Hello ! ive been Thinking of moving near Melbourne Area, for some career changes, i see there is some surf there, but one thing i seem to cannot find is real hard numbers for consistency... for me , consitency,is more important than size of swell. quick example: A) Spot has, of 7 days, 3 with reallygood waves, but 4 that suck and are not ridable B) Spot has of 7 days, 5 with rideable waves, though not as good as A) i would prefer spot B), because i like to surf every day. So how is Central Florida in Terms of consistency ? Of 7 Days ( one week), how often would there be surfable waves ? Surfable = wave has somekindof a shoulder, and you can train maneuvers like cutback,snap,offthelip,airs etc, with a typical smallwave shortboard. Would be really cool if some locals could tell a bit greeeetings, and happy new year !
Heck Backfire if you tell me where i can find 3 out of 7 or even 5 out of 7 days a week where there is surf i'll move there myself...lol...unfortunetly florida is not the place to be, although we have our moments during hurricane season or a north swell from a front moving offshore in the winter... consistency is not here, maybe 2 out of 10, maybe. Melbourne area to Cocoa Beach is a decent place to be though, there are many sandbars to choose from and the people are pretty laid back...well good luck to your future and hope this answered some questions...peace
Maybe 1, and if you're lucky, 2, every two weeks or so. Start visiting the Sebastian Inlet web cam (http://www.surfguru.com/florida-surf-reports), and just track or do a screen grab of the waves each day. Within a 30 day period (depending upon the season of the year and then adjust for hurricane season) you'll have a pretty good idea about how consistent, or inconsistent it can be. And for the record, EVERYWHERE experiences flat spells, sometimes quite extended ones, so you have to be willing to endure them no matter where you go, but I guess since you're listing No. California as your locale, then you already knew that, and what you are really looking for is warmth.
I will agree MDSurfer, i will, for the first time this season bring out the 3/2 wetsuit for some hopefully shoulder high waves wednesday, yes, warmth is the reason...it is nice...lol
I was gonna start a similar thread because it looks like I am moving there (Jacksonville) in a few months. Ugh. The comments so far don't give me much hope for consistency or quality. O well. Bet its a super cheap plane ticket to the Caribbean.
St. Augustine and Jacksonville may actually be a tad more consistant, but they are also somewhat colder in the winter. Probably the best waves I came across were at Spanish House above Sebastian and Anastasia State Park near St. Augustine, but the air temps went down to 32 in the campground that night in Anastasia. 3/2 wetsuit was still the order of the day.
Florida blows, i lived there for a year. The waves are weak and the swells never last very long. I can remember many times when a swell will just disappear with the tide and never return, like a fart in the wind. But it is warm.
well well. i am not from california originally, by the way, just spent some time there ! Thanks for all the answers !! Basically it sounds like florida is crap for surfing. im just a bit disappointed now, since i was on vacation at melbourne area some years ago, and allthough it was summer, we had some waist-high fun days back then. just as an experiment: if "waist" high, ( 1-2ft) is minimum size to have some fun, how often would there be rideable days ? does not have to be clean,glassy etc..just enough size to be barely shortboardable. dont wanna be a pain in the ass, but its just that , regarding my academics education , i would have some really nice options in florida, and i liked the weather and people and nature when i visited! on the other hand, surfing is a hobby i really do more than enjoy, meaning that i want to spend some time in the water everyday ( if thats possible ) by the way: i checked st sebastion webcam everyday now for 30 days, im not sure what to think. i saw some rideable stuff, but almost no people surfing there...anything wrong with that spot ? forecasts been pretty ****ty the last weeks, just 1 ft crap though.
Try NSB. It is certainly no secret the inlet usually has a wave when the entire coast is flat... That's why you'll be surfing with 200 of your closest friends. That's not entirely a bad thing as it's the shark attack capital of the world.Still, I like the place. best of luck ~
Jax isn't that bad, used to live and learned to surf there, and I may be making the move back, depending on how my job here in VB goes. IMO, the Jax/St Aug area is just a little bit more consistent, but a lot more surf friendly than VB. No surf zones, leash laws, free parking. Plus you're only in a suit from Dec to March. Also you get swells from all directions, which make for more 'surfable' days. Plus you can do a quick strike to the Caribbean or Central America. Flying out of Orlando, round trip to PR avg's $200 and CR for about $350. Plus it's cheap to live there, haha
St. Aug is not too bad but my prob is that it's good surf throughout the week than dies down on the weekend. Ive learned to deal with the inconsistant surf and just be a tourist when the waves are down. Theres always skateboarding LOL.
I always heard and thought the atlantic side of florida was a very reliable wave. I also heard the top spot was new smyrna for consistancy. Only thing about florida is that the temps in the summer are insane and it is crazy sharky. but the cheap plane tickets to the carribean are a legit pro if you have the funds/comp time/flexibility to do so. also, look at it this way, you are a cheap plane ticket from the carribean but only 2 hours from obx. You should look up a city review on the living conditions in the area. I found a website called citydata.com which is basically a forum which people ask what's it like living here and there and people who have lived in the area questioned give their opinions. Some are a bit extreme or relaxed since it's opinions, but it gives you a general idea. I read it before I moved to va beach and I have to say that some people over reacted with the crime rate here. I could see in some areas being pretty bad, but most of it is kind of common sense. If you live in a bad area, don't walk around in the middle of the night with your freshly cashed pay check on you...uh duh. And if you do decide to be risky and walk around at 3am for no reason, it's a open carry state, so carry that desert eagle .50 cal on you like it's a bright orange and yellow lightning striked shortboard in the 90's
I just moved an hour and half north of melbourne to flagler beach. Its been inconsistent this January but other than that Ive gotten chest high or bigger surf about 2 to 3 times a week since mid august. I've gotten some good days. Summer time without hurricanes might be an issue. Id go for it. The water temp is 65! Some guys are skinning it in January.
Working in 8a-5p in Melbourne / Palm Bay Florida, your "in the water every day" quick strike before /after work options are beach breaks in the Melbourne Beach and Indiatlantic areas. http://www.surfguru.com/florida-surf-reports/indialantic-boardwalk I lived there working a day job in the aerospace industry for 18 months, surfing as often as possible. I would say I got wet 10 days out of every month. If you plan to get in the water more often, make sure to find a place out on the islands - you can find decent year-round rentals and be 5 minutes from the surf instead of 30. It is NOT Cali or even OBX. It's generally mixed-up short period windswell, two or maybe three turns on the good waves. Rarely, at the right spot on the right swell, there are ramps to be had, or longer chest-high lines. You can find barrels during Hurricane season, or on a good Northeast, and you will never need more than a 3/2. It is not particularly sharky around Melbourne (compared to NSB and other points south). It is warm in the winter and god-awful hot in the summer, and populated with some of the redneckest crackers you'll ever meet (and I live in South Carolina now...). The vibe once you hit the lineup tho is generally mellow unless you plan to charge 1st peak Sebastian. It sounds like you're not too concerned about getting a job in your field (which is unusual right now), so I say go for it, and if you don't like it, send your resume out again and move somewhere else.
