Photographer Jonathan Nimerfroh found himself gazing at what looked like an ocean made of Slurpee. The Atlantic waters, thick and slow-moving, were beginning to freeze — a rare phenomenon caused by an extreme drop in temperature. While lakes freeze regularly, seeing the ocean in this semi-frozen state is incredibly unusual.
A surfer, photographer, and ocean enthusiast, Jonathan set out to capture the surreal beauty of the moment. The partially frozen waves rolled toward shore, looking more like thick slush than seawater.
Describing the scene, Jonathan said:
“The wind was howling from the southwest — conditions that would normally make the ocean rough and unsurfable. But because the surface had turned to frozen slush, the wind didn’t affect the wave shape. They were perfect, dreamy slush waves.”
What he witnessed was nature frozen mid-motion — waves with a strange, thick consistency, suspended between water and ice. The images below reveal this rare and mesmerizing sight.
The “Slurpee Waves” series captures nature’s beauty in a truly stunning way.
The waves’ distinctive texture arises from the temperature differences between the ocean and the atmosphere.
The temperature in Nantucket was a freezing 19°F as he took these shots.
In an interview with Stay Wild Magazine, he described the day he captured the photos:
“It’s been incredibly cold here. The harbor all the way to the mainland has frozen solid… The day after I took these shots, the ice extended about 200 yards out along the shoreline.”
Driven by his obsession with the sea, Jonathan pursues both ocean photography and surfing with equal passion.
Watch this video to experience the Slurpee waves in motion.
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