Your Surf Guide to San Clemente Surf Destinations
Surfboard Rentals & Wetsuit Rentals Near Me
Top Wetsuit & Surfboard Rental Shop
San Clemente Wetsuit Rentals At T Street Surf Shop
Equipment Rental Agency Surfboard & Wetsuit Rentals
Lower Parking, Lot 820 S El Camino Real Suite L
A highly-rated shop offering wetsuits for all ages and skill levels.
Features: Provides local surf spot advice and can deliver gear directly to your location in San Clemente for a $10 fee.
Price: ~$10 h/r $20 for 3 hours, $25 for a full day, $30 Overnight $15
Location: 820 S El Camino Real Suite L. San Clemente, California
T Street is known for one thing — consistency. The entire West Coast from Jordan River to Cabo could be flat, and T Street, the central hub for San Clemente’s finest, would manage to cough up a wave or two that would make a surfer happy. There are a lot of things that help T Street break: sandbars, reefs, rocks and odd seaweed gardens all contribute to the wave’s quirky behavior. It’ll transform from San O’ to mini-Backdoor in the time it takes to do a bottom turn. Although the T Street fanatics have many different names for every hole in the reef, the break is typically divided into three spots: the Reef, Cropley’s and Beach House.On a strong S swell, lefts hit the outside reef, break slowly, then peel over the inside rock shelf, bowling in a fast, down-the-line section. On winter swells, you get the opposite: long, workable rights off the reef ending in a collapsing shorebreak. Cropley’s is strictly a winter break. Named after the owner of a tasty hamburger stand that no longer exists, Cropley’s provides fast, zippy righthand peaks just north of the snack bar. Some swear it’s T Street’s best wave when it’s on — which isn’t very often. It takes just the right swell direction from the NW. South of the overpass, there’s a sandbar that old locals call the Beach House, named after a candy shack that once stood there. On medium-size swells, you can catch some wedgy lefts and rights that are often less crowded and more geared toward shortboards and bodyboards. T Street is a longtime haven for bodyboarders and San Clemente’s top pros
Very average but accessible beachbreak peaks. Often decent lefts off the pier, occasionally rights towards it.
Offering forgivably rippable walls going either way, Lower Trestles only closes out on the rarest of swells.
If there’s a sniff of south swell in the water, Lowers will welcome it with open arms. But if there’s a puff of south wind, Lowers will shut down quicker than 5:00pm on Wall Street.
Don’t expect to score Lowers uncrowded either (even on full moon nights). Watch any set roll through and you’ll see two (or more) surfers taking off in either direction, which often makes things frustrating for even the biggest name pro surfers. But if you manage to wrangle one to yourself, hold on because you’re in for one of the best rides Southern California can offer.
San Onofre State Beach is the Waikiki of the California Coastline — a beginner’s paradise of gentle breaking waves, long sandy beaches and an absence of ego. Today, it is one of the last few beaches that epitomizes the California surfing lifestyle. On any given summer weekend, you can find a whole tribe of surfers playing volleyball, talking story and swilling beer under grassy huts or sitting hunched over their longboards, waiting for the next lazy peak to float their way. Locals divide San Onofre into three main breaks: the Point, Old Man’s and Dogpatch. All work best on a strong south swell. If you must bring a shortboard to San O’, which, by the way, is the equivalent of bringing a longboard to Teahupoo, the Point would be your best bet. The Point is located directly in front of the northernmost parking spot. On a head-high southwest swell, there are some relatively fast lefts (fast in San Onofre terms) and even a section or two to hit if you get lucky. Rights are far more predominant and can be milked with a funboard or longboard. During winter, the Point often shuts down. With a 15-minute paddle to the south of Point, you’ll find yourself in the surfing world’s equivalent to the movie Cocoon. Here at Old Man’s, geezers rule and grommets learn. The wave rolls off a padded reef some 200- to 400-yards offshore and is mushier than a bowl of cream of wheat. A longboard that’d float Shaquille O’Neal is the weapon of choice and surfing etiquette does not apply. In fact, it’s not uncommon to see 10 people on a wave during the summer, nor is it rare to see lawn chairs and dogs brought on board. Just south of Old Man’s is Dogpatch. It’s ideal for beginners if the swell is up and they cannot make the paddle out to Old Man’s. On a high tide, Dogpatch breaks in slow motion and is second to Doheny as Orange County’s easiest wave to learn on. All of San Onofre’s waves are typically indecisive about breaking. If you understand this point, you’ll be well ahead of the game. Waves here like to crest, back off, crest, back off, crest, back off and then finally break. Trying to find your “one last wave” of the day can be a good trial in anger management. But if you find yourself ready to spout, you’ve missed the point. San O’ is there to remind us that in this crowded world, there’s still a spot where we can all ride together with smiles on our faces.
If you aren’t aware of what existed before it, Doheny is an ideal beginner’s wave. Swells slip past the swell-choking jetty, break softly over a bed of cobblestones and form into slow shoulders. A few hundred yards southeast, by the San Juan Creek, there’s a sandbar and reef that break better on stronger swells. If you can withstand the sky-high fecal counts, it’s these types of bars that’ll quench the thirst. Those days are all too rare, though, so Doheny, if anything, will serve as great place to introduce your child to his/her first wave.
Surfboard Rentals & Wetsuit Rentals Near Me