driver that won us over. She had a van which made things a lot easier in terms of transportation for us and the surfboards. We asked Judy to take us the South West side of the island for surf. She swore up and down that there was no surf there and that she was going to take us to a better spot. My advice to anyone reading this: never trust a woman that is overweight, drives a taxi and has a bad Boston accent for surf tips. After taking us to three surf spots that Judy swore by, we decided to ask a local surfer riding by on a bike. He informed us that the best surf is on the South West side of the island. After much frustration we finally arrived on the South West. I don’t know what was more shocking: the number of surfers waxing their boards and putting on wetsuits or that Judy just charged us $70 for a three mile, 15 minute ride.
After speaking with some locals we were on our way through the trails to the rocky beach of Block Island. We were a little disappointed to find about 15 people in the water and the waves less than perfect. I guess knowing that our home break probably had around 200 surfers in the water quickly put a smile back on our faces.
After about two hours of suffering we grabbed a quick bite to eat in town but not before getting robbed by Judy our taxi driver. This time for half a mile ride it cost $30. We decided that our home break of Long Island New York was calling our name.
The following morning we woke up to perfect A-Frames at our home break. We didn’t seem to mind the crowd. We started surfing at Long Beach and, for a brief day, it looked like the coastline of California. There were pro-surfers out in the water and when they were not getting tubed they were lying on the beach with their hot, tanned girlfriends. The beach and dunes were lined with photographers from all over. Even one of my influences, Matt Lusk, Follow the Light Grant Finalist, made the eight hour drive up from North Carolina.
After about five hours of surfing and shooting I got a phone call from old time friend Doug Milstien. He was heading to a surf spot known only by locals and wanted to know if I would like to join him. Doug is one of my favorite surfers to shoot so I quickly made my way to the break, knowing that the sun would soon be setting. I was not able to shoot for long before dark but was able to grab a few photos.
I ended the day by packing up my gear and drying off in the cold air. As I walked away I looked back to view the rising moon and Doug solo surfing well into the evening. You could tell he was the happiest man in the world. Well at least in New York. That day everyone one from New York was proud to say they are a New York Surfer.
Story and images by Gerard A. Pallotta.
