The Wedge

awesome place –. no more to be said.

Wanted to say MAHALO to the couple of local body surfers and the lifeguard at W for saving my 54 year young ass from drowning Friday morning when I «got in over my head» at the Wedge. One minute paddling in 5 – 6 footers, then slammed by 10′+ sets in no time. No sh*t, thought I was going to drown. Took the 3 of you guys to drag my beat carcass ashore.
Much thanks and God Bless you dudes for giving me another day on this side of the dirt.
Aloha Nui Loa, Jeff B.

My favorite part of Newport Beach! It is so relaxing and peaceful here as it is way less crowded than it is at other beaches like Huntington, Santa Monica and Venice. My boyfriend comes here often to fish on the rocks as so do many other people. Usually while my boyfriend fishes, I lay out on the beach with a good book and soak up the sun. The beach itself is very clean, lifeguard on duty, watch people surf and also see all the boats coming in and out of the bay from the rocks. Definitely recommend coming here if you’re looking for more a quieter and calming vibe.

Now, you may say I’m a bit crazeeeee doing what I just did…
But, Yes, I had just got outta the hospital three weeks ago from a surgery for my tumor.
Of course I heard about he high waves coming up and over the rocks.
Couldn’t pass this up, so off I go to Newport Beach.
Finding my way down the winding very narrow streets,
And just as I approach the corner where all the police cars are and news media.
I swung a U-​turn in front of the police knocking over their cones and swung into an open parking spot where the people had just left.
As the police started to come over, I swung my door open and quickly grabbed my walker and told them I was handicapped.
They kinda shrugged their shoulders, laughed and turned around and said, «yeah you drive.»
I didn’t question his remarks, but I did chuckle. I even went into the middle of the street with horns blaring and picked up their cones.
Now as I walked past the officers with my walker, I proceeded to the beach. People stared, but I wanted to see these large waves and they were pretty awesome. Even some people with drones were taking pictures.
And the day was just perfect. So much fun too. I did manage to leave without making any commotions.
Look on police officers faces — — - PRICELESS…

Great place to check out the waves, parking hard to find, it was fun to see the surfers out there, waves were 12 – 15 ft high

Great area for surfers looking for bigger waves. Things were quiet during my last visit but was nice to see and here story’s of the waves from others. I hope to get back during some of the bigger surf days. Wished the had more shops in and around area but enough to get by.

Huge waves. cool spot to watch surfers, and hang. It felt just awesome to be there in the warm sun while it was cold in Chicago.

It’s great to come down here with a camera and snap some photos of the surfers during the big storms. These daring individuals don’t mode taking a chance! Cowabunga!

This is where I go to refill my spirit and restore my serenity. I have had numerous once in a lifetime experiences here and captured many in photos. How fortunate that we have such a place with gorgeous clear water and talented surfers, body boarders, and brave-​strong body surfers. Many photographers gather at this pristine location and I felt like family among these courteous and friendly artists. I look forward to my next visit as winter approaches, knowing that spring and summer are next!

I don’t come here often, but when I do it is usually when there is big surf — so I can watch the surfers. I love to surf, but you won’t find me out there, especially when there is a big swell. So, it is fun to watch other people surf and brave the waves.
This beach doesn’t have the easiest access when it comes to parking since it is all residential area. If you go when the waves are good and big or during the summer — it will be hard to find a spot. I could only imagine street cleaning day must be a pain! Haha.

The entrance we came through was located in a tiny residential neighborhood in Newport Beach. It was a Saturday, but parking was pretty ample in the area we were in. There are massive multi million houses here located right on the beach – so beautiful. Made me want to go buy a lotto ticket.
The water was pretty intense when we got there. There were a couple of crazy people out body surfing, skim boarding, and surfing. I didn’t want to try it though. The water also seemed colder than it was in long beach, but it was nice enough to walk around in up to the knees. It was such a beautiful day! But – the wedge can be occasionally dangerous so watch out people. Keep an eye on the little ones if you bring them, and don’t get in the way of people trying to catch waves. You will probably get knocked down and out.

I’ve been going to newport for my whole life. I haven’t ventured down this far though, and I absolutely love it. gorgeous gorgeous!

Simply Amazing!
That’s how I would describe this area.
I normally don’t venture this far down the beach when I come but today my parents along with myself and dog decided to take a stroll on the beach and get our feet wet along the way. We started along the balboa pier and made our way past Newport bay and over here to the «wedge»
As we arrived the swells of the waves were quite large and there were body surfers in the water awaiting a good wave to come in. I suppose the rocks that extend into the water help create these wedge like waves that are simply amazing to look at.
If you’ve never been make sure to take some time a bear witness to this amazing place. The people are nice, the lifeguards are very helpful and are definitely on Alert for danger, and the waves are just simply stunning.

