north county WPA Surf Art

WAVE ARCADE National Parks Series

north county Surf Spots & Beaches

Explore our original collection of surf art prints, capturing the vibe of your favorite waves and beaches.

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Surf Spots

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north county

Barney's

Encinitas, California.

$33

north county

Beacon's

Leucadia, California.

$33

north county

Boneyards

Encinitas, California.

$33

north county

Buccaneer Beach

Oceanside, California.

$33

north county Surf Stories

Explore the north county Coastline

Barney's

Barney's in Encinitas, California.

Nestled among the various setups between Cardiff and Swami's below the bluffs, there's usually some fun to be had here. Like many beaches in the area, there's something about the place that makes it feel like classic California.

Beacon's

Beacon's in Leucadia, California.

Another classic North County local favorite, Beacon's has a few different breaks to choose from - from clean peelers for spending some time on the nose to punchier inside sections. Take the winding bluffside trail down to the sand and leave your phone and watch far, far away.

Boneyards

Boneyards in Encinitas, California.

No quick and easy access here, which makes me wonder why this place is so popular with standup paddleboards... Boneyards can feel like an exploration to a lost time right smack dab in the middle of the Encinitas classics like Swami's and D-Street.

Buccaneer Beach

Buccaneer Beach in Oceanside, California.

Come for the breakfast burritos, stay for some fun, punchy waves every once in a while. And if the waves aren't great, there's always the burritos.

Cardiff Reef

Cardiff Reef in Cardiff, California.

Maybe on of the most consistent breaks in North County, it's hard not to take a peek no matter which way you're driving on the 101 or for an even better bird's eye view, up on San Elijo. Cardiff Reef is a classic go-to spot no matter the tide, swell, or season.

D Street

D Street in Encinitas, California.

Another consistent, classic North County spot. On its best days, D Street is a great place for barrel hunting or board breaking. Fun with all sorts of equipment or just your body and some fins.

Del Mar Rivermouth

Del Mar Rivermouth in Del Mar, California.

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north county

Cardiff Reef

Cardiff, California.

$33

Whether you like to play volleyball, run around with your dog, or surf, the Del Mar Rivermouth attracts a wide variety of beach-goers. Like other off-leash dog-friendly beaches, it's always a nice feeling to be greeted by a happy mutt when you come in from the water - it's as close as the average surfer is going to get to coming in from a killer WSL heat on the North Shore.

George's

George's in Cardiff, California.

Another great place to do some barrel hunting. The stretch of shifty beachbreak and sandbars between Seaside Reef and Cardiff Reef offers some less crowded, but less predictable options than its neighbors to the north and south.

Grandview

Grandview in Leucadia, California

Another North County classic, Grandview is a go-to local spot all year long. It's another great place to spend a day and escape the real world that exists just up the bluff. Depending on the conditions, Grandview can provide a pretty wide variety of waves for all types of surfers and all types of surfboards.

Lowers

Lower Trestles in San Diego County, California.

Lower Trestles is one of the best, most crowded waves in the state for good reason. Like many breaks around San Onofre, the drive nor the hike to the beach is enough to keep people away. Hard to beat the quality of the waves and the environment.

Moonlight Beach

Moonlight Beach in Encinitas, California.

Another classic North County beach, Moonlight has a little something for everyone - whether you want to surf, swim, play volleyball, or let you kid loose on the playground. The annual Woody Car show and Switchfoot Bro-Am are always fun events too.

Oceanside Pier

Oceanside Pier in Oceanside, California.

Both the North and South sides of the pier offer some fun waves. The old wooden pier itself has a rough history - it was first built in 1888, only to be destroyed by storms in the winter of 1890. It was rebuilt in 1893, and then destroyed 4 more times by storms. The most recent version of the pier was finished in 1987. In 2024, a fire destroyed the classic blue building towards the end of the pier.

Pipes

Pipes in Encinitas, California.

Yet another North County classic planted in the middle of Cardiff Reef to the south and Swami's to the north. Pipes is a consistent and fun wave that has something to offer year-round. The rocky reef below changes the wave depending on the tide, and is often perfect for a longboard, but serves up opportunities for a wide variety of tastes and equipment depending on the day. You can't really go wrong with any of the North County beaches nestled below the long stretch of coastal bluffs between Cardiff Reef and Ponto.

Ponto

Ponto in Carlsbad, California.

The jetties at Ponto and the surround beach break are another North County classic. Like many San Diego set ups, it's a place where you can go shoulder-to-shoulder for the best, most consistent waves or break from the pack to find decent enough waves of your own.

Seaside Reef

Seaside Reef in Cardiff, California.

Seaside Reef is a cool spot. What makes it even cooler is that you can come here to watch one of the most stylish surfers out there surf it. Like most coastal development, I understand the addition of the big parking lot changed the waves and how the sand moves and get distributed, but maybe the coastal dune project along the stretch of the 101 that leads you there can help things out.

Stonesteps

Stonesteps in Leucadia, California.

Stonesteps is a nice little local spot nestled in the middle of Neptune. A great place to find some waves to yourself.

Swami's

Swami's in Encinitas, California.

Swami's is another iconic North County San Diego spot where you can go to find some big right-hand barrels along with self realization. It's also the first spot featured in the WAVE ARCADE National Parks Surf Series.

Tabletops

Tabletops in Solana Beach, California.

Tabletops sits right on the other side of the bluff from Seaside Reef to the north. On a low tide with crystal clear water, gliding over the big flat sections of the rock reef can feel like you're levitating.

Tamarack

Tamarack in Carlsbad, California.

Plenty of fun waves to be found along the beach at Tamarack as the sandbars shift around. Or, walking or sitting along the bluffside trail atop the beach offers some of the best views in the county.

Turnarounds

Turnarounds in Carlsbad, California

After the short break at Ponto and the mouth of the Batiquitos Lagoon, the coastal bluffs pick back up again and continue from Carlsbad all the way to Agua Hediona. Turnarounds sits towards the end of this stretch. It offers up a mix of waves that the adventuring surfer can have to themselves for a while. The lack of development on the coastal side of the highway make for some spectacular views - where if you squint just right you might imagine a time long before we all got here.

Warm Water Jetties

Warm Water Jetties in Carlsbad, California

Since the retirement and demolition of the Encina Power Station and it's big tower, I'm not sure the water at Warm Water Jetties is any warmer than the surrounding areas anymore. Nonetheless, the jetties on either side of the lagoon inlet setup some good waves.