My cousin and I are taking a surf trip to cali this july. Being poor college students from FL, our budget is pretty tight. We’re thinking about camping out and cooking our Ramen noodle suppers over the fire. But we’re not sure where exactly to go. Are there any beaches lined with good breaks and nearby camping(since we will be walking or taking the local bus)?
also, if any one wants to surf or show off their surfboard creations we’re up for it
http://www.totalescape.com/active/campstuff/campcoast.html
nearly all of california’s breaks are listed . . . surfline, surfermag, etc . . .
have fun!
It seems lately though for the past two winters the right coast has won in terms of good smurf er surf. its close to summer, so expect every line up to be zoo’d out from baja to washington. but if ya can chill with the crowd, it’ll be fun fun fun until her daddy took the t-bird away.
hit up the central coast…san luis obispo county and further north…there are some really nice spots with absolutely minimal crowds…starting from the south there is camping in pismo at the dunes…from there you can go up to the pier or walk from the campgrounds to the ocean…just watch out for the cougars (seriously…they have been spotted there often) and the monster trucks on the beach…ok going north theres shell beach which gets some college crowds on the beach, but minimal in the water…morro bay which can be fun in the summer…up a little further to a-beach…then cayucos (studios)…you can keep driving up the coast to san simeon and visit the huge elephant seals north of hearst castle and catch some waves at picos…when i lived there these were all the spots i used to surf…there are campgrounds along the way but bring some sweatshirts for the chilly nights and definitely your wettie (3/2 is fine)…the water is always cold and the beach is usually only in the 70’s…almost always foggy in the morning…from la to slo county is about 3 1/2 hrs north and there are better waves up there year round unless so cal gets some freak swell…dont know how much driving you want to do, but thats my at least 10 cents worth
3/2 for the cental coast in summer?!?!?!? You are much tougher than I am. Once I get past Pt. Conception, its nothing but my 4/3 and usually booties unless its really sunny out.
But, you’re right about checking out the cental coast; good waves, minimal crowds, beautiful beaches…great place to camp and get some waves.
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3/2 for the cental coast in summer?!?!?!? You are much tougher than I am. Once I get past Pt. Conception, its nothing but my 4/3 and usually booties unless its really sunny out.But, you’re right about checking out the cental coast; good waves, minimal crowds, beautiful beaches…great place to camp and get some waves.
hahaha… I grew up in So Cal and only surfed as far north as Santa Cruz until I moved up to San Francisco twenty years ago. When I first surfed up here I couldn’t believe how cold it was. Now I’m used to the temp. I only wear booties about three months of the year. Hoodies about three or four times. 4/3s about six months. Shorties a lot through the summer. Trunks only a few days a year.
There’s a girl in Santa Cruz who trunks it all year long. She says she puts on an insulated rash-guard a few days a year just to keep the chill off.
I’m down in So Cal a couple times a month. It always cracks me up when I hear someone in the water telling their friends how cold it is.
The water is really warm up here right now - 55* - perfect trunk temp 
these boys are from florida…theyre not wearing trunks! well if you guys havent had your trip yet…and dont have suits…stop in any shop and check out their sale rack…$100 will get you a good suit and you dont have to worry about how long it will last as long as it doesnt look like swiss cheese
cardiff campgrounds … but then you’d have to pack a sleeping bag, gas stove, tent, toothbrush, poop paper… the works! you’d get surf for sure - San Onofre
california surf is going to be pretty dry during July…from north to south.
San Diego and LA are going to be flatsville and central/northern spots are going to be fogsville.
August/September is when it starts getting really magical on the central/northern coasts.
I think that some of the funnest beach camping has got to be San Elijo State Beach…you have cardiff, pipes,
swamis all right there and the demographic in the campground is always tons of fun.
There’s not much more camping with surf access south of there…to the north you have San Onofre
which will get you access to some choice longboarding…a bit of a walk or a short drive and a walk and
you can get to trestles…if you know anyone in the Navy…there’s a Navy campground right there too
that is waaaaay better positioned for access to Old Mans and Trestles.
Jalama State Beach is north of Santa Barbara…I think it’s pretty windy there at the point that time
of year so I’m not sure if conditions are going to be good.
Elijo is the best bet if you want a good jumping off point for A LOT of good San Diego surfing.
there’s a bus line there along the main drag that can take you further north or south in to encinitas/cardiff or
possibly even down to del mar and torrey pines…blacks and la jolla.
being partial to the north i would have to say santa cruz and north is the ideal area. wadell creek and big basin (santa cruz county) are great even if there is no surf; giant redwood trees, waterfalls, swim holes- not to mention the reefs at wadell. there’s lefts, rights, beach break, everything you could want all within a walking distance. and there is hardly ever a crowd- id say 15 people tops at the spots you can see from the road. and it wont go flat like so-cal can do- wind can be a bitch though.
moving north just gets better; less people, more trees and more exploration. there is the point raise area which is literally thousands of acres of undeveloped wildlife habitat and can go off during the lucky summer souths. there are a lot of spots that aren’t hard to find with a little exploration that are a little more consistent as well.
if your feeling really adventurous there are the sonoma, mendocino and humboldt coasts as well. pt arena, fort bragg, and the lost coast are some AMAZING spots where you can get great waves all to yourself. some spots require a good hike in but then you can camp on the beach in front of the surf and ride all day long with nothing but the seals to keep you company. some you can see from the road.
go explore and ask around, people are friendly and will point you in the right direction. a little research can yield great returns.