I know a few y'all do to live out there and how much more do you all get the surf. Are there protected spots from the big winner times swells? What's the air and water temp in wintertime I think the waters around 55? What's the pros and cons it seems cheaper than where I live now which is probably one of the most expensive cities on the damn coast line here. I wouldn't mind getting away from 100° weather for five months out of the year. And is it really that cloudy all the time?
Huh...I thought it was Washington. I heard that our state leads the nation in serial killers. That in itself is pretty cool. To answer Robert E's questions, yes to all the above. Some people love it, some don't. It's totally different than what you're accustomed to in every sense of the word. Trevolution understands and he gets it. I don't live in Oregon but have spent time there. It's not for everybody, and surfing can be either very fickle or very rewarding but you gotta pay your dues and put in the time. Many times by yourself, which can be lurky. Maybe a short trip instead of an immediate full-time commitment might be the wiser choice.
always always, but ill end up driving out there anyways, its just on my list due to cost of living to check out. doesnt seem like there are many shark attacks up there compared to California and it would be pretty cool to be close to tofino, speaking of tofino i red the funniest article a while back about a local that chased some dude out of the water i cant find it but canadians with their jokelism...
When was the last time you were in Yakima, El Senor Don? Pretty much a Mexican Cartel town now. Don't expect the cost of living to be much different than where you're at. My experience has been that wherever I live, the cost of living is commensurate with salaries, and vice versa. It really is all relative. Oregon's cost of living index is rather high IIRC. If Oregon has fewer shark attacks, it's only because they have infinitely fewer surfers. On the whole, Oregon probably has just as many Big Whities as any spot in the Red Triangle. I don't recall any localism stories out of Tofino. Pretty sure if anybody got chased out of the lineup in Tofino, it was because the "locals" were probably of the Blackfish variety. My experience with Tofino is pretty mellow, those guys have to put up with surf schools up the wazoo in their lineups because it is the most popular and mellow spot on Van Island. Surly Canadian locals are usually found on the Strait side of the island, for good cause. When on, those spots are pretty insane by any standard.
Yeah I thought that story was pretty funny about the localism on Vancouver Island. I was thinking same thing about there being very few surfers that's why there's very few attacks. And come to think of it you see netted beaches all over Australia is there even one netted beach on the West Coast?
I was there about twelve years ago on a fishing excursion. Me and a buddy drifted the river for three days with a guide. Awesome surroundings and a bountiful, beautiful river. I wouldn't go back though. It's one of those been there, done that type of things and as far as going going back to surf the coastal region; I prefer more tropical climates. There is however a sense of solitude and emotional depression that comes with this part of the country. Maybe the vastness and isolation, making one feel insignificant. It's magnified there.
I lived in Mass for my first thirty years, spending whole summers waiting for waves. I then lived in STAUG, FLA for seven and on the same street as pro surfer Gabe Kling. After that, I spent five years in Seaside and learned every nook and cranny of Island Beach State Park. In 2013 I moved to SW Wash and, yes, the first winter will drive you bonkers when you see no sun in four months. The surf is best described in two words- long period. There is as much space between here and the Aleutians as Canada and Ireland. There is always swell and never flat. We get 15 second swells here every week, the Atlantic only with the hurricane of the decade. The chief problem in winter is too much swell, 20 feet at 18 seconds! This is when people search inlets for surf. At Westport WA people surf BEHIND the jetty at a place called the Groins. People also surf 100 miles inland at Whidbey Island when the swell trains come plowing through Juan de Fuca. Never seen or heard any talk of sharks though HALF a seal washed-up in Ocean Shores last summer. Water temps are coldest furthest west and windiest, a la Cal/Ore border. The ocean temps at the WA/Ore border are in the 60's all summer long. As I ramble down, the curse of summer is the wind that can howl for days out of the North.
