Paddle Out

Sarah shot this from the waterline in the US Virgin Islands, where she grew up on St. John. The USVI sits in the path of North Atlantic groundswell from November through April, feeding reef breaks across St. Croix, St. Thomas, and St. John. But between sets, the paddle out looks like this — quiet, unhurried, a surfer on a red board splitting a frame that's almost entirely sky and sea. Two-thirds open air, one-third Caribbean — and Sarah right there in the water with them.