Surfers in Nantucket, MA, had the opportunity to ride a swell that doesn’t come along every day when air temperatures recently hit 12°F and ocean water temperatures hit 36°F.
When temps drop this low, it allows for the possibility of Slurpee Waves, which basically means exactly what it sounds like — waves look more like a Slurpee you’d find at a gas station.
“With a floundering temperature in the low, single digits this past week, I knew there was a good chance the Slurpee Waves would find their way back to Nantucket,” photographer Jonathan Nimerfroh told The Inertia. “Sure enough, on the morning of January 2nd I pulled my car up to Nobadeer beach and there they were.”
“This time, two friends surfed just beyond the icy eddie, hooting and hollering and holding up giant icebergs above their heads in neoprene gloved hands. I ran up and down the beach, taking as many shots as I could of this freezing, fleeting show of nature. Slurpee waves are the kind of thing you might only be lucky enough to see once, so I count myself as very lucky to have seen them twice.”
