Jetty Breath
I’d known about the Humboldt Bay jetties near Eureka for years. Magnets for big wave surfing, fishing, and simply wave watching, a winter doesn’t pass without at least one or two tragic stories making the news wire. Sneaker waves, like Sirens, quietly approaching to pull distracted souls into the sea.
Jetties are typically constructed to control erosion around, and offer safe(r) passage into, a bay harbor or inlet. The Pacific Northwest has some of the most notable with the North jetty at Humboldt Bay in Somoa, CA as one of the largest and oldest. And most notorious. Constructed by the Army Corp of Engineers in the late 1800s, the jetties at the opening to Humboldt Bay have maintained the half mile entry into the bay largely as a means to support shipping and trade on an industrial level (primarily logging and fishing).
Autumn signals the start of the shifting weather pattern in Northern California. Atmospheric high pressure, which blocks storms from the the north from spring until late autumn, begins to shift south opening the window for massive winter weather events. Multi-day storms born out of low pressure systems in the Northern Pacific screaming down to remind us here in the lower 48 of our mortality.
In 1908, in an appeal to solicit funds to repair and improve the jetties, Major Hart of the U.S. Army Corp. of Engineers, notes in his paper, “It has been reported by masters of vessels that no such heavy seas have been encountered elsewhere in the world, unless perhaps south of the Cape of Good Hope or Cape Horn. Waves have been seen to break in 8 or 10 fathoms of water. It was originally believed that no jetties or such construction could possibly withstand the forces brought to bear by waves during storms, so that the improvement was undertaken with great misgiving.”
An alert I received on my phone while in the area in late December
A North Jetty surf report on December 29th advises triple overhead surf - doubling in size in 2 days time.
Though I've made countless trips to Humboldt over the years, as of this big wave season, I'd still hadn't visited the jetties at Humboldt Bay. With lingering curiosity, and launch of Cold Water Coast, I made two trips north this winter to see the jetty system in person.
Yes, you can drive right on out to the jetties. The Humboldt Bay jetty system maintains the opening to the Pacific by controlling the movement of the sand spits on either side.
Everything is proportionately bigger in Humboldt. The weather. The waves. The trees. And the jetties, understandably, follow suit. The earliest construction, in 1889, consisted of dumping huge blocks of quarried rock into the Pacific. The ocean quickly flattened these early attempts as the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers continued to develop and improve the design. Rail tracks were eventually laid down on each jetty to facilitate easier transport of the overweight materials used to maintain the structural integrity of the system.
Wooden railroad ties, dating back to the early 1900s, are still visible on the North Jetty.
Though the surf was big during my visits the waves weren't crashing over the jetties. I walked the entire length of the North jetty during my first visit. I only did this once. As you approach the North jetty from the beach, a massive, half buried brightly rusted boiler from the S.S. Corona offers one last gut check before the long walk out.
The jetty juts a half mile out into the Pacific. It's bizarre and eerie feeling to walk out, elevated a few feet above the ocean, and look over at a 20 foot wave curling and breaking 50 yards away. And while a dry jetty is generally a good indicator one can venture out, sneaker waves, rogue waves which double up in size, are a constant threat in this part of the Pacific.
Surfers on the outside of the North jetty.
A surfer on an inside bomb.
The XXL surf and tales of danger had piqued my interest but I never expected to be pulled into the history and sheer engineering prowess of the jetties at Humboldt Bay. Jetties are designed to be porous. Allowing water to move through the rocks and concrete alleviates some of the degradation caused by the intense and constant movement of the Pacific. It also makes the jetties breathe. Blow holes, 3 inches across, are spaced all along the length of each jetty, as another means to release force and pressure. A stark reminder, as you walk out, of what seems like a sleeping sea dragon which could, at any moment, rear up and pull you into its dark and cold aqua lair.
Holes and cracks in the jetty make it appear as though it’s breathing.
In 1971 The Humboldt Bay jetty system became the first jetty in the U.S. to employ the use of massive four pronged concrete and steel dolosse. A dolos (singualar: dolos pl.: dolesse) can vary in weight, but their 4 pronged complex geometric shape is consistent. Together, as an interlocking mass, dolosse absorb the force of the waves but allow the for the flow of water in and around them. The 6,000 dolosse at Humboldt Bay are some of the largest in the world measuring 15'x15'x15' and weighing 40 tons.
The elevated end of the North Jetty. Notice the couple in front of a dolos offering context for dolosse's size.
The South Jetty dolosse absorb and disperse the force of a 20 foot wave.
In 1977 The American Society of Civil Engineers named the Humboldt Bay jetties were named a California Historical Civil Engineering landmark and, in 1981, a National Civil Engineering Landmark. The Humboldt Bay Jetty System is emblematic of the perseverance of the people who live along the rugged northern California coastline.
A final gallery of assorted images top L to R: 1) Date stamps can be found all along the jetties 2) Construction as a constant 3) Tow in surfer assess 4) Surfboard sentinels watch over the North Jetty 5) The dunes around the North Jetty as a 4x4 mecca 6) The Army Corp of Engineers drops a boulder in the middle of the jetty to dissuade driving attempts 7) a Coast Guard helicopter practices landing and take-offs close by 8) A Coast Guard cutter at the ready near the mouth of Humboldt Bay 9) A surfer patiently awaits his wave.
