Shiver, Surf, and Soup
Tillamook County, Oregon
Adventure #2: Surfing the Oregon Coast with my Family
Intention: Push myself out of my comfort zone, enjoy time with family.
This activity took place in stolen Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde and
Nehalem lands.
Water Activity Day
Having not seen out-of-state siblings over the 6 week break, I decided to make a pitstop in Oregon on the way to the Bay Area during my first weekend of class. This, while still a risk in current conditions, seemed to be the most important priority entering into the new year. Some quality time with my brother and his girlfriend was long overdue. We enjoyed a wonderful weekend of catching up, and catching waves.
My brother, an alumni of Cal Poly SLO, found time to decompress from a demanding architecture program through surfing the central coast. He taught me, then a freshman in college, the beauty (necessity) of a wetsuit, tricks to paddling out, and the basics to catching a wave. My mere improvements on the board paled in comparison to my brother, whose comfort and skill on the waves has grown immensely in the last 5 or so years. As Coloradans, surfing was never in our blood, but I have always had a strong desire to overcome that hurdle, hopefully as well as my brother has already.
When I went to Oregon this Jan Term, I knew surfing was a must. What better way to get some experience than to dive in the deep end. Winter surf seemed like a physical and mental challenge enough to warrant an adventure out to the coast. And it was worth it!
We decided on Short Sands Beach, visited frequently by my brother and his friends, but new to me. We left early in the morning, hoping to catch some of the less choppy waves and secure a suit/board to rent before all the other weekend warriors snapped them up. What we learned upon arriving to the rental shop was that folks hadn’t been renting all winter because the “surf was too crazy”. (oh no) Lucky for us we scheduled our surf for one of the first manageable and calm days in weeks along the Oregon coast. A sunny Saturday of 8 foot overhead waves, sandwiched between two days of stormy 25 foot waves. Luck or planning? Either way, I’ll take it.
Suited up with our 5mm wetsuits and my 7 ft board, we headed to the trailhead of Short Sands beach off of the 1. The beach lies about half a mile down from the highway, through a quintessentially PNW trail. I couldn’t believe what a treat it was to pass through old growth forest, rivers and blankets of ferns with a surfboard in hand. Down at the beach we put on our suits and dove in before we had too much time to think about it. The water took my breath away...literally in the first minutes of frigid water, and figuratively for the rest of the hour. I regained my bearings on the board, with guidance from my brother. He waited very patiently as I relearned the basics.
Nothing quite like the first few waves. We caught what we could, my brother reaching farther out and surfing with much more finesse. One of my favourite parts of the day was looking back and watching him catch a beautiful wave, wind splashing water droplets against my sun soaked skin and wetsuit. It brought me so much joy knowing that he was getting a much needed break from his busy life and we could just have fun on the waves together. It made me think about all the magic times, like this, that I hope we share in the future. After some meditative thoughts in the water, I felt myself losing form and my hands going a bit numb, so we decided to head in.
best pals
My brother’s girlfriend greeted us back on the beach, cooking up warm broth and noodles on the camp stove next to the fire. Much needed after the sun went behind the clouds. We sat and chatted about the waves and their new life in Oregon. We packed up, hiked back (much more slowly this time) and took a long drive home, through the beautiful Oregon coast. So very grateful for the time spent with some of my dearest friends doing the things we love.
Not my last time out on the PNW waves.
Songs for the Winter Surf
Settle- BAYNK
Surf- Mac Miller
Gap In the Clouds- Yellow Days
