Leo Carillo State Park / California / United States

If you’ve ever seen a beach movie from the 1960’s, good chances are that it was filmed here at Leo Carillo State Park. The park itself is named after Leopold Carillo, an actor during the Golden Age of film. Other than its ties to Hollywood, the beach is a destination for surfers and kite surfers. But, it is vastly more populated by throngs of wind surfers, who take advantage of ideal winds and challenging obstacles in the surf.

The Leo Carillo Beach is actually a sheltered cove lined with mountainous rocks. Anymore than 6 surfers here and the water is too crowded. Season begins in the spring and lasts up through the fall (March through October).

The waves are larger the further you go outside the cove area. Surfers have a hard time at Leo Carillo, for the takeoff area is rather small, and it is no easy task navigating around the jutting rocks and innumerable amounts of windsurfers that take advantage of the ideal 5 to 8 mph northwesterly winds that appear in the afternoon. Air temperature maintains around 60 – 70 F , and yet the water is very cool all year round, so a wetsuit here is advised.

Getting to Leo Carillo is a challenge in itself. The only access is through a less than safe mountainous road. But, once you’re there, you forget about the journey. This is a gorgeously kept park; equipped with campgrounds should you need a place to stay. There is a little market area down the way that has places to eat, as well as a really good windsurfing and kite surfing shop that sells and rents equipment. Leo Carillo is known for its scuba diving, which is available year round, but best if done in the fall.

Crowd factors can make the surf for all water sport enthusiasts dangerous, especially with the jagged rocks.