Two days ago celebrated my birthday on October 18th at Steamer Lane in Santa Cruz. The National Weather Service had a ‘Beach Hazard Statement’ in effect, and Surfline.com was predicting 6-10 foot waves at the Lane, which would build to 10-15 feet by October 19th. I’m not a big wave surfer, I never have been and that shipped sailed long ago anyway. However, just inside of Steamer Lane there is an alluring spot called Indicators, which is smaller and less crowded than the main break at the Lane. That’s where I set my sights and arranged to meet my good friend Nick Salcedo for a birthday session. It was a sunny 77 degrees on the beach, and the water was 65 degrees: perfect conditions for a birthday surf.
When we got to Indicators the size was about 6-8 feet, which is pretty close to my limit. We paddled out and it took me about 20 minutes before I finally got the comfortable enough to drop in on my first first wave. Despite Steamer Lane being known as one of the most crowded spots in California, the crowd wasn’t really a factor, and the wave size was manageable. It was the backwash that was freaking me out. Waves of water were literally washing back from the cliffs at a diagonal angle, creating steep and challenging drop-ins, ‘warbling’ the large swells with added pockets of power. It was good to be out with Nick, and I watched him drop into an 8 ft+ wave and ride it for several hundred yards, which got me stoked. It was actually a wave I passed up on because I felt the drop was too steep and the warble too intense.
Nick kept catching waves while I bobbed around in the line-up, waiting for tide to drop a bit and the backwash to get less intense, which it did. Finally, I got my first wave, and from there on, it was on! I got a bunch of great, long birthday waves, including a rare tube ride right in front of Nick. It turned into a fantastic session for both of us, and I got out while I still had a little gas in my tank because I was planning to be back in the morning.
The following day was even better! I stayed the night at the Fairfield Inn and Suites by Marriott, which has a hot tub I used to relax and recover, plus a free breakfast for surfing fuel. The next morning when I returned to Indicators without Nick the surf had notched up to the 8-10 ft range, which was definitely my limit. The tide was right though, and there was no backwash, which made the drop-ins much less dramatic. The line-up again wasn’t overly crowded, and I got as many waves as I wanted until I could no longer ignore the fatigue in my shoulders from the long paddles back out. After the session I returned to the Fairfield and took another rejuvenating hot tub before checking out and driving back home up the coast. The drive was magnificent too, with all the beaches getting hammered by the large swell.
Back home now, reflecting on the experience, I feel so grateful and blessed for my Santa Cruz birthday surf experience. Here’s to another trip around the sun, and more awesome surf sessions in Marin, Sonoma, San Francisco and on special occasions Santa Cruz!