Steamer Lane: Where the otters have your back
Steamer Lane is an incredible azure stretch of Santa Cruz. Here, surfers and sea otters share these waves. Each doing their own thing in a shared space, but each at their own pace.
The name traces back to the late 1930s, when two San Jose State students, Claude Horan and Wes Hammond, watched steamships glide past on their way into the bay and started calling the break by the shipping lane’s name. Decades later, Jack O’Neill set up shop nearby and began experimenting with neoprene, work that helped make cold water surfing survivable and turned Santa Cruz into a proving ground for the sport.
Come for the waves. Stay because the otters are better entertainment than anything on a screen.
Tips
- Take a walk along West Cliff Drive Take, a paved and flat path along the bluff. Keep your eyes peeled for sea otters enjoying their snacks in the waves.
- Visit the Santa Cruz Surfing Museum, housed inside the Mark Abbott Memorial Lighthouse. It’s run by volunteers and free to visit.
- Parking spots can be hard to come by on weekends, so be ready to circle a bit before you find one.
