Photos below show the narrow one-lane streets and water tower
house; holiday decorations; Surfside sign; and the sand berm
where kids play and resident park their beach chairs for views
of the ocean.
Between the cities of
Seal Beach and
Sunset Beach is
the tiny, little community of Surfside. A scenic stretch of coastline on the Pacific Ocean features a post
office and 400 to 500 houses. Most hardly know it exists
because this little piece of paradise is guard gated. There are no
stores, restaurants and scarce visitor parking.
Overlooking the Pacific
Ocean to the west and Long Beach to the north, Surfside
experiences relaxed serenity in times of peace, but routinely
sees military ships come into port for munitions att Naval
Weapons Station on bordering Seal Beach within view of Row A
houses facing the beach. Of course Row A is the most coveted
place to own a home for it's there that you look to the ocean.
Residents can see dolphins in the distance from time to time,
watch sailboats, cargo ships and tankers head into port at Long
Beach and the Port of L.A., and even see the downtown skyline of
Long Beach framed by the small mountains of Palos Verdes.
Admission into the community is a bit
challenging. With a location near the bridge on Pacific
Coast Highway overpass to the Anaheim Bay, access from the
south is tricky and only obtainable from southbound lanes of
PCH. When driving from Sunset Beach, you must drive nearly
half a mile and make a U-turn at the next stoplight in the
city limits of Seal Beach.
Surfside can be
accessed on foot by parking in Sunset Beach near the
landmark Water Tower house (which is zoned as a Seal Beach
property) and bu walking along the beach. The area overlooks
Catalina Island to the west and Long Beach to north. Next to
the beach community is Anaheim Bay where boats from
Huntington Harbour gain access to open seas. They must pass
a military post for the Seal Beach Naval Weapons Station
located on the northernmost boundary of Surfside. You'll
often see helicopters and naval ships at this location which
is a small but active port for munitions.
Surfside itself
features housing in several rows lining the beach with a
small road that serves both as the thoroughfare and garage
entry for homes that nearly touch each other from side to
side. "A" row is the name for houses directly on the
beach. "B" row faces the garage side of the "A" row
homes. "A" properties usually cost more money to purchase
and seldom come on the market.
1 or 2-bedroom cottages off sand
can begin around $1 million while the larger houses with
3-story homes with ocean
views can cost several million dollars US.
When
you call on friends in Surfside, you'll likely find them on
the beach. Surfside residents love the ocean but are
constantly fighting beach erosion. A huge sand berm is
built regularly to keep high tides and large waves from
flooding homes, but nature does take its course and from
time to time first floor flooding occurs. The hearty
bunch of occupants generally keep water pumps on hand for
those rare occasions.
As a tourist to the
region, there's nothing to visit in Surfside...no
restaurants, shops, etc. A few celebrities supposedly own
homes in Surfside but you probably won't find them residing
there. Oftentimes the beach homes are a getaway or rental
investment property for the likes of Sandra Bullock and
Cameron Diaz. There's a Taco Surf restaurant on
Pacific Coast Highway in front of the fence to Surfside. It
is a popular Mexican-style cantina featuring a casual beach
atmosphere, full liquor bar and live bands. If you stay in
hotels along Pacific Coast Highway either in Sunset Beach,
Huntington Beach or Seal Beach, you may notice the gates and
walls of Surfside but it is unlikely that you'll find much
need to take the time to park and walk along the beach from
Sunset Beach to Surfside. Sunset Beach is usually wide open
for visitors to enjoy and is a better choice for kite (wind)
surfing, surfing, sunbathing, volleyball and beach-combing.
