SURFING SOAPBOX: Surfing the Great Lakes

I am writing to you from the edge of the Grand River in Grand Rapids, Mich.

It’s an icy 30-something degrees today under cloudy skies. The trees that still have leaves are like something out of a coloring book, with vibrant reds and yellows and the odd bright orange.

Yesterday I drove down a street that on each side was decorated with screaming bright yellow trees.

One thing I truly love about traveling is the different walks of life you encounter and the different landscapes to experience.

To the right of me sits a single smokestack that bellows bright white steam that eventually disappears into the air.

The water in the Grand River is a dark, murky greenish brown and it is so quiet that if I throw a quarter on the ground it echoes loud enough for the fish to hear.

Sitting here for more than an hour I could count the cars that have driven past on two hands.

There’s something to be said for the tranquillity of the small town feel this time of year here. However, when the summer months come knocking, it will once again be a hustling and bustling town. Laguna used to be like that and luckily there still is a bit of a dropoff in the crowds after summer.

But you can see how the retail shops live and die on the summer crowds here.

Later today I will be shooting a funny tongue-in-cheek segment for Fuel TV on surfing in the Great Lakes.

I’ve also been working on the adventure documentary “ECO-Warriors; Guardians of Surf,” for which we will have a teaser shown before the Great Lakes epic surf movie “Unsalted” in the upcoming Jules Verne Adventure Film Festival Dec. 7 in Los Angeles.

Even more exciting will be the Q&A; session filmmaker Vince Duer and I will be taking part in afterward.

Who would have ever thought that surfing would bring me to the Great Lakes?

Live your dreams.

Peace.

JAMES PRIBRAM is a Laguna Beach native, professional surfer and founder of the Aloha School of Surfing. He can be reached at Jamo@Alohaschoolofsurfing.com.