Surf Spots in The Channel Islands, CA

07.27.2011 // Surf Maps, Surf Photos, Surf Spots, Surf Trips // lasurf // No Comments

All the while those Channel Islands sit out there, obvious, framing every eye scan towards the horizon as the next set comes in. Plainly in view, yet silent and mysterious. As for surf out there, I’ve certainly heard the myth of surf spots, the mystery of spots, occasional chatter but nothing more. Hunting down that next new spot and the “stoke” of new discovery, these are motivations push us to explore, and sometimes hopefully we can find stuff even in our own backyard of Los Angeles. Maybe even out there…

“There are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns – the ones we don’t know we don’t know.” —Former United States Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld.

My goal of surfing the Channel Islands began/begins with research online. The first hint of a web trail was this scrap of evidence. There’s very little that is easily found online about surfing out there, perhaps because of a guarded secretive protection of the information? Skull and Mariner Bones? Although I don’t think there are endless spots out there, each of the bigger islands certainly hold a few great waves when the conditions are right.

You want a boat. I mean, you need a boat, a personal watercraft, but it is slightly possible to get there by ferry service, camp, and hike or kayak. If the only option is public transportation, here’s how to get there, and how to get a campsite pass. It’s possible to hike to a south swell spot on Santa Cruz near Smuggler’s Cove, and Santa Rosa has a few hiking in options as well. Here are great photos of the summer spot on Santa Cruz, here and here. Use your imagination for surf spots on Santa Rosa.

This is another winter wave on Santa Cruz, Chinese Harbor and the Chinese Harbor setup

Here’s the infamous “Shark Park“.

The goal with this article is not to spoil an untouched area, and anyways the barriers to entry are steep. But, it tickles the imagination and feels good knowing there are cold desolate slabs out there at the right day and time, and so it is a story I believe should be told, and shared.

Please leave any comments to help us piece together the mystery of surfing out there!