In my second life, I’m definitely a surfer. In fact, I think I might have been had my college path not brought me up to the University of Washington. My second choice was San Diego State. I spent my whole life visiting San Diego (a popular destination for Arizonans thanks to the quick drive and escape from the heat) and used to long to be able to surf like the surfers I saw while standing on the Pacific Beach Pier. I did, however, think I was a pretty good boogie-boarder and at one point even attempted a little surfing while I was in high school. David and I tried to better our surf skills while on a 2 week vacation to Nicaragua several years ago. While we definitely did improve, surfing is NOT like riding a bike when you’re a beginner. Your muscles tire easily, the paddling is super intense, and the feeling of the waves is forever changing. On my bucket list this year was to at least attempt to get better at surfing. Turns out that Washington is in fact, a great place to surf! Cold? Yes. Rugged? You bet! But I was up for the challenge.
We have a few wonderful snowboard/ski buddies who just so happened to have gotten really into surfing. Like the same amount of dedication that we put into snowboarding. If I didn’t have a wedding every weekend I can’t say I wouldn’t be doing the same. But alas, here I was with one open weekend ready to tackle the surf. Heck, we even bought our own wetsuits (thanks Evo!) and booties. (Turns out wearing a previously peed-in wetsuit isn’t the most pleasant thing in the world.) We made the four hour trek out to the quaint little town of La Push, checked into our super cute cabin, and got ready to surf!
The weekend was filled with lots of paddling, eating amazing food thanks to Chef Liz, coffee – lots of coffee, more paddling, getting dominated by waves, standing up a few times, did I mention paddling?, gorgeous sunsets, more wave domination, a little bit of sleeping to the sound of the waves, fireworks, long walks along the surf, and oh yah, paddling. Needless to say, my shoulders were dead by the weekend!
Oh yes, and I forgot to mention – our little guy Banks just loved the beach! He spent time hanging out in a portable tent, playing with toys. I also loved my morning coffee walks with him, watching the waves and getting properly caffinated for the day’s adventures. I think surfing might just be a baby-friendly activity afterall! All in all, it was a fantastic weekend spent with friends, loving life, soaking in the great beauty of the Pacific Northwest, and of course, getting better at surfing! Can’t wait until the next trip 🙂
