5. SURF
COLD WATERS IN NORTHERN OREGON
Warm-water surf is so cliché. Find pleasure in pain on the Oregon coast.
Surfing in Oregon is a secret joy, but it is also an absurd, body-numbing endeavor. Here you will whimper in your wetsuit, but you will also find transcendence. This isn’t an easy sporting exercise; it is something else entirely.
Surfing in Oregon is a secret joy, but it is also an absurd, body-numbing endeavor. Here you will whimper in your wetsuit, but you will also find transcendence. This isn’t an easy sporting exercise; it is something else entirely.
YOU ARE HERE
About 90 miles from Portland, Short Sand Beach is part of Oswald West State Park. While in the area, stay at Cannon Beach, a charming weekend getaway just 10 miles north of Short Sand that’s popular with Portlanders.
©GERRY REYNOLDS / DANITA DELIMONT / PICTUREDESK.COM
Less than two hours northwest of Portland is Short Sand Beach, an idyllic spot to challenge your fear of the cold. From the parking lot off U.S. Highway 101, crews of Portlanders lead your way down a damp, squishy trail through a grove of Douglas firs.
The atmosphere feels dark and prehistoric, and your arrival at Short Sand Beach offers a happy reprieve. This quarter-mile-long cove tempers wind, protects beachgoers and serves up left- and right-handed waves along its outer edge—all with several peaks in between.
That said, surf in Oregon is not guaranteed, and this won’t be the spot to bring your foam board and try out surfing for the first time. The coast is beyond indifferent, and swell size can go from small to pushing 10 to 15 feet depending on the time of year.
But this is all part of the challenge. Overcoming the malfunctioning weather is half the battle, and when you get your chance, the chilling waters dare you to enter. Take the dare. The shock of the water will transform you into a primordial and triumphant beast. In return, the coast screams a simple truth: that life is about living, even when it’s pouring down rain. —D.W.
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