Editor’s Note: The following piece is a journal entry from the author’s 3,000 Waves marathon surf trip, navigating from San Francisco to San Diego with the goal of surfing 3,000 waves in 30 days to raise money for Stupid Cancer. His surfing road trip has raised over $4,000 en route to a goal of $100,000.
One of the least friendly, but most amazing places in surfing: Steamer Lane. Photo: ASP
Santa Cruz is a surf mecca with a long history of swell pumping through its veins. It’s also a really gnarly place. Big surf, crowded lineups, crazy winds, cold water, vocal locals and tons of marine life. It’s definitely a place where you want to confidently go wherever it is you’re going – no hesitations and no half assing. You’re either in or out, and the crowd in the water has not a problem letting anyone know where he/she stands.
One day I witnessed a massive seal shredding apart a Coho Salmon in front of about ten people in the lineup, only 1.5 miles from one of the largest white shark (or as the locals call “The Landlord”) breeding grounds on the West Coast. Another day I was fortunate enough to surf ‘The Hook’ with a local named James. This guy had a lust for life. I’d never seen anyone ride the nose of a longboard like a genie only to later see him spin and go for the biggest set of the day (on his LB), grab rail and pigdog a long, throwing overhead freight train right with style and grace.
The surf in Santa Cruz is good. Really good. And if you care to venture out of town you can easily have your mind blown. If you’ve purchased your hunting license and you’re looking to bag some lined up, barreling beach breaks, heavy, slabby reefs, beautifully irrestible point setups or super mellow beginner breaks, look no further. As a disclaimer, surfing in this land is not for the faint of heart so be sure to pack huevos grandes.
I can say that I was fortunate to meet some of the nicest, coolest locals around Santa Cruz. Gavin Comstock, Kim Moriarity, Jeff Langston, Cameron Cline, Duke Brouwer, Dave (you know who you are) and “Ranger”. These individuals couldn’t be more different from one another but they all have two common threads: happy to go above and beyond helping an out-of-towner, and they have a deep passion for the surfing lifestyle.
As for the surfing itself, I was fortunate to score all kinds of world class waves during my stay. I got both The Hook and Steamer Lane on good, solid days. As for the out of town spots, yeah, those were my best days. And that’s all I’ll say. But please do yourself a favor if traveling out of town to surf and stop by the Davenport Café on Wednesday nights for $2 tacos, $2 Coronas and shockingly good live music.Not to disappoint. After I got pretty close to wearing out my welcome in Santa Cruz I pointed Winny south towards Big Sur for more exploring and surf. With a solid swell in the water I wasn’t too sure where I’d be surfing but had one spot in particular for sentimental reasons. Last year my wife and I were married in Big Sur and were told to take our sunset wedding pictures out on a bluff north of main Big Sur. While we got our newly-wed pictures snapped I couldn’t stop looking at the perfect stomach high peeling right-hand point with only three guys on it. I HAD TO SURF THIS WAVE. So I did, twice in one day, and got it much bigger than that wedding day and with offshore winds. It was a day to remember. I was spent after all the paddling and checked some other spots south but couldn’t muster up the energy to fight head high walls of whitewater rolling through an empty lineup. And for those of you who haven’t been to Big Sur, go now. Surf, don’t surf, hike, camp, or don’t camp and stay at a BNB. No matter what, the place is pure magic.
From the Legend, Gavin Comstock: “I reckon our memories of waves are like our memories of fish, the older we get the bigger they get.”
