Santa Cruz 4

Opening up in this oceanside oasis of surf, sand, suds and a new square

BY ELLIOTT ALMOND

It happens every spring. Colorful Tibetan prayer flags flutter deep in the forest to herald an awakening from the dreary winter rains that have pelted the Central Coast.

Once nature’s faucet shuts down in April, it’s game on in Santa Cruz, an outdoor enthusiast’s utopian fantasy.

The natural blessings of mountains and sea hold a special allure for hikers, kayakers, mountain bikers, skateboarders and surfers who helped immortalize the town’s laid-back lifestyle. Yet, it would be unfair to stamp this neck of the Monterey Bay as simply another Boulder, Colorado, or Jackson, Wyoming.

For all its rustic charm, Santa Cruz has a split personality. How else to explain the pandemonium of the Beach Boardwalk’s Giant Dipper rubbing against the solemnity of Land of the Medicine Buddha, the spiritual compound where prayer flags are strung to trees along sodden footpaths.

The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk offers a carnival atmosphere to the seacoast. Corn dogs and carousels on the edge of the sea. Buddha and acres of statuesque redwoods up above. The oscillating symbols sometimes make the artsy beach town seem a bit like a confused teenager.

Unsurprisingly, the bacon-thin strip of land between mountains and coast has been unable to curb encroaching Silicon Valley from busily reshaping the town. This decades-long uprooting was inevitable with ever-expanding San Jose only 30 miles “over the hill” and San Francisco just 90 minutes to the north.

Housing prices have soared with an invasion of tech-savvy hipsters who are as interested in cafes and culture as chasing the waves. A thriving organic food scene, trendy breweries and the scholarly air of a University of California campus lend Surf City an urbane sophistication.

The vibrancy from these changes more than outweigh what has been lost. It may take patience to ignore the maddening Highway 1 traffic jams, but it’s not difficult to rekindle the old Santa Cruz sensibility.

I feel it every time I’m poking around my old haunt, even if just taking a sundown stroll along the cliffs at Pleasure Point.

It has been 45 years since I lived in a wood-frame water tower in Capitola-by-the-Sea. Our split-level adobe sat among the chicken roosts and backyard shacks where craftsmen shaved foam planks into seafaring chariots that we paddled into the ocean.

My friend Don Carroll managed the old Haut Surf Shop on 41st Avenue, a block from the popular wave called The Hook. We surfed the break almost every evening after closing time and I still love

At checking out the waves there. But instead of arriving with a surfboard tucked under an arm, I might show up licking a to-die-for homemade cone from Penny Ice Creamery up the street.

Even with cold water, fog-shrouded summers and the threat of great white sharks, Santa Cruz is still the major surfing center that was born in 1885 when three Hawaiian princes first rode the combers at the San Lorenzo River mouth.

It’s a spectacle when massive swells smack into the crumbly bluffs at Steamer Lane where the historic lighthouse is perched and crowds gather along the fencedoff cliffs to watch water acrobats perform hypnotic movements on the waves.

However, Santa Cruz’s lure no longer ends at the sea. Years ago, the sleepy town was shut down by nightfall except for the old-timey dive bars that we avoided. But now, after a full day of outdoor adventuring, coastal denizens convene in one of the area’s 16 breweries serving hand-crafted beer. Locals spill into the covered courtyard on weekend evenings at Beer Thirty Bottle Shop and Pour House in downtown Soquel, discussing the day’s thrill rides or neighborhood gossip.

They sound content. Development hasn’t stolen the old vibe. It hasn’t trespassed on the leafy green fields of Brussels sprouts just north of town or subverted the solitude at Forest of Nisene Marks in Aptos.

Remarkably, the spit and polish of progress has cleaned up the grime without destroying Santa Cruz’s natural jewels.

CATCH A WAVE

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The Lane is the reason Santa Cruz landed at No. 2 this year on Surfer Magazine’s Best Surf Towns in America list: It is perhaps the most consistent wave on the West Coast. Surfers often jump off the cliffs into the roiling surf below where thick, green swells wrap around Lighthouse Point to form beautiful onrushing curls. The Lane has four distinct peaks from which to choose, but the one farthest north keeps pumping even in windy conditions because it’s buffered by the cliff. Beginners should stay away from this experts-only break. Take a tour of the Surf Museum inside the Lighthouse instead.

Pleasure Point is the center of surf activity on the east side of town, with right-breaking waves rumbling toward the bluffs on a good northwest or west swell. The legendary Jack O’Neill lived in a house above the break because the wetsuit pioneer loved the atmosphere here. Jay Moriarity of “Chasing Mavericks” fame made the Point his homegrown break. The best surfers ride the big ones at Sewer Peak, named for a one-time sewage outfall that used to spew nasty stuff over the rocky reef. What makes the breaks off Soquel Point so great is their diversity. Second Peak — the break south of the Point — is longboard heaven for the older set.

A surfer heads out to ride the waves at the popular surf break known as Steamer Lane in Santa Cruz.

Although the Hook is part of the long succession of Pleasure Point of waves, it has its own identity at the end of 41st Avenue. Alas, it deserves its own section. One of the best little waves on the Central Coast is located near a parking lot, has stairs down to the rocky beach and is a forgiving wave to catch even when big swells pound the coastline. Alas, there is a catch: The wave attracts a protective and vocal local crowd that has been unwelcoming to outsiders since the early 1970s. Those brave surfers who can endure the “localism” vibe say it’s worth it to enjoy glassy rides that can last for 25 yards or more.

DON’T MISS PLACES TO QUENCH A THIRST

Abbott Square

They bottle beers by hand at this Belgianinspired tap room located in a warehouse park in Capitola-by-the-Sea. Sante Adairius specializes in saison-style concoctions in a no-frills setting that attracts a sociable crowd who arrive just as a setting sun says adios to another day in paradise. Sante Adairius, which has a second location on Water Street in Santa Cruz, prefers to remain a local watering house. Those who like a burger with their beer need to go elsewhere as Adairius doesn’t offer food. Many of the brews are aged in wine barrels as owners Adair Paterno and Tim Clifford try to maintain what they describe as an “authentic” taste.

Details: 103 Kennedy Drive, Capitola; www.rusticales.com.

The Soquel artisan brewery offers 30 smallbatch regional beers on a rotating basis and more than 300 interesting bottles of beer in a refrigerated case. Beer Thirty was created as a gathering place with pingpong tables, dartboards and big-screen TVs tuned to sports events. The bar offers pricey snacks weekdays but has an upscale bar food menu Friday through Sunday in the beer garden, courtesy of neighboring Carpo’s Restaurant. The pan-roasted padron peppers or crispy green beans go hand in hand with the exotic craft brews. Patrons are welcome to bring their own food to eat on the long tables outdoors. They can bring their dogs too.

Details: 2504 S. Main St., Soquel; www.beerthirtysantacruz.com.

Above

Abbott Square recently opened to become the magnet for downtown dwellers, with six eclectic mini restaurants that resemble an indoor food-truck culture. The Square spills into the Santa Cruz Museum of Art & History to add to the city’s growing cosmopolitan feel. Start at Front and Cooper where the master mixologists create luminous cocktails (try the gintonic #3 with cassis and berries for $10). All Aboard’s oyster bar or Veg on the Edge’s West African-influenced dishes fill the stomach. There’s pizza with glutenfree options, a coffee bar and poke, too. For dessert, sample Milk and Wood’s handcrafted ice pops with assorted toppings ($5). The square offers public seating for free community events, such as art, music and yoga — this is Santa Cruz, after all.