Surfing in Croyde Bay
Last week I wrote about how the Boys enjoyed their Coasteering session in Croyde Bay, but they are also learning to Surf which they love. If you’ve read a few of my Blogs, you’ll know we go to Croyde Bay in Devon with all the family a couple of times a year.
The Grandsons love the sea and as they’ve got older they have progressed from building sand castles on the beach and rock pooling to more adventurous things including Body Boarding and Surfing.
The eldest Grandson started learning to Surf with Croyde Surf Academy last year and this year Grandson number 2 decided he would also like to start learning to Surf.
Learning to Surf with Croyde Surf Academy
There are lots of Surf schools in North Devon, but we chose Croyde Surf Academy as they are based in Croyde and they have Accredited instructors with over 10 years surfing experience, 20 years of beach knowledge. They have good quality equipment and teach you to Surf the right way using the best techniques.
The Academy teaches in small groups, which is great for beginners. All the instructors are brilliant with the kids and make sure they have fun Surfing while also teaching them safety in the water.
And, best of all they guarantee to get you standing on your first lesson, regardless of your riding background. Their head coach has developed a “catch the wave with you technique” allowing you to stand up and get that special feeling of riding a wave.
The Boys love learning to Surf and really enjoy the lessons and they both managed to stand on their first lessons which made them very happy.
Group Surfing beginner lessons are:
- Approximately 2.5 hours long
- 6/8 people per instructor – includes all equipment
- Lesson slots are scheduled according to tides
Equipment you need for learning to surf
As the Boys spend most of their time in the water when we’re in Croyde they all have their own wetsuits as it’s usually too cold to Surf or swim without them.
They don’t have their own surfboards as you can easily hire them and for beginners it’s best to use a soft surfboard.
These are sometimes called foamies. The soft boards are ideal for beginners learning to Surf as the soft foam construction means the boards are incredibly buoyant, making it easy to catch waves.
They are also very stable in the water due to their shape, making it much easier for a beginner to stand up.
I’m sure in a couple of years they’ll wan their own Boards but for now they’re happy to hire one or use the Surf School ones when we’re in Croyde.
Learning to Surf in North Devon
According to Surfing Waves, Croyde is one of the best places to Surf in North Devon.
North Devon is good for Surfing as it benefits from the powerful swells from the Atlantic Ocean that occur throughout the year. The waves in North Devon tend to be good quality and consistent throughout the year which makes it so good. However, this can also mean it gets very busy so you it’s good to go early or late but check the tides.
The great thing with Surfing is that the Boys are happy to put their wetsuits on and get in the water even if it’s not a sunny day, which is often the case with Summer days in England. And, you can see how much they love it from the huge smiles on their faces when they’re in the water.
And, when they do finally come out of the water they’ve now got their Dryrobes to put on to keep them warm while they have a cup of Hot Chocolate from the The Drop In café
What do your kids love doing when they’re at the seaside in England?
Brilliant! My daughter’s were in the sea a couple of weeks ago and they were watching the surfers, they would have loved to do this.
It’s brilliant that you all go on holidays together to North Devon twice a year. I hope we manage to do something like that when my children are all grown up! My four would love to try surfing but we’ve never been anywhere where it’s a thing.
Oh it looks like they had an amazing time, what a fantastic skill to learn and I bet their water confidence is sky high now.