I learned a while back that last minute camping trips are not the best idea. Usually, camping requires a day or two of prep, unless you like sleeping on the ground and starving because the grill on the fire pit doesn’t really work like your backyard barbecue. I don’t know if it was the swell in the water or the dire need of a change in scenery, but all of the sudden a last minute camping trip sounded like the best idea in the world.
To say that our work environment here at Killer Dana is random and spontaneous would be a gross understatement. Earlier this year I walked into work one day feeling very productive and ready to tackle a day’s work. By the end of that day, I was in Mainland Mexico and didn’t come home for a month. So when I walked into work earlier this week and the fearless leader (G-Dub) was already gone and Traut was already packing, I kinda knew I was jumping on board.
We ended up convincing Bacha and the Hammer to come along, which ended up delaying our departure by a few hours. I never liked the idea of setting up camp in the dark, but there was no way we were gonna make it there before sunset, so from the very beginning the trip was on cruise control. The van was full of gear, so Hammer and Traut had the first beers cracked before we rolled out of the driveway. Our campsite was waiting for us about 200 miles up the road, the sun was already down and our memories were a little hazy on where the place actually was, not to mention the last time I drove there, it was light outside.
Once you pass LA, the drive north on the 101 has to be one of the most beautiful drives in the country. I’ve driven from Orange County to the Bay area at least 50 times day and night, but never on a full moon. The light it was giving off gave us a taste of the conditions we would be facing when we woke up the next morning. We could see the sheet glass and occasional offshore flow, but there was something missing the whole drive up, waves. It was discouraging to say the least, but we knew it would be bigger the further north we went.
Once we exited the main highway, the trip really started to get interesting. Traut was the one other guy who had been there before, but he was in the backseat about ten deep by this point. There were no other cars on the road and all I remembered from the last time I was there was that you turned left. So about ten or so miles off the main highway, we turned around thinking that we passed the turn off. When all of the sudden we were going south on the 101, we knew it was time to maybe look at a map. We later learned that we were about a half mile short of the turn off when we turned around. It was a minor detour but gave the drive a little more entertainment.
No one likes the guys that roll into the campsite at midnight and start hammering steaks into the ground to keep the tents from flying away, but we were those guys. We gave the surf a look under the moonlight and could see that there were waves, although not nearly the size the swell forecast had us excited about. So we started a fire and got a late night start to the camping life. We thought we had a money spot picked out under a nice tree and secluded from other campers. We quickly realized that the shady tree was actually the late night hang out spot for all the racoons in the campsite. So after cracking a few cold ones and fending off the racoons, we called it a night and fell asleep to the sound of waves and offshore winds.
The Fearless Leader is a professional at everything, especially camping. We woke up for a surf check and ran into him brewing some coffee in his killer rig. When you compare our two campsites, you can see the difference immediately. We had tables, chairs, a grill, wetsuit bins, camping crates and boards strewn about our site like a yard sale. G-Dub has his truck and camper shell. He told us how we really should have been there yesteday as he scored overhead surf, light offshore winds and no crowd in the early afternoon. His excitement for the possibility of it being better today got our little crew frothing. “Calm down” he says, “wait for the morning crowd to leave with the tide.” He also introduces us to P.A, a crusty critter who grew up surfing the same break as the Dubster and was randomly posted up right next to him.
We toss around a football to kill some time and contemplate moving our site away from the raccoon hang out, but we decide to stay and get ready for the hike. The site of a video camera had PA freaking and gave us the first glimpse into his complicated yet very entertaining demeanor. Imagine Spicoli, only he is the size of a linebacker and makes even less sense. G-Dub described him as having “a bright mind but a tortured soul.”
The waves weren’t quite the size that the break needs to show its face, but the potential was visible. The set up is based around a big point. On a big swell, meaning an 8-10 foot solid ground swell there is a fast and steep right that goes a long way. But on the outside of the point there is a reef that shapes up a bowling left as well. Down the beach from that, there is another reef that has a rippable left and depending on the sand can be hollow as well. The swell we were chasing didn’t turn out to be nearly big enough, but gave us some fun waves. PA ingored us all day because of the camera, but when we got back to camping he was all about it.
The little camping store also serves up one of the best burgers in the world and are a must have when camping here. We stuffed ourselves and re-upped on beer and fire wood. We killed the rest of the day rocking out to G-Dub and his library of sing alongs he jams out on his guitar. A seagull jumps around our site looking for scraps, PA suggests seagull burgers and we all shrug it off like it was the most normal thing we ever heard. “Its like a puzzle…..you know.” We dont know, but we still pay attention to everything he says.
The glassy ocean made for a killer sunset that night as we watched small little wedges break out in front of the campsite. Once the sun goes down, there isn’t much left to do besides eat, drink and sit by the fire. So naturally that was the course we took as the cooler got lighter and lighter. We didn’t think we were drinking that much, but the beers kept shrinking in numbers. Then we realized that PA’s comments were getting more and more obscure. We figured it was only going to make him more entertaining so we kept feeding him. As the fire dwindled, so did everyone’s energy and we all retired, leaving the pile of beer cans for the racoons to play with.
Sure enough, I woke up the next morning to G-Dub and PA knocking on the window of my van, freaking as if the swell had tripled in size. I looked out at the flag and saw that the wind was switching more out of the north. For some reason my mentioning of the fact was the best thing that PA ever heard and latched on to every other thing I did for the rest of the morning. “Bro, what do you think? Should we surf over there? Oh look, right there, that was a sick one.” There was nothing there. After the surf check, which revealed smaller waves and worse wind, we decided it was time to pack it up. PA was ready to surf though, so we left him in his wetsuit searching for the last bar of wax we told him was laying over there somewhere.
The plan on the way home was to stop by Channel Islands Surfboards for a meeting, and maybe pick up a couple fresh Merricks while we were there. Four guys, two days of camping and no showers. For some reason they cancelled the meeting. Surf checks on the way home revealled that there was actually a south swell in the water, so we beelined it home to try and catch some of it before the sun went down.
Its amazing how fast the coastline of California changes. The strike mission is something that all California surfers should have in their arsenal. The difference in wave type and size can change drastically if you just go around the next point. Even if the waves don’t show up, something entertaining is bound to happen along the way. Get a good crew together, be respectful of the locals and go get a change of scenery. Even a day and half is enough to get your fix, if your willing to work for it and take things as they come.
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