Packin' my bags for Encinitas!

[surfercook]

Pretty stoked! My maiden voyage to California. Decided to ditch my Costa trip this year and see The Golden State! I will be in the Cardiff area, more specifically Moonlight Beach. Not bringing boards and hoping for a half decent sup and surfboard rental. Figured hey, it's Cali, there are a million and five boards out there! Two weeks in Feb outa give me a good taste of West Coast life. Hoping for some Zoner clue ins.
THANX!
This vid looked cool when I was boppin' around YT for some scenic views!

[Zooport]

I'm an hour north of there, but love to drive down to the great waves at Trails.  It's at San Onofre which is probably 25 or 30 miles north of you.  Let me know and I'll meet you down there.  Can probably bring a few other Zoners as well.  Maybe even arrange a Zoner meetup like we did a couple of times last year.

[SD Surfer]

Where ya' coming from?

Encinitas has a very cool vibe to it.

Despite what this picture of the Cardiff Kook



would lead you to believe, Cardiff Reef has become a popular stand up surf spot.



If you like Tri-Tip, you need to go across the street to Seaside Market and get some "Cardiff Crack".

On the weekends they cook about 500 of them outside the market and sell sandwiches, or better yet go inside and buy a whole one to cook.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardiff_Crack

Crack is highly addictive... You've been warned.

I'm not sure of SUP rentals in Encinitas, but West Coast Paddle Sports is 10 or so miles south and will take good care of you.

[surfercook]

Zoo and SD Surfer, you guys are stokin' me BIG TIME! Very cool of you both to be so inviting. Lots of aloha going on. I hope to try some "Cardiff Crack", rent a sup from  West Coast Paddle Sports, and ride a few w/Zoo at Trails! I also have a coupla other buddies out there already who I hafta meet up with. one of em wants to take me on a boat to surf Point Loma!

[digger71]

Hope there is still some surf when you make your way out here cook - we've had a great run of swell the past week or so.  If you look on Surfline you will see some good pics like this.  Though most days are clearly much tamer


You're in a good spot right near Moonlight.  Encinitas is a terrific surf town and Moonlight is right in the middle of it.

Cardiff Reef is prime SUP territory but you can really go anywhere except Swamis and Seaside Reef (south
Cardiff by Solana) without any hassle.  But even with those spots if you go a few hundred yards north of Swami's to Boneyards it's no problem, and a few hundred yards south of Seaside to Table Tops it's the same.

From Moonlight to Cardiff is about a 2 mile paddle and there are a ton of fun waves along the way.

You may want to check out Paddle Planet in Leucadia for a rental as well.  They are close to where you are and it may be nice to be able to switch out boards during the stay if they will let you.  Lot's of Naish, Kings, and Starboard boards.

Assuming you'll have a vehicle it would be nice to have a state park parking pass.  Cardiff, Ponto, San Onofre/Trails, Doheny, just to name a few spots that you can use them.  Let me know when you are here and I may have access to one that you can use.

[Zooport]

Yeah, parking is expensive at the beaches controlled by the state.  The pass is $195 and the daily rate with no pass is $15, if I remember correctly.  Haven't been without a pass for years. 

[surfercook]

Thanx, Digger! That is some seriously useful info (and a really cool user name)! From the spots to hit on sup, the parking situation, and rentals. And an offer to hook me w/a parking pass too! I had NO clue about the state parking areas/beaches. To tell everyone the truth I was a bit reluctant to post my trip here, ya know, "Oh great, another dude in the lineup"! But the replies are def exactly the opposite of that!
   That Surfline photo is pretty spooky big! I know it's been mackin' there this past weekend. Watched the Todos big wave contest yesterday (pretty cool Josh Kerr won that, and he lives right in Carlsbad!) My buddy's been out there for weeks now and posts on facebook ALOT. I pretty much knew no sups at Swamis, I've been watchin' that cam for YEARS and never once have I seen a sup out there...usually just 832 surfers!
Here's a few of my buddy's shots of Swamis on 1/18. He said it was pretty much the only spot working but 50+ on it. He's staying in a nice airBnB apt in Cardiff.

[hbsteve]

California State Park daily fee is $15. 

[SD Surfer]

Dang it, now I'm craving some Cardiff Crack.

Those are great shots of Swami's.

[supdiscobay]

Dang it, now I'm craving some Cardiff Crack.

Along with the Cardiff Crack make sure to hit the Seaside Market deli for a piece of the lemon pie.

I always enjoy paddling up to Boneyards from the reef, and paddling right through the Swami's line up on the way.  If looks could kill.

No need to travel much further than Table tops to the south and moonlight to the north.  So many fun and uncrowded breaks.  You will always see numbers at Cardiff, Pipes, and Swami's, but all the other sandbars can found with just a few or even no one out.
If you want to know the name of each break, buy the Seaside Market T-shirt.
 

[surfercook]

Thanx, Disco! More activities and clues! I need to write this sh!t down! The tee-shirt sounds like a cool souvenir. And the paddle through Swamis seems challenging! Imagining everything that everyone has told me so far has been mind boggling! Can't wait! Here's a sunset from yesterday in Cardiff my buddy shot. Golden State indeed.

[Tom]

You're  going  to  love  the  Pt Loma  boat trip ,  North  County  gets  the  best  summer  summer  waves  and  Pt Loma , Sunset  Cliffs  gets  the  best  winter  waves . There  are  some  breaks  in  Pt  Loma  that  can  only  be  accessed  by  boat  or  a  long  paddle  from  the  Cliffs .

[GOTWAVZ]

You will score for sure, you may want to consider taking your own paddle. Just from experience. It's fun to try a bunch of boards but you don't want to keep trying different paddles, I find it messes with your balance, stroke, confidence. Some airlines let you carry them on, but even if not it's worth it. IMO

[kayadogg]

surfercook, I just moved back to RI from Dana Point but I have an 8'10 that I left out there with a buddy. It's too big for my tastes but decided it would be good to keep a board on the west coast since I'm out there every other month for work. You're more than welcome to grab it while you are in the area, for as long as you want it, free of charge. My buddy who is storing it is also a Zoner and I'm sure would have no problem getting it to you. If you're interested, send me a PM and I'll get you the details.

[digger71]

To tell everyone the truth I was a bit reluctant to post my trip here, ya know, "Oh great, another dude in the lineup"! But the replies are def exactly the opposite of that!

That is the great thing about the Zone and honestly SUP in general.  I'm typically not much of a "joiner" and tend to spend time mostly with close friends, but this kind of shared stoke and aloha has allowed me to experience downwinding on Maui and in Hood River in a way I wouldn't have been able to otherwise - from Headmount guiding a Maliko run prior to the Olukai race and educating me on a rudder board, to PonoBill loaning me a paddle at the Gorge Paddle Challenge.     

What we have here in SoCal, and clearly what the guys on Maui have, is paradise to a lot of other paddlers and I think most of us are willing to share it with those that have the right level of respect.  Guess it helps that you have posted enough for others to see you can handle yourself as well