Trestles

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This article is about the surf spots. For the table, see trestle table. For the type of bridge, see trestle.

Trestles is a collection of surf spots at San Onofre State Beach in San Diego County, California. The waves typically known as part of Trestles include Uppers, Lowers, Old Man's, Churches, and Cotton's.

Lower Trestles is the standout wave of the group, considered by surfers to be one of the most high performance waves in the world. There is an ASP World Tour competition held at this break every year, as well as the NSSA Nationals. Uppers is a spot just north of Lowers. Although Uppers is less consistent, it has the potential to be a high quality wave with very long rides. North of Uppers is Cotton's. It is a bowly and fickle spot, best on south swells that produce long lefts.

1 Trestles from a Surfer's Perspective
2 Access
3 Crowds
4 Toll road controversy
5 Panhe
6 See also
7 References
8 External links

[edit] Trestles from a Surfer's Perspective

The Trestles Surf area is easily the most consistent surf area in San Diego and Orange counties. It is exposed to a whole range of swell directions, it has rights, lefts, points, reefs, sandbars. There are no houses on the beach, which means it has a little peace and quiet (except for the occasional train going by), and no super-rich property owners having your car towed. You even get a lovely nature walk when you head down the trail to get to the waves.

Trestles is located along the tip of San Mateo Point, which is just south of the City of San Clemente, CA and north of Basilone Rd. It is part of San Onofre State Beach, which in turn used to be a parcel of the Camp Pendleton Marine Base. Trestles gets its name from a series of railroad trestles that span the small pond (lagoon/marsh or whatever they are calling it now) that pools at the end of San Mateo creek.

There are actually several waves in the Trestles area. Each one works better on slightly different mix of swell angles, periods, and sizes. Sand flow and tides also play a big role in the wave quality at each spot.

Besides the plethora of wave selection at Trestles probably its most important feature is its swell window. Trestles is exposed to a large range of swells. It can take in energy from the SE all the way up through the NW but the key component is that it has an open S-SW swell window. S-SW energy, thanks to the very active and large Southern Ocean, is a pretty consistent swell source throughout the year. Other Southern California surf areas can usually pick up some of the Southern Hemi swell but there are usually some limiting factors, (like blockage from headlands or nearshore islands). Not Trestles…it is pretty much wide open until the swell starts to go past the 220-degree mark.

[edit] Access

Getting to trestles can be a bit of a trek. You have a few options, some of which are better than others depending on things like time constraints and crowds.

1. You can park up around Cristianitos Road and walk down the trail. There is a public parking lot near Carl’s Jr. (and a seriously huge American Flag) along with public parking along parts of the street. You basically get out your gear (it is almost better to deck change at the beach) and hoof it down the trail to the beach. Some people bring bikes with racks (or skateboards) to save some time.

2. You can park at San Onofre State Beach. Head into the park like you are heading to Old Man’s. Park. Then hoof it up the beach to Trestles. It is a long walk but you don’t have to manage a large hill, and as a bonus you pass Church (another surf spot) and can see how it is.

3. You can have someone drop you off at the trailhead right off of Basilone Road freeway exit. Since there is no parking along the road in this area it sort of requires a team effort and a bike. Have your driver drop you off, you carry their boards. Then they go park back at Cristianitos and bike it down the trail. It is a good way to actually get some waves if you are time strapped.

[edit] Crowds

Because Trestles is such a consistent and “quality” wave area it can attract a pretty large crowd. Expect to see nearly wall-to-wall fiberglass when we get a decent SW swell on the weekend. Even weekdays can get pretty frantic during the mornings. Lowers in particular can be brutal…lots of sponsored riders, cameras, and other nonsense when there is a good sized SW swell in the water.

You do see some maneuvering room if we get a solid combo swell mix…it sort of shifts the peaks around at times letting guys on the edges pick off a few more waves. It also improves the quality at the other breaks in the area which can also help to bleed off some of the pack.

[edit] Toll road controversy

Further information: California State Route 241#Future aspirations

On February 7, 2008 California Coastal Commission voted 8-2 to deny a proposed toll road (241 Tollroad Extension) that would have cut across San Onofre State Beach and a habitat reserve in Orange County. The panel decided that certain aspects of the project failed to meet California's coastal regulations, and their vote prohibited transportation officials from creating the first tollway to run through a California state park.^[1] The advocacy group Save Trestles was a major force in opposition to the proposed toll road.^[2] According to the San Diego Union Tribune, the turnout at the February 7 hearing "shattered" previous attendance records.^[3]

This southern California state park contains seven archaeological sites, including a Juaneño Indian village. Seven threatened or endangered species live within the park, and it protects significant portions of San Mateo Creek, one of the last relatively unspoiled watersheds in Southern California.

In establishing the state park at San Onofre, Reagan said, one of "the greatest legacies we can leave to future generations is the heritage of our land… But unless we can preserve and protect the unspoiled areas which God has given us, we will have nothing to leave them."

More than 88% of campers at the Beach’s San Mateo campground reside in California, and over 93% of these California campers reside in the 8 counties with the greatest need for green space. San Onofre is also located in San Diego County.

[edit] Panhe

Panhe bears a special meaning in Acjachemen -- as well as non-Indian -- life, culture, and history. Panhe is an ancient Acjachemen village that is over 8,000 years old and a current sacred site, ceremonial site, cultural site, and burial site for the Acjachemen people. Many Acjachemen people trace their lineage back to Panhe. Panhe is the site of the first baptism in California, and the first close contact between Spanish explorers, Catholic missionaries, and the Acjachemen people in 1769. The Acjachemen people built the mission at San Juan Capistrano. The advocacy group Save Panhe and San Onofre State Beach contends that Panhe is important not only the Acjachemen people but to all Californians and Americans.^[4]