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Killer Dana is dead, and Doheny is its low-budget tombstone. Thirty years ago, a jetty and harbor transformed summer's Orange County answer to Rincon (500-yard right-hand walls on big south swells) to a polluted children's wave. Faithful old-timers still paddle out to catch its meager remnants, but they're left pining for the past.
If you aren't aware of what existed before it, Doheny is an ideal beginner's wave. Swells slip past the swell-choking jetty, break softly over a bed of cobblestones and form into slow shoulders. A few hundred yards north, by the San Juan Creek, there's a sandbar and reef that break better on stronger swells. During the winter of 1993 and the El Nino winter of 1998, perfect sandbars formed near the rivermouth and produced hollow freight-train rights. If you can withstand the sky-high fecal counts, it's these types of bars that'll quench the thirst for days past. Those days are all too rare, though, so Doheny, if anything, will serve as great place to introduce your child to his/her first wave.
For many years Doheny has been ranked at or near the top of lists of the most polluted beaches in southern California. Orange County Health Care Agency's 2003 Ocean and Bay Water Quality Report indicates that Doheny had the most "Beach Mile Days" of water quality standards violations of any beach in Orange County. Heal the Bay's 2003-2004 Beach Report Card listed Doheny as their #1 Beach Bummer, consistently earning "F" grades for water quality, especially during wet weather. Although a sewage treatment plant exists alongside San Juan Creek just up from the beach, this plant has had a good operating record in recent years. Doheny's high bacteria counts are likely due to a combination of factors, including urban runoff from the 134 square mile San Juan Creek watershed, pollution from boats in Dana Point Harbor, large flocks of seagulls that poop in the creek water near the creek mouth, and poor water circulation at Doheny which has been a problem ever since Dana Point Harbor was constructed.
If you live or work in Dana Point, Laguna Hills, Laguna Niguel, Mission Viejo, Rancho Santa Margarita or San Juan Capistrano, you could be part of the problem or part of the solution. Surfrider Foundation reminds you not to litter, to pick up after your dog, not to over-irrigate your lawn, don't hose off your sidewalk or driveway, and take your car to a car wash rather than washing it at home. And stay out of the water at Doheny and at other surf spots near creek mouths and major storm drains for up to 72 hours after a rain.
-- Blair Mathieson
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Medium. Watch out for exposed rocks on low tide.
S, SW
waist- to head-high
NE (Picks up Santa Anas well.)
3
sharp rocks, sand, turds
beginner, intermediate if it's pumping
10'0", flu vaccinations, kayak and fishing pole
summer
Bring dollar bills. Turn into the Doheny parking lot and feed the machine.
Moderate. Think summer, kids' surf camps, families of beginners and the odd kayaker.
happy
1, dry hair paddle-outs 365 days a year
9
Poop in the lineup after it rains
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The Harbor Grill (34499 Golden Lantern Dana Point Harbor, Dana Point, 949-240-1416) won the Merit of Gold from Southern California Restaurant Writers for the last three years. Mouth-watering seafood prepared in all your favorite styles: Southwestern, Pacific Rim, Caribbean, Cajun and Mediterranean. Dana Point Renaissance (24701 Del Prado St., Dana Point, 949-661-6003) is high quality food for decent prices. What more could you want? Everything from swordfish to pastas to steaks to hot and fresh sourdough bread.
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Doheny State Campground (800-444-7275). There are 120 sites at five bucks a day. All campground reservations must be called in. Volleyball, picnic tables, fire pits and miles of empty beaches with small surf available. Dana Point Quality Inn (34280 Pacific Coast Hwy, Dana Point, 949-248-1000). Close proximity to the best Mexican food in OC, El Patio. Trestles is a 10-minute drive from here. Blue Lantern Inn (34343 Blue Lantern, Dana Point, 949-661-1304). It's a four-star bed and breakfast. Rooms with a view of harbor start at 160 a night. Each room has a Jacuzzi and fireplace for warming up after those cold winter sessions.
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Take a fishing tour out of Dana Point Harbor (949-4965794); you're guaranteed to catch more than you would surfing Doheny. Check the web site at www.danawharfsportfishing.com
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All in Dana Point:
Alternative Surf, 34085 Pacific Coast Hwy #102, 949-488-9568
Dana Point Surf Company, 34255 Pacific Coast Hwy #112, 949-487-9283
Dive n' Surf, 34318 Pacific Coast Hwy, 949-443-2303
Girl in the Curl, 34116 Pacific Coast Hwy #A, 949-661-4475
Infinity Board Shop, 24382 Del Prado, 949-661-6699
Infinity Surfboards, 24382 Del Prado, 949-661-6699
Killer Dana Surf Shop, 24621 Del Prado, 949-489-8380
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