As the forerunners of last Friday's XXL swell began to hit, photographer (and Swellnet reporter) Chris White figured it was gonna be a dramatic day at Waimea Bay.

The drama, however, began well before he arrived at the bay:

The swell was so solid that the ground was rumbling. I checked Keiki on the way to Waimea and there were twenty foot monster closeouts demolishing the shoreline. The beach was closed and there was about fifteen people standing at the 'Do Not Cross' tape the lifeguards had put up. I positioned myself behind them to shoot some photos.

 The next thing I know they're all getting swept off their feet by a surge of whitewash. It was really sketchy because I had my two-year-old strapped to my back. I chucked my camera in the bush and helped an elderly man who was getting tumbled down the beach and out to sea in the whitewash.

From there I drove - in wet clothes - to my friends house who lives on the point at Waimea and managed to shoot the action. It was like a movie scene with helicopters and planes buzzing around, sirens going off and onlookers gasping at every wave. It was so big that some sets were closing out the bay. The photos don't do it justice and people may think Waimea is kind of fat and people are on the shoulder, but when you are there to witness the power and energy its pretty mind-blowing.

Much respect to the surfers and also to Mother Nature.

-Chris White

One of the first photos Chris took when he got to Waimea Bay was this shot of a goofyfooter mid-airdrop. The same wave did the rounds of Instagram with most people assuming it was Jamie Sterling, however the pilot was little-known Hawaiian surfer Chris Freed. It was Chris' first wave of the morning and, not surprisngly, he came unstuck immediately after landing. The photo ran as Swellnet's Wave Of The Day the next day.