That is a good question for the Eastside Thread. Plenty of even closer touring fun when it actually rains/snows in SoCal in some winters. In the lean years you pretty much need to get up to a Mammy to find any snow coverage.
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That is a good question for the Eastside Thread. Plenty of even closer touring fun when it actually rains/snows in SoCal in some winters. In the lean years you pretty much need to get up to a Mammy to find any snow coverage.
I didn't read the whole thread but I'll give you my take on it since I've thought about it a lot. If I decided to live in San Diego in the winter I would travel to SLC via plane. The airport here is so quick and easy and I think you could even make a financial case for it compared to Mammoth.
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I knew someone who worked PT at the SAN airport and had free flights. He'd fly to SLC once a week to go skiing. THAT's how you do it!Quote:
Originally Posted by SheRa
That sounds awesome. Season pass and a cheap room and you're set. Just ride the bus to the lift. I think it would be less stressful travel than the drives people make even from Denver to Summit or the bay area to Tahoe, let alone all the way to Mammoth from socal. And the skiing is awesome.Quote:
Originally Posted by Hott Butt Mud
And the winter surf is good quality. And the water isn't too cold 4/3 is good. And there's baja.
i live in Folsom, California.
Folsom is 80 minutes from Sugar Bowl, about the same to Kirkwood, a little farther to Squaw V. going roughly the speed limit. Similarly the whole South side of the Desolation Wilderness is within 80 minutes (BC Skiing).
Folsom is 127 miles from Bolinas, Ca. about 2 hours 15 minutes from Dillon Beach.
with modern wave and weather reporting it is easy to predict where and when to surf or ski.
the best part is that the cost of living in Folsom is way less than The City.
in terms of sight seeing, you can do OK in Sacramento, especially on the american river in the summer.
now - i have been to Biarritz. i think it is a better place IF I SPOKE FRENCH. now Dora wound up in Biarritz, he could have gone anywhere, what better recc can you get than him? it is 2 hours 15 minutes from Gourette.
verall 157.2 242.6 Food 114.2 116.4 Housing 261.4 514.5 Utilities 113 94.1 Transportation 112.5 110.3 Health 102.2 114 Miscellaneous 102.2 120.
summary - i am sticking with Folsom, California unless i can learn to speak French or i someday make it to New Zealand and like it better than here.
I will add one thing here that I don't think I said before. If you want to live in socal/norcal and do the 2-3 weekends a month in Tahoe/Mammoth you need to be able to afford a ski lease. They are typically 200-400 a month and allow you to go up whenever you want. If you don't have that it makes it very difficult to get 30-40 days in at a quality mountain. If you can afford a ski lease you can get your 30-40 days if you are willing to drive. For people unwilling to drive it will be tough to do the surf/ski lifestyle in coastal California.
Reading this thread makes me think I'm doing ok
I live in East County San Diego. Not your typical SoCal set up. I have nine acres and a view out my back yard of a 3300 foot granite face
I'm 25 minutes to the ocean and it does get very good at times
I own a boat and I'm 20 minutes to the bay or five minutes to the lake for wakeboarding
I'm 2 and a half hours from backcountry touring if it's a good rain year which is iffy at best
Reliable turns start at independence-big pine. Five hours away
SLC and any other resorts out of state are easy The Airport
I'm haven't been in years but there is also Mexico for surfing
For me, the highest quality combo was in San Diego, living within walking distance from the ocean. The opportunity for a short session or even a quick swim was sublime and I did it a lot. Having the opportunity to spend all day in the ocean was awesome. With friends, we'd charge up to the Sierra, baldy, etc. most weekends for snow. If we were really dirt bagging, we'd car camp, even midwinter. I was young and not bound to much responsibilities.
For me, there were compromises. I was sick a lot because of dirty San Diego water. To afford rent, I also lived in packed houses with lots of people, which was usually awesome and not necessarily a compromise.
For me, after living that lifestyle, living in the east bay was too far to regularly get the ocean fix and almost felt not worth it.
