Surf Day At San Onofre: Go Back In Time, The Way It Used To Be

One of the most classic Southern California things you can do is spend a day surfing and camping out at San Onofre, a beach just south of the famous surf break Trestles near San Clemente California.

It’s here, at the only surf break we can drive right up to, that we celebrate birthdays, weddings, or just the occasion of sunshine, friendship, off shore winds, and swell. 

Packing food, firewood, coffee, umbrellas, our Surf-fur gear (because we all have one?), and lots of fun games, we all pitch in with bringing everything we need for the weekend. Because the state park only allows in a certain number of vehicles, we are in line by 5:30am to ensure we get in and can park up together. The beach has bathrooms/outdoor showers which are well maintained and relatively clean – ideal for a day of salt, sand, and campfires. It’s important to note that you cannot actually camp at the beach but have to reserve ahead of time at San Mateo Campground or Trails Campsite.

For me, spending a day at San O feels like stepping back in time, a time where cell phones weren’t a thing, bell bottoms were the common pant cut, people wore flower crowns, rock and roll crackled out of the radio, and the only pictures captured were film. The waves are long, peeling, and crowded but, the OG surf community still tries to regulate the crowds. Little kids run around barefoot and dirty. With very little reception on this beach, you don’t see people on their devices… everyone seems present, willing to soak in the beauty of the life and history of this beautiful and iconic Southern Californian treasure. People come to this beach to enjoy it because they have to wait so long to get a spot, they have nothing else that needs to be done once they park up except surf, eat, lounge, read a book, walk the beach, collect shells, and enjoy the people they parked up next to.

So grab your Surf-fur, cooler, sunscreen (our favorite TRUE reef-safe brands are Stream2Sea and Surf Dirt), your cozy Surf-fur, snacks, ice-cold June Shine, favorite books (we recommend The Wave or the classic Morning Glass), Spikeball or your favorite card game, and a comfy beach chair and get ready to experience the best of our California dream.