a late March trip with vacation-wanting family in tow???
Posted: Thu Jan 21, 2016 7:24 pmHey surfers of the wide world, I'm looking for a little help sorting a March trip. Generally I wouldn't travel in March but that's my break from the university (as professor, so spring break but not WOOHOO spring break). Real quick I'm a 50 year old life-long kneeboarder, and recently my surfing has been described as "competent" and "I saw you get an okay wave" (yes, from the glowing reviews you might mistake me for JJ Florence. Understandable, but remember he actually stands all the way up). In a more heroic era I surfed a lot at Ocean Beach in SF, so have my chops in juicy surf and it's confirmed I can hold my breath and pray at the same time, but as an entry-level senior now am more into shoulder to 3 feet over head and power enough so as not to have to manufacture one's own speed, or steep juicy little waves, or softer double-over head "hero" surf.
My window is March 11th-22nd, probably will take just a week out of that window. I'm gonna wait until a month or 3 weeks ahead to book when there will be some long term forecasts available but I'm looking at a couple of locations based on the following requirements:
1) will travel with my wife and little girl, both pretty good travelers, both interested in a relaxing vacation.
2 not too much travel time (from Seattle, WA). Hoping to do all travel in a day, preferably not a really long day, no overnight flights.
3) not too many time zones crossed.
4) Generally safe. I'm fine with grubby adventure travel but won't expose my kid to risks (like hurtling down shitty dirt roads in a POS death trap converted mini-bus, having to perpetually deal with petty crime issues, sketchy food, etc)
5) stuff for the family to outside of sit on the beach and wait for me (although they love the beach)
6) Daddy needs to get barreled and come out of some fraction of them.
I'm assuming this El Nino year in March I'll have better chance of scoring by finding a north swell exposed vacation spot. Here's the places I've thought of so far. I value your feedback on these and suggestion of other places to keep an eye on, so please file your opinion!
A) North Shore. +'s should be solid surf, quick travel, safe and lots to do for my girls, knock on wood for some reason people in Maui line-ups seem to like me so maybe that's transferable (not going back to Maui this time as that's been the last 3 March trips). -'s the scene/crowds/locals, could be too big for me, haven't surfed ledge-y waves in a while, have never been and seems easy to kind of be lost/clueless
B) Punta de Mita. +'s quick travel, family will love it, not a lot of crowd factor, seems super relaxing. -'s tight swell window, good surf but not a tube factory, higher chance of getting skunked than other options
C) NW Costa Rica + picks up some NW swell, I heart offshore beach breaks. -'s pushing the limits for travel time, seems crowded and pricey for Latin America, Seems to be best on south swells
D) Cabo + huge swell window, easy travel. -'s is it special enough on north swells to travel for? tourism in area seems like the annoying upscale-wannabe type, seems like you need to drive a lot of surf as opposed to just park yourself at a decent surfing area, wind problems in Spring
E) Ocean Beach SF + know it and love it, family and friends to see, quick and cheap. -'s fickle in spring so could get burned, not warm and doesn't feel like a beach/surf vacation more like visiting family with surfing on the side
I'm hoping the 3 week forecast shows major West swells lined up like taxis at the airport and I can just check into a Punta de Mita area hotel with a kids club and a bar in the pool, but doubt that will be the case. So what would you advise? Thanks!
My window is March 11th-22nd, probably will take just a week out of that window. I'm gonna wait until a month or 3 weeks ahead to book when there will be some long term forecasts available but I'm looking at a couple of locations based on the following requirements:
1) will travel with my wife and little girl, both pretty good travelers, both interested in a relaxing vacation.
2 not too much travel time (from Seattle, WA). Hoping to do all travel in a day, preferably not a really long day, no overnight flights.
3) not too many time zones crossed.
4) Generally safe. I'm fine with grubby adventure travel but won't expose my kid to risks (like hurtling down shitty dirt roads in a POS death trap converted mini-bus, having to perpetually deal with petty crime issues, sketchy food, etc)
5) stuff for the family to outside of sit on the beach and wait for me (although they love the beach)
6) Daddy needs to get barreled and come out of some fraction of them.
I'm assuming this El Nino year in March I'll have better chance of scoring by finding a north swell exposed vacation spot. Here's the places I've thought of so far. I value your feedback on these and suggestion of other places to keep an eye on, so please file your opinion!
A) North Shore. +'s should be solid surf, quick travel, safe and lots to do for my girls, knock on wood for some reason people in Maui line-ups seem to like me so maybe that's transferable (not going back to Maui this time as that's been the last 3 March trips). -'s the scene/crowds/locals, could be too big for me, haven't surfed ledge-y waves in a while, have never been and seems easy to kind of be lost/clueless
B) Punta de Mita. +'s quick travel, family will love it, not a lot of crowd factor, seems super relaxing. -'s tight swell window, good surf but not a tube factory, higher chance of getting skunked than other options
C) NW Costa Rica + picks up some NW swell, I heart offshore beach breaks. -'s pushing the limits for travel time, seems crowded and pricey for Latin America, Seems to be best on south swells
D) Cabo + huge swell window, easy travel. -'s is it special enough on north swells to travel for? tourism in area seems like the annoying upscale-wannabe type, seems like you need to drive a lot of surf as opposed to just park yourself at a decent surfing area, wind problems in Spring
E) Ocean Beach SF + know it and love it, family and friends to see, quick and cheap. -'s fickle in spring so could get burned, not warm and doesn't feel like a beach/surf vacation more like visiting family with surfing on the side
I'm hoping the 3 week forecast shows major West swells lined up like taxis at the airport and I can just check into a Punta de Mita area hotel with a kids club and a bar in the pool, but doubt that will be the case. So what would you advise? Thanks!