Standup Zone Forum
Stand Up Paddle => SUP General => Topic started by: southwesterly on November 11, 2017, 09:42:37 AM
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Does anybody know any details about this?
Is it the land just south of Jalama or is it Cojo?
http://www.mercurynews.com/2017/11/10/californians-may-gain-access-to-a-mile-of-rural-coast/
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Very misleading picture...showing Shark's Reef and Govies south of Pt. C...
SB County has been trying for years to expand the Jalama Beach Park to the south...they were trying to get 20 acres...now, it's 36 acres...
It sounds about like that stretches from the current park down to "Cracks"...north of Tarantulas...
Shallow victory, really...it doesn't open up "The Ranch"....and, any development along the bluffs south of the current park will just add visual blight to an otherwise relatively unmolested view...of course, it will also add more surfers who don't want to walk the mile on the beach to the lineup...
http://www.ksby.com/story/36804195/coastal-commission-could-vote-to-open-up-coastline-south-of-jalama-beach
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All right, thanks Wardog.
I was thinking the Ranch was going to open. Santa Cruz without houses.
Sounds like business as usual, nothing to see here.
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Yeah...it gets kinda disorienting not having houses to line up with...;-)
I've been surfing and camping at Jalama since before I could drive...the first surfing road trip that I ever took...and, I think that it will suck if they build structures on the bluff...much rather see open space and Coreopsis...they've already ruined a lot of the plantings that created wind shelters and privacy along the camp sites by cutting them too far back...they never recovered during the drought...
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No part of the Hollister Ranch will ever be open to the public.
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Home of the “free”.
Sorry, couldn’t keep that one in.
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I've never surfed The Ranch, but don't people get to Cojo Point by boat and surf? My old surfing buddy said he did a bunch of times. Like the old days of surfing Trestles.
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Zooport, technically there are two ranches, Hollister and Bixby. Bixby is further west and includes Cojo and Government Points. Everyone who surfs there gets there by boat, even those fortunate enough to live on the Hollister Ranch. Bixby Ranch was purchased a few years back by a real estate company owned by the large Boston-based Hedge Fund Baupost Group. What Baupost plans do to with the property in terms of development remains unclear.
For the record, I've never surfed Cojo or Governments but from pictures I can tell you they are both world-class waves when they're on.
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Zooport, technically there are two ranches, Hollister and Bixby. Bixby is further west and includes Cojo and Government Points. Everyone who surfs there gets there by boat, even those fortunate enough to live on the Hollister Ranch. Bixby Ranch was purchased a few years back by a real estate company owned by the large Boston-based Hedge Fund Baupost Group. What Baupost plans do to with the property in terms of development remains unclear.
For the record, I've never surfed Cojo or Governments but from pictures I can tell you they are both world-class waves when they're on.
When I had full access to the HR I'd park on the far north boundary on the beach and walk up to Cojo and Perkos. Beautiful meditative walk. Surf and walk back to my truck. That first cold Corona was something to look forward to. Yes Cojo is as good as they say but better.
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Supsurf, I've thought about doing the same thing. I've been out at Little Malibu a few times and found myself looking wistfully up the coast...I've heard some guys ride bikes when the sand is hard. Cojo is definitely on my bucket list.
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Tw, I offer that it's only a matter of time before the Coastal Commission can no longer ignore the access issues there. (Not that I'm a fan of forcing the access issue at such a remote area.)
After all the billionaires they've fought I think it's probably just a matter of someone griping and it'll start a 20 year fight.
I'm torn, part of me still wants to dream of a lotto win (or decent exit from my company) and buying some access to private waves, but then my inner hippie kicks in and says that if you're willing to drive out there, you oughta get to surf.
But really who wants all those undesirables from Santa Barbara clogging up the waves. I hear that there are still some people in that town who make less than $500k a year! How do they live? Do they wash regularly? Don't only murderers and rapists make under $250k a year? (Shudder.)
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Tw, I offer that it's only a matter of time before the Coastal Commission can no longer ignore the access issues there. (Not that I'm a fan of forcing the access issue at such a remote area.)
After all the billionaires they've fought I think it's probably just a matter of someone griping and it'll start a 20 year fight.
I'm torn, part of me still wants to dream of a lotto win (or decent exit from my company) and buying some access to private waves, but then my inner hippie kicks in and says that if you're willing to drive out there, you oughta get to surf.
But really who wants all those undesirables from Santa Barbara clogging up the waves. I hear that there are still some people in that town who make less than $500k a year! How do they live? Do they wash regularly? Don't only murderers and rapists make under $250k a year? (Shudder.)
You can believe me when I say it will never open. There are some heavy hitters there and every time the issue comes up the legal resources available are more than the State, etc want to deal with. The State has a hard time financially maintaining the current park system and attempting to add more cost to the system is something that is unrealistic. Plus, gaining access through the HR is virtually impossible due to the way titles are held.. There's no law against walking in so in reality it is open to the public however as I mentioned, direct access won't happen.
The place is now crowded with the current owners\guests and boaters if there's a swell so if you have these images of perfect crowded waves, you're mistaken. You surf in shifts. You pull up and wait for the guys out there to have some time then paddle out with the next bunch of guys that have been waiting.
