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Having left Moab after a morning's mountain biking, we had 21/2 days and the small matter of 990 miles to travel before going we got to surf Santa Cruz... The story of that journey is for another time, but suffice to say we allowed 4 hours to complete the last section of the drive that we thought would take 2 hours, and we used up every last minute - highway 1 winds along the tops of cliffs and alongside beaches all the way up the coast. it's beautiful but doesn't make for a quick drive!!
On arriving at the Club-Ed Surf Camp, it would be fair to say that things were a little disorganized. The camp was set up but the staff were busy running around doing last minute stuff and there wasn't really a welcome committee - this did add slightly to the nervousness we felt, having never really surfed before, but we soon got over this and the camp proved to be pretty luxurious, with everything from a full kitchen to a solar powered water heater! We also relaxed a bit after meeting the other 9 campers, who ranged in ability from totally new to reasonably good, and age from 24 to 68!! it was nice to know we weren't alone!
The first afternoon saw pretty large waves at our local beach and Ed, the guy who runs the surf camp (named after him) advised us that it probably wouldn't be a great way to start a surfing experience as it was pretty rough and difficult. We did however get our first taste of the camp meals that evening - they were delicious! They are all prepared off site by Chef Roger and then delivered and expertly assembled by Onge, the chief food guy at the camp (this guy was amazingly organized, very good at his job and only 16 years old - full credit to him!) The food was actually better than we'd been eating elsewhere - as well as being really tasty it was all pretty healthy stuff with loads of veggies etc, something that isn't always on offer in cheaper US eateries!
After eating we pretty much went straight to sleep as we had a 6:30 get up to catch the best waves - proper dedication eh! One thing I didn't expect was how chilly it was there - i had always envisaged California beaches to be hot and sunny, not misty and foggy and requiring wetsuits! some locals said that it's actually nicer in winter here when the fog doesn't come in!! Having said that, once we were in the water it made very little difference.
The first morning we headed to a break called "Trees" near the boardwalk of a town called Capitola this proved to be an ideal spot to start, and most people managed to catch at least a couple of waves and stand up. I felt I managed so much better than on my previous surfing attempt in wales, so I was super happy and quietly confident. I was soon put in my place that afternoon though trying the to catch waves at Manresa, - I took a huge pounding from the waves and kept getting pushed back ashore, so much so that I had to retire totally exhausted without catching one wave - not so much fun.
The second day proved to be more of the same, with virtually no waves at trees (thus unsurfable) and choppy inconsistent stuff at Manresa. V probably took the best option by spending most of this day in bed relaxing! We ate well again though and went to bed early after some card playing to prepare for another day.
Wednesday the group split - V went to a break called "Cowells" which was notoriously beginner friendly and came back with video evidence of having ridden the longest wave of the day (perhaps the week in fact) I had a better day at Manresa and had worked out how to get out through the waves now, although I was still very much frustrated by how difficult it was to catch waves!
Thursday and Friday were another matter though - the sun came out, the waves were clean and everyone was having a great time! I finally managed to get the knack of standing up most times and began to really enjoy it. We should at some point have a DVD of us actually riding a few waves so we can prove what happened!
As a break from surfing on the Thursday afternoon we took a trip to Big Sur, an hour south down the coast. We'd driven through this on the way, but not had time to stop and explore. It proved to be a small paradise, allowing swimming in a beautifully clear river and ample sunbathing opportunities. It was the sort of place you don't find from the guide book and was well worth going to with Ed our host - he knows pretty much everything and everyone on that stretch of coast!!
Overall the week was great fun, probably made by the diverse group of people who were on the course, and the great instructors we had (Onge, Kris and Tom in particular) It was also my first ever introduction to yoga, and the sessions we did to stretch before and after surfing were great, something I would definitely try again.
I would say though it hasn't yet made me want to throw away the snowboard and move to the beach - the effort to ecstacy ratio just doesn't compare yet for me, but, I do probably need to practice a bit more before making the final judgement, so watch out for another surfing blog entry from Bondi Beach if not before...
For more info on the camp you can visit www.club-ed.com
previous travel blog entry
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