The Ultimate Guide to Surfing in Ventura

Malibu

Malibu is the land of the right-hand point break – First Point is one of the best in the US for loggers, with some performance waves on the outside to boot. The letdown is the crowds. But you can find some good sweet spots in the area too, like County Line and Staircase. They still have the quality waves of Malibu but are never as busy. Summer and fall are the best times to surf here.

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Ormond Beach

A high-tide favorite on summer S swells, Ormond Beach can get glassy on good June days. It’s all peaky beach break with loads of room to spread out, so don’t fear the locals.

Port Hueneme

Regular and reliable Port Hueneme isn’t the most epic of the surfing in Ventura but it works almost any season, picking up summer groundswells and winter storm swells from the SW and the NW alike. It’s long and sandy with a sand bottom, not to mention far enough away from the heart of the town to get any major crowd issues. Time it for high tide. Low is too dumpy.

Silver Strand

The south end of Oxnard Beach starts the surfing in Ventura strong with the trio of breaks at Silver Strand. The Jetty is a right that comes into the bay on S and W swells. It’s okay but can’t beat The Bowl. That’s a sandbar which always churns out pretty nice barrels when it’s on, but sadly suffers from bad-attitude localism. La Jenelle is the breakwater at the south end of the jetty that loves wrap-around SW swells in the summer. The best swells are directly W and an offshore wind in Fall can really up the quality at Silver Strand.

Ventura Harbor Jetty

Known locally as, simply, the New Jetty, the Ventura Harbor Jetty creates a downright epic A-frame peak just to the south of the main breakwater. SW swells and a NE wind will combine from May onwards to give the best of the action, but there’s an infamous local crowd that rarely let travelers get far. Dodge that by going real early. The right is the best, and the left is sometimes a deathwish, throwing you out onto the rocks by the jetty itself.

C Street

Some say C Street is the most epic right in the whole of California. There’s something to be said for that, especially if you’re the sort who seeks the pocket and goes with the flow. The wave here forms off a south-facing jetty, so any westerly swells will kick straight in and peel beautifully into the bay for hundreds of feet. The take off zone is right on the point. There, the wave has a touch of steepness but soon fattens into something cruisy with a neat face for turning on. Good for short boarders but uber-fun with an egg or a minimal.

Emma Wood State Beach

There are a couple of breaks on offer at this long beach to the north of C Street. The Ventura Overhead is the best of the bunch. It’s a reef that sits about 150 yards from the shoreline. The long paddle out is rewarded with very high-quality A-frame wedges, but keep the buoys on the forecast because it’s big swells only. Further inside the bay at Emma Wood State Beach is the spot known as Mushpots. That’s a cracking beginner wave that reminds us a lot of a camel Canggu – short, small and crumbly.

Solimar

Reef lovers are sure to love the surfing in Ventura, mainly because of this quality break under the Pacific Coast Highway. It has an uncanny ability to stay glassy throughout the whole year, and can hold up to 8 foot of strong swell. The take off zones offer a challenge on bigger days but it’s a true intermediate’s wave if you ask us, especially on fall and summer days when the rights on the inside section of the reef come alive.

Pitas Point

Pitas Point is a shoulder machine on strong W swells. Among the five-star surfing in Ventura, it’s true California quality. You do have to pick the right starting zone. Outsides is a harder performance wave that’s a doozy for short boarders who love to rip. Insides is a mellow mushburger that’s perfect for the Cali loggers. Holds amazingly up to 12 foot.

Faria Beach

Crumbly, forgiving waves carry on over the cobblestones and sand north of epic Pitas Point. They’re good for beginners chasing the less-busy surfing in Ventura, but also fun ankle burners when the tide’s on the push. Anything larger than 4 foot is in danger of becoming pure slop.

Hobson County Park

A stretch of waves that are only mediocre because they are in Ventura. Anywhere else and they’d be the main action. The north part of the beach can cook up long rights. The middle sometimes gets good A-frames with better lifts off the peak. Summer south swells work best. The main thing we like is that there’s usually a wave to suit multiple levels going on at Hobson County Park.

