August 30 — Back to the Ocean After a Month: Unplanned SUP Trip to Shichirigahama Hits the Jackpot
viva-wingfoilAugust 30, Sunday.
The last time I set foot in the ocean was back on July 25.
It’s been well over a month since I’ve been back to Enoshima!
During that last trip, the wind was completely dead, so I switched to SUP surfing.
Everything was going great until the very end, when I pushed my luck riding a wave into the shallows and wiped out in extremely shallow water.
My instinct to throw my hand out resulted in a brutal pinky sprain.
At the exact moment it happened, I legit thought I snapped the bone.
Luckily, X-rays showed no fracture.
But even now, over a month later, it’s still swollen and nowhere near 100%.
So today, I had zero intentions of wing foiling.
The wind looked weak anyway, so my plan was simple:
Paddle out on a SUP.
Chill on the open water.
Look back at the shoreline.
And just relax.
With that “rehab + mental refresh” mindset, I made the long trek all the way from Saitama down to Enoshima.
Turns out, the day ended up being ridiculously epic in ways I totally didn’t expect!
Enoshima After a Whole Month
I pulled up to Enoshima around 9:30 AM.
The high temperature today was around 28°C (82°F).
Pretty chilly for peak summer!
The second I stepped off the train, the breeze actually felt a bit nippy in short sleeves.
Still, it’s August.
I figured a full wetsuit wasn’t necessary, so I hit the beach in a long-sleeve, long-pant rashguard setup.
Shorts and a short-sleeve tee probably would’ve been fine, but jellyfish are a real concern this time of year.
My instructor even warned me,
“You might feel a little cold out there!”
But hey, I was on a SUP.
It’s not like I’m constantly falling into the water, so I figured I’d be totally fine.
Even though it’s the end of August, the beach huts were still fully open for business.
Apparently, they’re staying open through next weekend!
Because of that, I couldn’t launch from my usual wide beach area.
I had to use the designated water-sports launch zone on the far end near Enoshima island.
I carefully navigated past the crowds of surf lessons and paddled out into the open sea for my long-awaited SUP session.
I Was Supposed to Do Absolutely Nothing... and That Was Fine
I paddled out about a kilometer from shore.
There was practically zero swell.
The ocean was glassy smooth.
I sat down on my board and just stared back at the coastline.
Doing absolutely nothing.
Just drifting on top of the water.
Having been away from the ocean for over a month, this alone felt heavenly.
“Yeah, today’s a good day. This is all I need.”
...Or so I thought.
After drifting around for about 20–30 minutes, even a gentle sea starts slowly rolling up and down.
I started feeling a slight wave of seasickness creeping up on me.
Heading straight back to shore felt like a waste, though.
I hadn’t even been out for an hour!
That’s when a random thought popped into my head:
“Wait, since I’m out here, why not paddle all the way over to Shichirigahama?”
Checking out that super famous anime train crossing from the ocean side sounded pretty cool!
And just like that, a spontaneous SUP touring trip was born.
The Famous Train Crossing... Viewed from the Sea
It took a super chill 30-minute paddle to get over to Shichirigahama.
My main concern was, of course, my pinky finger.
Paddling on the left side was completely fine.
Paddling on the right side, however, meant my injured hand was gripping the lower shaft of the paddle.
That felt a bit sketchy.
Still, after a few strokes, I figured out a grip technique that put zero strain on the finger.
No rushing.
No forcing it.
Finding movements that didn’t hurt, I slowly made my way toward Shichirigahama.
Finally, I arrived near the famous train crossing!
“Man, what does this iconic view look like from the water?”
I whipped out my phone and took a photo from the sea...
...Honestly?
It looked super average!
Turns out, that train crossing only looks iconic when you’re standing on land looking out with the ocean in the background!
Photographing it from the sea side wasn’t nearly as dramatic.
Hey, that’s a discovery you’d never make unless you actually paddled out there yourself!
Wait... Are These Waves Actually Kinda Fire?!
What caught my attention way more than the train crossing was the surf at Shichirigahama.
Over at Katase Beach where I launched, the water had zero waves.
Here at Shichirigahama, though, looking in from the deep water, I could see whitecaps rolling in.
To top it off, every now and then, super clean waves were breaking way out in the deep water!
“Yo... wait a second. Is this wave setup actually amazing right now?!”
