Hangin' Ten In Surf City

February 13, 2014

Realizing today that after almost two months in Southern California we hadn't been to the beach once, we saddled up the bikes on the Jeep and headed for Huntington Beach, the surfing mecca made popular in the old Jan and Dean song "Surf City." Although ostensibly to "get some fresh air" says Mary Ellen, her real motive was to get another cold lobster salad sandwich and a Margarita at one of her favorite outdoor cafes, Longboards, on the town's main drag.

Herself explaining how to order food from a menu

Sure baby...

Even in the slow season it's still mobbed so we were fortunate enough to get a parking spot directly across the street.

How's that for a lucky spot?

It was a perfect, sunny day with the temperature around 70. I honestly do feel a little guilty publishing these pictures because I know what everyone back in New Jersey is suffering through right now. Mary Ellen even admitted that she's feeling a little deprived missing all the snow; I'm sure everyone up there who is swallowing Advil by the handful right now to ease the aches and pains of snow shoveling will be greatly comforted by that.

After enjoying a few drafts with my Reuben and pasta salad (I'm just going total Cali), we unloaded the bikes and walked them down a block and a half to the beach. Huntington Beach has, besides their famous pier, an eight mile walking/biking/running/roller-blading course that is as straight as it is flat and which stretches four miles on either side of the pier. We started out to the south...

The Huntington Beach Pier

Pulling away...

Even further now, trying to lose me...

A few years ago we bought a matched pair of black beach cruisers, the ultimate seasoned citizen exercise machine. With the exception of a few rides at Thompson Park in Lincroft, they sat dormant in our garage until we finally pulled them out for our trip. We've used them more in the last month than we have in the last three years and although I wish I had something a bit more flexible in terms of where we can take them, it was a blast riding (seemingly) on a beach. Mary Ellen is in better shape than I am (EVERYONE is in better shape than I am!) but even still, we can only manage about a half hour before thinking about calling it quits. I was a little nervous that I'd look ludicrous trying to ride a bike at my age and size but my son Brian was a great comfort: "Don't worry pop - you'll look like one of those circus bears riding that tiny little bike they put them on."

Those are some industrial strength tires

Looking back to the pier from our farthest point south

Between the Margarita, the sun and the exercise, Mary Ellen got dehydrated so we stopped for a good-sized bottle of cold water (which she took down in almost one gulp) locked up the bikes and headed out for a stroll on the pier.

On either side of the pier entrance are plazas where the mellow-types hang out, looking at the ocean, reading, sleeping, etc.

Next to the base of the pier and in fact, along the length of the beach path are various restaurants and snack bars serving us sun n' fun types.

Huntington Pier is beautifully maintained (as everything seems to be in California) and along its length are a few shops selling "beachy" type accessories, t-shirts, kites, etc. Further out there is a bait and tackle shop for the fishermen; you can even rent a rod and reel to try your luck. I presume that someday I'll be one of the old guys with a rod stuck in a holder on the rail, asleep on my folding chair living La Vida Fishy but until then I'm just not into the pier fishing scene. But that's just me - there are dozens of theses piers up and down the California coast and someone even published a book giving the locations and details of each one, what bait to use, what you can expect to catch, etc. And of course, they don't call it Surf City for nothing:

Shark baits waiting for the perfect wave

Hangin' Ten

I'm beginning to understand how people can come out here and be enamored of the whole Southern California surfing, beach-going, avocado eating, no hassles lifestyle. Last night we watched Annie Hall for the first time in years and the great struggle of whether to live in California versus the New York metro area was played out by Annie and Alvie Singer. I think that California is great for the young single guy or girl to experience for a while but even the people I know who have made this their home still occasionally pine for the energy and frenetic pace of our crazy home base. But the whole California thing is not for us, ahem, more experienced types. Several of the places along the bike path rent surfboards and give lessons and one had a sign advertising that "We'll Have You Standing Up During Your First Lesson!" I had this sudden fantasy of challenging their bravado by taking my first surfing lesson but was dissuaded by the thought of how many knee surgeries I'd need to "stand up" after that!

Looking back to town from the end of the pier

Scenes from the pier fishing sub-culture

Of course we were both totally "wiped out" by our fresh air adventure; I don't even remember my head hitting the pillow after we got home. But my lesson learned for today is that even though it takes a lot of will power to overcome the inertia and it often is a royal pain in the a** to hook up the bikes to the rack, drive all the way down there, find a parking spot, unload them and then reverse the entire process before going home, it is definitely worth it. Seeing the pelicans diving into the ocean, having a great meal in a sidewalk cafe, riding bikes with Mary Ellen, smelling the salt air, watching the surfers, taking a lot of pictures...that's living, not just sitting around waiting to die. So despite all of our self-inflicted problems of the last three months, today was enough to convince me that it is all worth it. Happy Valentine's Day everyone!