Surf’s Up at Little Talbot Island State Park

Submitted by Karen Thompson
Features Reporter

September 26, 2016 10:45 a.m.

surfer-1-man-in-waveSurf’s Up…..at Little Talbot Island State Park this weekend as Tropical Storm Karl moves through the area. While on a long walk Saturday morning, with the Walkin’ Nassau group, we came upon hundreds of surfers from as far away as Tallahassee and Gainesville, catching the bitchin’ surfing conditions at Little Talbot. The surfers included dudes and wahines, entire families, young and old, experienced and not so experienced.

Evidently there are several Web sites that give up-to-the-minute reports on the conditions at surfing spots nationally including local swell, period, wind and pressure charts. And word spreads fast.

surfer-3-girl
A wahine (young female surfer) catches a wave.

According to North Florida Surfing, North Florida has a wealth of surfing opportunities. It has a reputation for consistent surf and white sand. Swell from the northeast to southeast break from August through April, with the biggest coming during hurricane season, or from a strong low-pressure system sending in long-period swell from the northeast. Little Talbot gets a 7 out of ten rating for a Florida wave which is one of the best.

One guy I talked to, a meteorologist said he has been coming to Little Talbot from Jacksonville Beach for years. His secret surfing spot is marked by a palm tree that is taller than all the others and because of the topography at that spot in the Atlantic Ocean, the “breaking waves are epic.”

surfers-doubleMany of the surfers drive to the park then ride their bikes to their favorite spot. I saw bikes equipped with surfboard racks. There is more than 5 miles of beachfront on Little Talbot Island and the entire island is state park land.

I talked to another surfer from Jacksonville Beach who said he has been coming to Little Talbot for years because of its unpopulated and peaceful beaches and excellent surfing conditions. He said today he sees too many people and regrets that it has become so popular.

Karen Thompson 2Editor’s Note: Karen moved to Fernandina Beach five years ago after working in Chicago as a senior public relations specialist for the Midwestern regional office of the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency. Prior to that, she was an editor, columnist and writer for a chain of Chicago newspapers , an account executive for several Chicago public relations agencies and proprietor of her own pr/marketing business. She grew up and earned her journalism degree in Wisconsin.