Surfing Waves

Hey, new to this, or any, surfing forum.
Looking to learn to surf but unfortunately I live in Northern Canada and winter is coming.

Basically, I’m 40, probably going thru a midlife crisis (divorce, job may disappear,etc etc) and I’ve always wanted to give surfing a chance. I just dont know where to go. I’ve never travelled off the North American continent, but I’m willing to.

So looking for recommendations for a first time trip. I was planning a mid December vacation to try it out, and I was thinking of New Zealand, Australia, and Hawaii... and maybe California.

Anyway any opinions are welcome and if this has been covered before, sorry!

Welcome Birddog, that sounds like the beginning of a superb midlife crisis. A renaissance of living.
Speak softly and carry a big stick!
A longboard, fitting for your weight, age and experience.
Mid December if you are in Hawaii, see the BIG surf!
Enjoy thoroughly!

Although I’ve never been there, perhaps look at Costa Rica. It has lots of surf and tourist infrastructure, surf camps etc and is fairly close to Canada (relative to your other options).

As an Australian - of course, Australia. But December/ January is peak holiday season so most beaches will be very crowded and prices (accommodation) is much higher. Try for February (or even better March).

California it’s winter and it gets fairly cold, esp the water temp.

my midlife surf crisis didnt start until 53 - dont know much about global surf destinations sorry, very envious of you though

FWIW I find windy.com really helpful in terms of stuff like water temperature, west coast US surprised me with the cold water temps - how about further south into Mexico?

Birddog193 wrote:Hey, new to this, or any, surfing forum.
Looking to learn to surf but unfortunately I live in Northern Canada and winter is coming.

Basically, I’m 40, probably going thru a midlife crisis (divorce, job may disappear,etc etc) and I’ve always wanted to give surfing a chance. I just dont know where to go. I’ve never travelled off the North American continent, but I’m willing to.

So looking for recommendations for a first time trip. I was planning a mid December vacation to try it out, and I was thinking of New Zealand, Australia, and Hawaii... and maybe California.

Anyway any opinions are welcome and if this has been covered before, sorry!

I think the best way to use vacation time for learning to surf is to simply use all that time to discover your home break. Why go and spend a week getting a spot in Scotland, for example, dialed in when you could be getting to know your local spots? Your first month of learning to surf can pretty much happen at any beach with gentle waves. It's nice to have good waves, but it's not mandatory. I learned at Pismo and the waves there are mediocre at best. If you're really looking to get out of town though, I don't think you can go wrong with Waikiki (my preference in terms of learn-to-surf surf travel) or Mondos (Ventura, CA--wetsuit needed) or Costa Rica or Ireland or throw a dart at a globe and find a surfing beach nearby. It's really easy to watch a dozen learn-to-surf videos, buy a long foam board, find a decent fitting wetsuit, and head down to an uncrowded beach where you won't get in the way of other surfers. Good luck.

You could also try googling "singles resorts + surfing". Intriguing possibilities

Thanks for the replies!

Lately I’ve been thinking of NZ.. seems laid back, less crowds, more my type of thing. Also, it’s almost as far from my place as I can get which is appealing right now!

NZ is a pretty good choice - but Christmas/ Jan is also peak holiday. Both Australia and NZ virtually shut down between Christmas and 2 Jan (retail and hospitality aside) and everyone goes on holidays - for most people that extends to the week after New Years as well. So just don’t rock up during those two weeks and expect to find anywhere to stay.

But otherwise NZ is a great choice, and if you get bored or cold, pop over to Australia

dtc wrote:NZ is a pretty good choice - but Christmas/ Jan is also peak holiday. Both Australia and NZ virtually shut down between Christmas and 2 Jan (retail and hospitality aside) and everyone goes on holidays - for most people that extends to the week after New Years as well. So just don’t rock up during those two weeks and expect to find anywhere to stay.

But otherwise NZ is a great choice, and if you get bored or cold, pop over to Australia

Where would you recommend in NZ to start with? Is Raglan crowded / beginner friendly?

Yes, very.

It's ok for beginners at one beach.

Raglan is a major surf destination and three point breaks, there are surf schools in town, but they hit the beach breaks, good opportunity to learn
When Raglan’s points are working a full and capable crew are on it, you would need to able to be up for that! So schools it is!

There are heaps of surf spots, some are on private land, tread carefully there.
The east coast north island has quite a few coastal bar breaks and even a dig yourself spa beach where you dig into the sand have bubbling hot water coming into the hole you’ve dug, and bring to,temperature by letting some sea,water in. Unsurprisingly called Hot water beach!
The west coast north Island gets the westerly swells that pass under and away from Australia. The far north can benefit from Fiji and mid pacific cyclone swell.
You could head to,the west far north and look for a really long series of left point breaks.

South Island west coast is like the west coast around Washington State and North Oregon , cold split by fjords and hammered by full,ocean west swells, surf there but often only by boat.
East coast South Island bays of bounty, but cold water but some nice sheltered nooks .

You will notice that I haven’t named names, respect is very much rewarded in NZed, Canadians are more respected than travelers from the US!
All in all great hospitality and lots to,see and do!

Well i’ve booked my trip to NZ..had a few beers and gave my credit card to my best friends wife! I’ll be there early Dec..and was planning a Raglan school.

Should be fun!

Birddog193 wrote:Well i’ve booked my trip to NZ..had a few beers and gave my credit card to my best friends wife! I’ll be there early Dec..and was planning a Raglan school.

Should be fun!

Have a blast!! Hopefully this will be a start to great things for you- given the changes in your life, now is a great time to start surfing.

Birddog193 wrote:Well i’ve booked my trip to NZ..had a few beers and gave my credit card to my best friends wife! I’ll be there early Dec..and was planning a Raglan school.

Should be fun!

Sounds fun. Make sure you get some sun protection. The UV rays down under (ozone hole) are no joke.