Hello, I will have some time off of work in New York in August and want to take a fun surf trip. I like 2-4ft waves, not too steep. Is Santa Cruz a good pick for August? I wanted to go to Hawaii because I heard it would be small, but I'm hearing instead that it is completely flat in August. Any pointers? Thanks, Liz
Wow, that is a loaded question I guess. You can pick anywhere you want and you narrowed down Santa Cruz or Hawaii? Well, SC does better than most in Central and Nor Cal. It has a good angle for the southern Hemi's, which are present that time of year. August is by far the worst month on the whole west coast, but still will have plenty of ridable surf. Water will be chilly. Bring a wetsuit. And yes, there are plenty of 2-4' beach breaks for you... If there is swell. I would say, by guessing, if you spent a week there in august, you may get 2 2-4ft days and the rest will be a crap shoot from 1-3 unless there is an actual swell event. Santa Cruz. Go there. But, it could be macking the whole week and you could be dealing with well overhead surf. You never know. I went to Hawaii for the first two weeks in September a couple years ago, and surf wise, it was a bust. I chased swell all over the island and it maxed out at chest to head for a couple hours one day... So yea, don't always believe the island hype, it goes plenty flat like everywhere else. I guess august and september arent good months out there.... September is good in CA, always, August, not so much.
Tempting, Liz, but you get a hall pass on this, your very first post. Can't guarantee that you'll be safe from sandblasters & Gitcarter, though. They're trying to make up desperately needed chips in the second half of the Swellies14. Save the vitriol for when shaka utoolu returns, gassed up, methed out & ready to lay waste to SI Forum later. Every time I've been to San Diego, there's some sort of surf, year-round. The locals there don't bother with it when it's small, 'cause they get it so good so often (as Zach has indicated). But for us right coasters....clean & peeling anything is better than summertime Lake Atlantic.
They both stand the chance of being flat or pumping. As they both pick up south swells. Santa cruz is ALL right hand points, and hawaii is reefs. Both are fun, both are crazy crowded. Hawaii you dont need a wetsuit, santa cruz you most certainly will. Santa cruz after your sesh you can go hang at the boardwalk with all the sc kids and punk/emo/hipster/hobos, hawaii after your sesh you can hang in the madness that is waikiki with the asian tourists and fat mid-westerners. Hope that helped.
Sc? Come to the real sc mfer South cArolina... All those in the other sc are just posers of us. We shred ten times as hard and are way more gharny, dude in the south we got that cut back swag. In Santa Cruz they dropping coal like Santa Claus. Come to the real surfers paradise kook.
Just got back from SC not too long ago, never been to Hawaii, but if I took a trip right now other than PR, which i'm doing again in Oct., it would be to SC again because it's cheaper to get to, faster to get to, and I enjoy wearing a wet suit and surfing cold water believe it or not, I get warm water for majority of the year at home, so when it's cold I embrace it. But overall it's just a cool area with lots of scenery to check out. It's just such a commitment getting from FL to Hawaii and back, can't see myself going anytime soon but I keep saying one day.
I dont know man, cold water is no fun. Wetsuits doubly so. I know sc is great, i grew up not far from there. Just between the two theres no way i would choose sc over hawaii. Unless there was some sort of limitations on the time and trip and all that. Plus i HATE wetsuits and cold.
Waikiki hands down. There's plenty of other crap to do on Oahu if the surf is flat, but you're probably not going to say "Oh, I'll just pop on over to Tahoe or San Fran" if SC is flat. I mean, you could plan it that way, but just go to HI.
I'm with ya Baddy, I can definitely say it's going to happen one day (god willing), sooner rather than later hopefully but being realistic I know it won't be this year, or even next most likely. It may have to be a one way trip, because I know once I'm there I won't want to leave.
I wouldn't go to Hawaii. If you do bring back a puka shell neck less. Rumor has can't represent one if you haven't surfed there.
