by Matthew Jaffe, Sunset senior writer
Just in time for Sunset’s June issue and its article celebrating the glories of California’s state parks, we received the news that a budget proposal that would have led to the closure of 48 parks and service cuts at 16 beaches has been rescinded.
Times are tough and good budget news is certainly hard to come by. Still when word came in January of the proposed closures, it was hard to imagine the shuttering of such classic state parks as Henry W. Coe and Montana de Oro— especially in a time when environmental awareness has never been higher and the need for places where the public can be active and reconnect nature has never been greater.
So this latest bit of park news is something to celebrate. But other pressures on state parks remain and nowhere more so than at San Onofre State Beach in Orange County, home to the world famous surf spot, Trestles. A proposed toll road would run through property currently used as parkland. After a raucous hearing attended by several thousand people in February, the California Coastal Commission voted down the plan, a decision that is expected to be appealed.
Toll road proponents say the extension would help alleviate traffic pressures in the county and tout the environmental sensitivity of its design. Opponents say that it would destroy park acreage and potentially threaten the series of breaks at Trestles.
Along with Surfrider Beach at Malibu, Trestles is perhaps the most sacred surf spot in Southern California. In his new book All For a Few Perfect Waves: The Audacious Life and Legend of Rebel Surfer Miki Dora, author David Rensin quotes Dorian (Doc) Paskowitz (he and his family are the subject of the new documentary Surfwise) about the uniqueness of Trestles:
“San Onofre is the greatest wave of its kind in the continental United States.”
‘Nuff said. A couple weeks ago I went out to Trestles to catch a professional surfing event at Lowers, one of its five main breaks. Coming here is certainly a departure from the experience of visiting most Southern California beaches— despite its proximity not only to Interstate 5 but a nuclear power plant.
You walk in from a remote parking lot, hiking a path through beach scrub and across train tracks before reaching a beach less notable for its dramatic scenery than the perfection of its waves. And conditions were prime for the event, as the following overheard conversation between contestants would support:
Dude1: How was it?
Dude2: Good.
Dude1: How good?
Dude2: Good good.
And it was good: For those of us who flail more than surf, seeing the pros up close under ideal conditions, especially with the running narration of a PA announcer describing the action, offers a crash course in the nuances both of world class surfing and of Trestles itself.
Not that surfing hasn’t become a big business, but you won’t have a more relaxing experience at a sporting event than hanging out on the beach at a surf competition. If you want to catch an event at Trestles, check out the upcoming National Scholastic Surfing Association’s championships June 24-28. You’ll not only see future surfing stars, you’ll also witness some of the finest waves in the world.