I have been coming to the Wedge for many years now. I just happened to be in the area on Thursday (10-​03-​2013), while waiting for my whale watching tour to start I figured I would head down the road a little further and check out the Wedge and see if I could enjoy the ‘air’ show but found the Wedge to be flat.
I am not lucky enough to live on the North Shore and be able to watch ‘Pipeline’ when it is firing but I do live within driving distance of the Wedge. I enjoy coming here when large swells are slamming into our coast to simply sit on the beach and watch the bodyboarders and some surfers take some serious drops as the swell slams into the jetty and forms a wall of salt water. I enjoy hearing the screams from the beach and the fellow surfers turning their heads when you see folks paddling into a massive closeout. I consider myself a ‘very’ good surfer and there is zero chance I paddle out at this location but I will watch and still have an amazing time. I have a theory that shore breaks break two things boards and bones and I will most definitely avoid a shore break that has the possibility of reaching in excess of 10’
To me there is nothing like being able to sit on the beach and watch wave after wave form and slam down almost on dry sand. Seeing that amazing ridge of sand carved into the beach from the outreaching force of the whitewater. It is amazing to feel the power of a wave slamming into the sand that causes the ground to shake and that is what reminds me of ‘Pipeline.‘
What I also enjoy about the Wedge it that is out of the way and off the beaten path. You either know how to get here or you do not, if you don’t I am not going to tell you=) but if you are reading this I am sure you have access to mapquest. At the Wedge if you are lucky enough you will find ‘free’ street parking.
During my visit here on Thursday (10-​03-​2013) I was shocked at how much garbage I found on the beach. I found a full container or oreo cookies, empty cans of beer, cigarette butts, several plastic water bottles, plastic toys (left by children playing) and other trash /​debris. I did my part and picked up every bit of trash I could I see because I simply could not live with myself knowing I left garbage that I observed on the beach behind only allowing it wash back out to sea when the tide rolled in. So if you are visiting the Wedge please do you part and utilize the garbage cans by picking up garbage and placing it in the proper receptacle. If you cannot follow these simple instructions you have no business at the beach.
Do you part and Be the Good, always!!! Help us surfers and Beach /​Ocean lovers keep the Ocean blue.
Also if you are not an experienced bodyboarder you have no business paddling out here.

My Husband always talks about this beach the wedge for its great waves to body surf. Being a OC native and never being here, I had to go and see what was so great about it.
The waves are awesome here. For some reason the jetty harbor creates these wedge like waves that can go both directions right and left rather than normal waves going one direction typically.
TO blend in grab some fins and hop into the water. Nobody here boogie boards or has a surfboard, its strictly body surfing and fins. Most body surfers appeared to be teens and adults. The waves are massive at times so its uncertain what age would be appropriate to body surf, but it also depends on the child’s aptitude in ocean water. Its best to know this place has been known to harm many of the inexperienced and experienced.

I was waiting for my boys to finish with soccer training on the beach. I liked the fact that the beach wasn’t crowded… parking was a bit of a chore. Great place to collect your thoughts and reflect.

The Wedge is my fitness tool!
Start from Newport Pier and hit the soft sand all the way down to the Wedge and back. At sunset, just alone with breathing and breaking waves, the moment is priceless
BONUS: Jog forwards there, jog backwards back, and do different crunches at EVERY lifeguard station. Fun!

Quite possibly one of the best surf spots in Orange County. South swells are most notable and when the water is warm, you can go suitless. The surf, water and views make this one of my favorite spots. even if it is just to watch the ocean and think about things.

Absolutely gorgeous! I haven’t yet been to this beach when it’s crowded, but it seemed pretty uncrowded.
Over the holiday weekend, it was 80 degrees, so I met up with my current paramour for a lovely first date here. We tanned in the sun and watched a pod of roughly 20 dolphins playing in the water 30 feet away. Boats went by on the other side of the rocks, fishermen were busy pulling up their lines, and families played in the water. It was not very crowded, which was nice. And our walk along the beach yielded a handful of lovely shells that we washed off and took home with us. It was just a lovely experience.
My only wish is that there was a better parking situation instead of fighting for parking in the nearby neighborhoods.

So, in life we all have these close calls where we know that an inch one way or the other, and we very well could have died. I have had one of those moments at the Wedge.
When you are young in OC you know about the Wedge because all your surfing friends tell you about how amazing it is. You don’t realize how insanely stupid it is to bring out your dinky boogie board. Well, I was that stupid.
I remember riding this enormous wave and realizing at some point that I was way, way too high. As my board tipped down and over I went straight down towards the sand. My board flew away from me and my forehead pushed into soft sand until my neck was almost at a 90 degree angle with my body. All I could think about was how stupid it was to die boogie boarding, of all things.
For some reason or another, I didn’t break my neck. I stumbled out of the surf, all of my friends unaware of what had really happened. It looked like I had just wiped out hard.
They laughed. I laughed at having only bruises and scrapes on my forehead to show for my stupidity. And I lived to tell you: don’t go out on the Wedge unless you know what you’re doing.
It’s breathtaking to just sit on the beach and watch the power of the tides, nature, and just how it comes together. You don’t have to surf to appreciate it.