Yeah, that living in-between to access both within a reasonable drive doesn't work for me. I think you need to live at one place in order to access at a moments notice and then plan for the other one. My kid is going to UCSC next year, so I think we'll be actively looking for a place in norcal in the near future...since we are ready to move back west...I've been ready for years!Quote:
Originally Posted by Long duc dong
EC - Maine and NH both have quick access to the beach and the mtns...it's just they're both marginal at best!
I would have to agree. I would rather live by the beach and drive to the mountains for snow. Like I said, you can get a good number of snow days if you are willing to drive, but for surf things are so fickle that you need to be close. Besides, I would not want to drive 2 hours each time I wanted a session. I don't think living in Sacramento would work for me unless I pretty much gave up surfing, even though it would be nice to be that close to the mountains. Having said that the Mammoth drive does wear on me. I think I have only 1 or 2 weekends more, you get on the regular program of heading up most weekends but at a certain point, usually in May, I get sick of it.Quote:
Originally Posted by strawjack
We live in Santa Monica, CA and drive to Mammoth 3 weekends a month (with 3 kids 7 and under).
I should have nearly 50 days this winter by the time I'm done Memorial Day w/e. I have come around on Mammoth as we have super consistent snow conditions. We don't get the A+ or 10 out of 10 days that Utah / JH gets (too much wind), but we also have a ridiculously good wind buff (see previously mentioned wind), crazy long season (Nov to Memorial Day even last year w/little snow), and longer sustained pitch and little to no rain (unlike Tahoe). Got 6" of pow this weekend, albeit a bit more dust on crust than I would have liked, but still super fun in the gullies where it was deeper.
Surf is anywhere from 10 minutes to 1 hour drive depending on which breaks, but quality breaks in Malibu are +/- 30ish minutes away or in the winter PV is 45 mins. Actually there are waves 11 blocks away, but I use that ocean for running during the sunset or oggling the booties while running on the sand :)
LAX is 20 minutes away if you need a fix somewhere else.
Strawjack has a good point on the ski lease. That was key for the enjoyment and minimizing the hassle factor. Leave everything there, Friday night is a 5 hour easy drive through the high desert while Sunday is 4.5 hours home every time. Very consistent, throw it on cruise control at 75, and low stress, albeit a bit longer than ideal. Would I rather live in San Diego for surf / cool smaller towns, yep. But then that drive is pushing 6 hours!?!? which is too much for this kid so I will compromise with Malibu, County Line, Palos Verdes, and all kinds of other spots w/in that driving radius.
The drive is 5 hours 45 minutes doing 70-75 leaving at 4 am from Newport, and 7 hours if you leave at 2:30 on Friday afternoon. I would not even bother leaving at 5 on Friday, I would rather leave Saturday at 4 am. If it is that far from Newport it would be farther from San Diego, so I would expect it to be 7 hours from La Jolla. I love La Jolla, but it is just too far from Mammoth for me. I can handle the Newport distance, but San Diego would just be too much.Quote:
Originally Posted by comish
I'm impressed with you getting 50 days. I will get around 35, 50 is some devotion.
When I lived in la jolla or hillcrest, we left between midnight and 2am, usually partying until departure time after a full day of work. I was young, with no kids, and lots of motivated dirtbag friends.
22 years in San Clemente surfing, and then riding shitty Big Bear on the weekends. Fuck California and it's ridiculous mess of freeways and commuting. I'd rather ride all winter at Mt. Bachelor, then have three seasons to surf the Oregon Coast where I can camp at desolate surf spots for days without seeing anyone and it's only a four hour drive from Bend. If you prefer surfing over the mountains then you get crowded waves and sub-par snow conditions. If you prefer surfing fresh powder over surfing, well, you get my point. Surfing in California is joke these days. When I go back I don't even take my gear because battling at beach breaks and point breaks for waves just sucks the soul out of you. I did it for too long, won't go back. Plus...... http://www.ktvz.com/news/surfing-leg...viral/39055264
or just move to hawaii and ride mauna kea.... https://www.google.com/search?q=ski+...cPDkwQ_AUIBygC
I grew up in the OC, spending most available time in the ocean.
