Luke Johnson Shares What It Was Like To Surf Hurricane Erin's Swell On Nantucket

There's only a handful of people on Nantucket who would dare to venture out into the monster surf kicked up by Hurricane Erin late last month. Luke Johnson is one of them.

Johnson has been surfing Nantucket since he was a kid, so when Hurricane Erin's swell brought some of the largest waves the island has ever seen in late August, he was among the few who ventured out into the surf. We asked him to describe the experience for us, and here's what Luke shared:

"Surfing hurricane Erin felt super special… There have been a couple hurricanes that have come up the coast in the past couple of years (Lee, Fiona, Paulette, Teddy) that had all been really good and all had very similar faces to show. The ocean for Hurricane Erin felt much angrier. It felt so alive and so raw. Feeling this type of energy at home is super special.

The thing that is so special about Nantucket and the surfing community is that I was surfing with all of my best friends that I’ve known in my entire life growing up. I played hockey with some of them, swam with some, and then close friends that I’ve been lucky enough to travel with!

The step off/jet ski was the first time that’s really been in effect as far as I’m aware for Nantucket. It felt so special to have my first step off 10 minutes from my house. The JetSki actually adds a whole new level for safety. I actually experienced that firsthand when on Thursday night (at the peak of the swell) my leash broke while I was really far out surfing at Madaket. I went to duckdive a wave and was just exploded, had my board ripped out of my hand, and my leash snapped. I felt like I was not in immediate danger since I spend most of my time in the ocean these days, but I knew that it was going to be really long swim ahead of me. 

I was lucky enough to have prior PWC (personal watercraft training) in Ireland so knew the steps on how to call the jet ski and how to get on the jet ski safely and efficiently. Within a few seconds I was back at the beach, getting a new leash back onto the jet ski and straight back out catching more waves. Surfers are selfish, so it’s definitely not enough. I feel like I didn’t get the paddle wave that I’d wanted. 

I saw some of the craziest waves I’ve ever seen that morning (Thursday and Friday). I feel like as good as a wave gets on the East Coast, but the step of one definitely made up for all of it."

Video above by JP OBrien Photography