Imagine surfing a perfect blue wave off a deserted beach of sparkling white sand. This book takes us back to a time when the earliest surfers were busy inventing the first American beach culture. The beautiful and nostalgic photographs that surfer Don James took of himself and his friends from 1936-46 capture the lost Eden of the California surf dream in all its glory and innocence. Over 100 sepia photos.

San Onofre: Memories of a Legendary Surfing Beach is a landmark achievement in the study of surfing history and culture from its origins in Polynesia, Peru, and Africa, to the role that San Onofre played in molding California surf culture.San Onofre is the story of the California surfing culture as seen through the eyes of the surfers at San Onofre Surf Beach. Pioneer surfers tell their own story of the Golden Age of Surfing and illustrate their tales with never-before-seen vintage photographs from their own family albums. Their stories offer a priceless collection of primary source data for future studies of the sport.

Twenty vignettes focus on particular geologic scenes, relationships, and features of southern California's active landscape.