North County San Diego can be the most frustrating place in the world to surf: closeout north swells in winter, big south walls in summer, and madding crowds at all the reefs that handle swell. Fortunately for the rest of the mortals, NW windswell and a little SW groundswell combine perfectly at the miles and miles of beaches between Swamis and Camp Pendelton, making for a sand-bottomed playground. Gabe Garcia digs in. Photo: Billy Watts