Rosie's Aftermath

Nelson surfers best girlfriend early this year was an angry young thing named Rosie. A violent, raging female with a low centre of about 990 millibars. Tearing and thrashing she moved across the country inflicting damage everywhere. But she has a present. And that was long, evenly spaced swells which hurled their energy ashore in Tasman Bay. Surfers remembered a similar day, four years to the day, in 1967. The top photograph was taken by Ross Hollyman and all the others by Peter Wales at Snapper Point.

No, this is not Hawaii. It is Nelson's Boulder Bank and those perfect waves are enough to excite any surfer. Their size can be judged against the masts of yachts sheltering in Nelson Haven