When I "go back" to so cal, I just bring my trunks and just enjoy time in the water with preference on some bodywhomping.
A good friend did something similar in OR as above, but chose the ocean over the mtns. He lives south of cannon beach. He seems pretty happy.
This half hour long wave machine rolls through every 12 hours, year round. Lots of wave time 5 minutes drive from house.
http://static.panoramio.com/photos/large/4611330.jpg
90 min drive gets waves 10 times a year
http://surfalaska.net/wp-content/upl...7f-550x367.jpg
and another 30 min jet ski ride gets you to open north pacific
https://scontent-lax3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...d4&oe=57E4565D
3 minutes drive the other way puts you on a half decent ski hill
https://scontent-lax3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...11&oe=57A20EBB
25 minute drive and 10 minute sled ride gets you here
https://scontent-lax3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...b3&oe=57DFA729
A little DH biking to mix things up. Pic #1 was right there behind my right elbow
https://scontent-lax3-1.xx.fbcdn.net...00&oe=57D6D0E3
Culture?
http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/12/us/mos...ce-in-america/
Surfing CA depends on where you are. If you don't mind cold and sharks there are still barrels and reefs galore that rarely see a pack greater than five. Hell, there are days I am wishing someone else is around.
Skiing is decent to very good four hours away.
Driving up on Fridays suck balls tho.
That bore is beautiful.
Obviously not ocean surf, but in Innsbruck you have a lively city, more english-speaking jobs than you'd expect (some fairly well paid), 100s of ski resorts within 1 hour drive (glacier skiing 10 months a year), quality touring (photo from a couple of weeks ago)... and river surfing. Silz wave (below) is 20 mins drive, the famous Eisbach wave in Munich 2-3 hours I guess. Some other 'secret spots' (surfers think they're secret, but they've been in kayaking online guidebooks for 15+ years) within 30-60 mins drive too. Not much bikini factor, but plenty of skimpy sundress factor in the summer.
https://scontent-arn2-1.xx.fbcdn.net...19&oe=57C984CE
https://scontent-arn2-1.xx.fbcdn.net...50&oe=57DEF0CF
https://scontent-arn2-1.xx.fbcdn.net...60&oe=57C7BE83
If you're a skier more than a surfer it works, anyway.
Great thread.
Surfed Davenport for a decade and skiied Kirkwood every winter. Almost to the breaking point, given the price of housing in the Golden State. Love the suggestions. Big Thanks
-Be excellent to each other
2 hours from skiing amazing terrain and just over 2 hours for good surfing that usually isn't busy. Find friends in the city who have wakeboard boats and surf on lake Washington if your not feeling the drive. Best city to live in the lower 48 hands down.
2 hours is WAY too much driving each way to play, imo. I'd much rather live one mile from very serviceable year round surfing and less than 2 hours from good skiing. Being a mile from the surf means always being able to nail good tide, wind, and swell windows at the drop of a hat on any given day or hour. Skiing is pretty easy. Snow just sits there. Or it snows.
Having zero traffic to deal with, ever, is key as well.
I don't mind the four hour drive and being a mile away from consistent high quality surf. Traffic can suck when we head up to the mountains on my wife's school teacher schedule, but mid week days it is easy.
Ya I meant that 2 hours is too far to drive to both activities. Got live right at one or the other to be ideal, imo
Must suck to live hours from the ski area......
I live 30 or so meters from a gondola in france in the winter and like today I am across the street from the beach.
How do you say, "jajajajajajajaja" in French?
ROGROGROGROGROGROG
I don't get it. How'd that flight to hnl go? Forum time from the channel?
Why even respond to jet set boy? His life is better than yours. He tells us about it everyday. Living the dream is lonely it seems. And is prone to third grade style of dick waving.
My five year old loves fantasy play too.
Being new here, now I know. Thanks for the tip👍