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You surf in shifts. You pull up and wait for the guys out there to have some time then paddle out with the next bunch of guys that have been waiting.
Surfing in shifts is hard for me to imagine given the greedy attitudes of many surfers. Is this practice organized or enforced?
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You surf in shifts. You pull up and wait for the guys out there to have some time then paddle out with the next bunch of guys that have been waiting.
Surfing in shifts is hard for me to imagine given the greedy attitudes of many surfers. Is this practice organized or enforced?
Kind of both, organized and enforced by very long time local surfers that live there, they are territorial but not to the extent of the Lunada Bay types, they are getting older after all.
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Tom has it right...it's much more difficult to get it uncrowded these days...
Some Ranch families have 3 & 4 generations of surfers in them...and, there's always been a sense of entitlement...
It's been 50 years since it was exposed in Surfer mag...and, it's still closed to the public...open access will not happen in our lifetime...
A boat allows for different approaches to access...but, also comes with hurdles...especially, since the pier is still out of commission for launching boats...so, driving up from SB Harbor or beach launches are the call...I've scored it as good and uncrowded as it gets...but, have also spent a good deal of time dealing with boating issues...which will happen sooner or later if you do it often enough...also, I've seen the biggest GW shark of my life up at Govies...near where longtime SB waterman Rob Rebstock (R.I.P.) was bit...YMMV...
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You surf in shifts. You pull up and wait for the guys out there to have some time then paddle out with the next bunch of guys that have been waiting.
Surfing in shifts is hard for me to imagine given the greedy attitudes of many surfers. Is this practice organized or enforced?
It's Ranch etiquette. There are a lot of unwritten rules that must be followed or you will be "educated". Usually new owners don't know the rules and then there's Charlie who just paddles out anyway
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I use to cover the The Baupost Group when I was a trader on Wall Street. I wish I could say you had good stewards of the Bixby Ranch, but you don't. And it was a group who made the purchase I think Goldman was in on the original bunch of empty souls that saw "value'" in the property.
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Thx TW, good background there.
Remember that we're not talking about making it a state park, so not really much maintenance there, just access. But I get it with the lack of a public road anywhere nearby. It's public if you're willing to walk is the correct term.
I'm fascinated by the whole thing. Seldom do you see an area that large that remains private and so controlled. Clearly a huge amount of wealth there.
I'm shocked to hear that it's that crowded with all that coast. Are the breaks fairly limited in number then? From photos it always looks like there are miles of coast with breaking waves. Looks must deceive.
This has been a great thread on one of those mysterious places in CA.
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Thx TW, good background there.
Remember that we're not talking about making it a state park, so not really much maintenance there,
I'm shocked to hear that it's that crowded with all that coast. Are the breaks fairly limited in number then? From photos it always looks like there are miles of coast with breaking waves. Looks must deceive.
Well a road would need to be maintained then where do you park? Bathrooms? You can see there are many things to consider and all point to a State run and organized facility.
There are A breaks and B breaks and even the B breaks get crowded and all breaks aren't good at the same time. Wind and swell direction have a huge impact on which spots will be good\bad. Also an access road in the middle would only provide access to 1 or 2 spots without a very long walk so it just wouldn't be a "park and paddle out". kind of deal.
Don't plan on enjoying any epic Little Drakes anytime soon
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Has anyone SUPd there?
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Has anyone SUPd there?
I haven't been there for awhile however with the wind conditions it would be difficult.
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The spots are very susceptible to offshore winds...and, it backwinds at the slightest hint of an eddy...making it horrible to be in a boat...
I showed a pic of Ranch SUP surfing in my previous post...top right in the 4 panel composite...here's that pic a bit bigger...
You're not gonna find a bunch of SUP pics out there for obvious reasons...SUPs are off limits at a number of lower Ranch spots...cameras are frowned upon in general...and, when it's good most folks are too busy surfing to take pics...
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It isn't hard to surf the ranch. I used to do it all time in my Valco 13. It had surf launching wheels on the transom and a small 18 HP Nissan outboard. The motor had a kelp cutting blade which worked like a charm. We could stay way inside for a easier trip. Knowing when and where to go takes a bit of experience. I always took a couple buddies so we could hoot each other!
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A kelp blade and a good anchor with lots of chain are your best friends...;-)
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It's weird driving in there and being able to take your car down onto the beach and drive up the coast. There's also a lot of right of way rules you have to follow. You must be with an owner, in and out of the water, at all times. It's everything California coastal access laws are against. Felt like a private country club for a lucky few.
This is John's Pond, just a tad north of Lefts and Rights. Seemed SUP friendly to me at the time.
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The Ranch is a beautiful place!
This photo is several years old. Notice the longer paddles we all used back then.
It's a shame the area is not easily accessible to people.
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The Ranch is a beautiful place!
This photo is several years old. Notice the longer paddles we all used back then.
It's a shame the area is not easily accessible to people.
Yeah, a shame sort of. If it were open to the public, it would be just another Malibu or Rincon; world class waves with horrific crowds.
I always dreamed of buying a place there to retire. Wife won't hear of it though, we all know where she wants us to move to.