One of the first things I realised after spending a season in Hawai'i is how few good Pipe days there are. Before going over there I was under the impression that it turned on every second day. The sheer volume of photos of the place creating that illusion. The reality is, however, very different.

In an average season the number of great Pipe days can be numbered on one hand. The Pipe reef being a fickle beast needing every possible variable – direction, period & size - to be in synch or it won't cooperate.

Early in the season the problem is sand. Over the dormant summer months sand flows down from Pupukea and chokes the reef, causing the inside to close-out. It usually takes most of December till the sand is cleared from the contours and the reef can do it's thing.

This year has been very different. A swag of early swells has already scrubbed the reef clean and last week a couple of swells arrived with all the elements coinciding. Mick Curley was on hand to gather these images for us.// STUART NETTLE