moving to florida to surf (Jacksonville, Melbourne: how much, house, to buy)

[orange.blossom]

i'm hearing that the best places to surf are daytona, cocoa beach, and atlantic. can anyone attest to this? what time of year have you found the best for surfing on the east coast? i hear the west (clearwater/st pete) is only good when there are storms.

any advice? thanks in advance

[Gromicide]

the best places to surf in Florida are New Smyrna and Melbourne. There are plenty of decent breaks north and south of both areas. Some are less consistent but fire when the conditions are right (reef road, pump house etc). Others north of New Smyrna can be great all around (St Augustine, Mayport Poles in Jax). Daytona and Cocoa are tourist areas and not all that great in my experience.

Winter time delivers great north swell when there is a cold front. Summers obviously get hurricane swell but can go through flat periods that can last a week or two. That's when you get out the fishing pole or wakeboard.

Places like New Smyrna and Melbourne pick up swell during the summer while other breaks just a few miles away are flat so they would be considered more consistent.

[orange.blossom]

Originally Posted by Gromicide

the best places to surf in Florida are New Smyrna and Melbourne. There are plenty of decent breaks north and south of both areas. Some are less consistent but fire when the conditions are right (reef road, pump house etc). Others north of New Smyrna can be great all around (St Augustine, Mayport Poles in Jax). Daytona and Cocoa are tourist areas and not all that great in my experience.

Winter time delivers great north swell when there is a cold front. Summers obviously get hurricane swell but can go through flat periods that can last a week or two. That's when you get out the fishing pole or wakeboard.

Places like New Smyrna and Melbourne pick up swell during the summer while other breaks just a few miles away are flat so they would be considered more consistent.

Thanks so much!

[Florida2014]

I'm not a surfer but I can say without question the biggest breaks I've seen up and down our coast were in New Smyrna. HUGE waves that made for a fun day for the kids and we saw quite a few surfers as well.

[Gromicide]

Correct - Volusia county is the shark bite capital of the world. Somewhere in the range of 70% of all shark bites in the world occur in Volusia county. If there is any positive, it's that many of these bites are no worse than getting bit by a dog or stepping on some broken glass. What I am getting at is a good majority of the sharks around the inlet are little spinner sharks looking for finger mullet in the shallows.

Some people that get bit don't even go the hospital and many go and are release same day with some stitches and a bandage.

[Florida2014]

Yes, this is something I quickly learned after moving to Florida. "SHARK ATTACK" can mean a small black fin shark brushing against you and causing an abrasion. Another one of those things the media loves to zoom in on because it gets people's attention. But yes, Volusia happens to be where most bites occur.

Having said that, the vast majority of bites occur in very shallow water and as a surfer you're likely going to be out much further. Keep a low profile board (not shiny or bright colors), same with your swim trunks, keep an eye on your surroundings and you will be just fine.

[Ricci123]

I am on this forum b/c we are moving from Melbourne to Jax. Some of the best surfers in the world are from Brevard County! Kelly Slater is from this area. Cocoa Beach is always busy with surfers. They have a surfing santa every year

[Florida2014]

Right on queue!

First shark bite of 2017 reported in New Smyrna Beach | St. Augustine Record

[Runninglikethieves]

Sebastian Inlet is a really nice place for surf, but it's about a 3 hour drive. That's one of the best spots in Florida, wish I could go more often.

I surf also and because of that, it's a requirement that I live on the coast. I lived in Southern California for 3 years, which I moved to from Jersey just to surf. It was fun, but I got this offer for a job in Jacksonville, which was even on the table a few years earlier, right before I moved to California. I opted to move to So Cal instead, which has the far superior and more consistent surf, but also has a super high cost of living. Since Jax is on the coast, I took this job. I would have never been able to buy a house in California or live comfortably. I don't get to surf as frequently here, but I try to at least once or twice a week. Mayport Poles is probably one of the better spots in the Jacksonville area. I don't feel like I'm doing a disservice name dropping the place, as anyone who has surfed in Florida knows about it. And because of that, it gets pretty crowded.

I've seen some sharks in New Smyrna before, as well as other places (Jersey and California) and haven't been bitten or afraid of being bitten. A lot of the bites in the New Smyrna area aren't fatal. I've surfed there and in Ponce Inlet numerous times, but not in quite a while now. It's been a couple of years. I'm hoping to take a ride down there one weekend soon. Sebastian would be pretty fun too.

Stay away from the Gulf if you wanna surf frequently. You're much better off on the Atlantic Coast of the state.

[Gromicide]

Originally Posted by LecherousLothario

To your first paragraph, it's not just "Volusia County", but New Smyrna Beach specifically and by name that has the highest concentration. This is an important specification that deserves mention.


To your second paragraph and to the others who have chimed in in a similar manner, call me crazy, but all this talk of "they're usually small sharks, and a lot of times it's like a dog bite etc. etc" doesn't exactly sound reassuring, irrespective of how much it most likely rings accurate.


We're talking about sharks here folks, not a land-based animal you can many times successfully skirt away from like a gator or a dog. Yes, conceded, there are probably many more small sharks than large ones...but there are also very large ones just offshore. And their bite is many levels hellishly worse than even the most ferocious of pitbulls or rotties. Make no mistake about that.




There's a difference between being brave and being indifferent. Being brave, one acknowledges the danger and applies the proper cautionary action. Being indifferent on the other hand, throws caution to the wind.



" Happy Motorin' " -looks out towards the water with a slivered, knowing gaze, and then back towards you as he says the quoted words..tipping his hat and slowly ambling off-

yup I realize New Smyrna is where most of these bites occur. Plenty of little meals for spinner sharks to chase around. The fear of sharks is bigger because you can't always see them. Pretty sure pitbulls kill more people than sharks though. It's gotta at least be comparable.