Looking in from the deep water makes it hard to judge wave height accurately.
So I paddled into the shallows, stepped onto the beach, and analyzed the surf for a bit.
Yup.
Confirmed.
The waves were fantastic.
Every once in a while, a bigger set would roll in and break super far out.
Not so big that it’s terrifying.
But definitely not those tiny waves that end in two seconds either.
For where my skills are at right now, it looked like the absolute perfect playground.
There was just one problem:
My pinky.
Unlike casual SUP paddling, surfing requires split-second reactions.
If I lost my balance and instinctively threw my hand out, I could easily re-injure that same finger.
I hesitated for a second.
...But right in front of my eyes was a set of glorious waves—something I hadn’t seen in a month.
“Man, I paddled all the way out here. I gotta try!”
In the end, temptation won.
It’s Been a Month, but Muscle Memory Is a Real Thing!
I ran through all the key points my instructor drilled into me over and over:
- Weight on the back foot.
- Stay low.
- When the wave hits, lift the nose just a tiny bit.
- Above all, nail the timing.
Since I hadn’t surfed in a month, I wondered how rusty I’d be.
...But man—
I was catching waves insanely well!
Catch the wave.
Stand up.
Board accelerates.
Carve right.
Carve left.
“Yo... wait a minute... am I actually getting pretty good at this?!”
I impressed myself!
Before I knew it, I had caught over 15 waves.
I only wiped out twice the entire time.
The first time was because I didn’t put enough weight on my back foot.
The nose dug in and dove.
The second time was right after missing a wave.
I tried to immediately catch the massive set right behind it without enough momentum, and the wave slammed me from behind.
Total wipeout.
But even with those two failures, I knew exactly why I messed up.
Every other ride was rock-solid and stable.
Carving right.
Carving left.
Adjusting my line to match the wave’s energy.
A while ago, I used to be hyped just riding straight on a wave.
Now, my focus has shifted to:
What can I actually do on top of the wave?
That progression feels so satisfying!
I got totally lost in the sauce and played in the waves for nearly an hour.
A 3 km Paddle Back to Enoshima
After getting my fill of surfing, I said goodbye to Shichirigahama.
I hopped back on my SUP and headed back to Katase East Beach.
The ride back took about 20 minutes, covering roughly 3 kilometers—about 1.8 miles.
Paddling for distance really makes you realize how fast a SUP can go.
“Man, this is like twice as fast as walking!”
I thought as I glided back toward Enoshima.
When I woke up this morning, I couldn’t wing foil.
I thought I was just going out for a mild finger-rehab stroll.
Instead, I ended up doing a deep-sea SUP cruise.
Touring all the way to Shichirigahama.
And capping it off with an hour-long surf session!
Way more fulfilling than anything I had envisioned.
And Finally: A Secret Weapon for Next Time...
When I got back to the club, my instructor was waiting for me.
With a super hyped look on his face, he went:
“Hey, I scored a massive foil for you!”
The front wing I currently use is around 2,000 cm².
The one he just picked up?
A whopping 2,450 cm²!
That thing is huge!
“With this bad boy, you’ll easily get lift even in super weak wind!”
Now that sounds super exciting!
I lost count of how many times I’ve been burned on days where I thought,
“Man, if we just had 1 more m/s of wind...”
Enoshima in the summer is notorious for dead-wind days.
With a 2,450 cm² wing, I might actually be able to foil on days I previously would’ve given up on!
My pinky still aches a bit, so I can’t rush into anything crazy.
Still, I’m so ready to make my comeback to wing foiling.
Will I finally be able to fly next time with this massive foil?
Man, the Ocean Is the Best
Coming back after more than a month, I didn’t have high expectations.
I thought I’d just paddle out on a SUP, stare blankly at the shore, and head home.
Instead, pushing just a little farther out rewarded me with epic waves.
And on my first SUP surf session in a month, my body moved better than I ever expected.
Honestly, it almost felt like I got better during my time off!
Obviously, my pinky isn’t 100% healed yet.
I can’t forget that.
Even so, getting to go wild out on the water after all this time was everything I needed.
Next up:
The official wing foil comeback.
What kind of magic is this 2,450 cm² mega-foil gonna unleash?
Just like that, I’ve got another awesome reason to look forward to my next beach day!
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