Mussel Shoals

Mussel Shoals is also known locally as Little Rincon, which should be a clue as to just how awesome it is. Big winter swells with an element of west in the compass can really get it cooking. They’ll wrap into the bay after crashing into the headland to give sectiony rights that often get hollow and glassy. It’s a fast wave which won’t mind dumping you out on the rocks at the end, so be careful to pull out when it’s right.

La Conchita

With the most famous spot for surfing in Ventura (Rincon Point) within eyeshot, don’t expect to be along at La Conchita beach. It’s decent stuff, all formed off the sandbanks. Summer swells from the south reign supreme and usually bring spells of glassy conditions. At its best around 5 foot.

Rincon

The legend of Rincon won’t disappoint. Like the mirror opposite of Ulu’s, this one cooks up sets of flawless rights that roll into the bay off a single point. They’re great on any swells above 3 foot but really go when it’s westerly and 8-10 foot. That cues the hollowness, offering pits and barrels galore. There’s an inside section that’s usually for the longboarders but can also link up to the starting point to offer uber-long rides. That’s not usually the case. Usually the wave is sectioned into two or three take off points. Always busy.

Carpinteria

Carpinteria heralds the beginning of the Santa Barbara surf territory with a spot called Tar Pits. It’s a whole bay filled with peaky A-frames that’s really only surfable on a mid tide. High tide has rips crossing the bay that make it hell to stay in position and the backwash will play havoc with the shape of the sets. Low tide is too shallow and can be dangerous. Westerly swells work well here, which means fall usually tops the lot.

Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara is famed as another of California’s surf hubs. Only, the whole town sits in a really annoying swell shadow that turns off the taps all summer long. That leaves winter to work its magic, which it does by activating some of the finest right-hand points (El Capitan among them) in this part of the Golden State. Oh, and it’s a simply GORGEOUS town with loads of Spanish history.

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Summer (June-August)

Glassy days are plentiful on the Ventura surf breaks past June. That’s when the southerly swell channels properly kick into action and you get neat sets with wide periods rolling up to Silver Strand and C-Street. The lack of wind helps matters. The crowds don’t – you’ll hardly ever be alone in the water here.

Fall (September-October)

Fall is just the same as summer – AKA epic. However, there are moments when surfing in Ventura is even better past September. The reason? Mainly it’s down to the regular offshore winds that flow in from the east by morning. Get up early to catch them, and match it with a W swell to see Rincon firing at its best. Lovely stuff.

Winter (December-February)

Winter brings more of an element of north-west swell into the mix for Ventura. That’s okay, but not ideal. Many of the breaks will suffer. Thankfully Rincon isn’t one of em’, though you will need to deal with sections closing out as you try to string the barrel with the shoulder there. Cold water is the enemy, so pack your 4/3 at least!

Spring (March-May)

Another shoulder season but with lots of rain. Sadly, that can up the pollution in the water around key spots in Ventura, so it’s not the best time to paddle out. Some days will be epic but you can never see them coming. Better to hold off until June to plan that epic road trip surfing in Ventura if you ask us!

Ventura Surf Shop

Behind a sticker-covered doorway on the 101, Ventura Surf Shop offers all sorts of gear. The board rack is particularly excellent, with vintage models in tie dye stacked next to the latest Rusty carver.

Wave Front Surf Shop

With the waves at the south end of Emma Wood State Beach still in earshot, the Wave Front Surf Shop served up a hefty medley of boards both long and short. It’s a pretty cavernous, warehouse-style place with everything from loggers to shorties and fins aplenty.

Bagelicious Café Ventura

Okay, so it’s a little back inland from the best surfing in Ventura, but beeeeejeeezus the bagels here are stunning. There’s so much variety, from caper-topped cream cheese to radish on smoked salmon, it’s a hella’ range of lovely breads. Maybe you can tell but we’re bagel fanatics?

Harbor Cove Cafe

Cruising the 101 to find the breaks of Oxnard State Beach Park? Don’t miss a pull-in brunch at the Harbor Cove Cafe. It’s bathed in the breezes of the Pacific, offering a menu of toasties, omlettes, seafood fries, and other West Coast staples. The view of the boats is also pretty darn nice.