Southern California is a favorite adventure and travel destination for many people. With the constant sunshine, food, surf, and fabulous beaches beyond compare, what else does one need? Many kids grow up on the beach and soon fall in love with surfing. But whether you like to hang ten and surf, or maybe just like to admire the surfers racing against each other for dominance of the one gigantic wave, there are many beaches to choose from that are awesome for surfing and observing surfers capture their wild sides.
Have you wondered why surfers all unite in one area racing to the same wave when they have the whole coastline to choose from with endless crashing waves? The sad truth is that beaches for surfing are not created equal. Neighboring beaches have variations in wave intensity and surfing qualities because of different seabed conditions, as well as the direction the beaches are facing.
Here are three VoyagesNearAndFar.com picks for great surfing in Southern California
Cardiff Reef, Encinidas CA
Located in San Diego, Cardiff Reef has been the most loved surfing area since the 1940s, for all types of board lovers. And the great thing is this beach is suitable for surfers of all skill levels due to its flat rocky reef bottom that creates constant smooth waves all year round. During low tide, visitors can enjoy their destination by exploring the local marine life and lounging in the sand.
The Wedge, Newport Beach
If you’re looking for enormous, powerful beach waves in the shape of a wedge, look no further. This beach is not for the faint at heart. It mainly caters to bodyboarders, but there are few surfers that dare take on the challenging Wedge. The Wedge increases in intensity due to the hemispheric tropical clones and storms during the summer and fall seasons; even seasoned surfers think twice to jump on. During such times, it is merely enough just to watch from the sand!
Huntington Beach
Also known as “Surf City”, rated one of the best in the world. Producing waves from 3 to 12 feet tall, this is a great surf beach for all levels to enjoy year-round. It is also the home to Annual World Surfing Competitions, which are well known worldwide and one of the reasons Huntington Beach is so popular. Waves of this excellence translate into ever-growing crowd attendance, but who cares about the crowds when your feet are in the hot sand, and all you hear are the waves crashing against the pier.
I hope you get the chance to visit one of these exquisite beaches, even if you don’t surf, get up, get outdoors and get sandy! Let me know if you have a favorite beach!