There should be areas in the Great Lakes that are designated as surf parks. A surf park is a designated geographical area protected and used for specifically surfboard riding:

My partial list:

Lake Superior:

Stoney Point
Alona Bay
Painted Rocks


Lake Michigan:

Roor Beer Point
The Elbow
Grant Park
Chicago water front areas
Billys
New Buffalo
Grand Haven Pier
Sleeping Bear


Lake Huron:

Grand Bend
Ipperwash
Kinkardin



Lake Erie:

Leamington
Cleveland
Dukes
Cedar Bay
Wyldewood Beach
Area 51
The Palmwood
Presque Isle State Park
Ashtabula


Lake Ontario:


Rock Creek
The Bridge
Ashbridges Bay
Bluffers
Oshawa Point and pier


Other places not mentioned should be included. I put this list together quickly off the top of my head.


I'm posting an article below from surfline.com about how Trestles is being termed a world class surf park. Recently in my home the City of Buffalo began designated areas in city parks for leashless dog walking. I would think that the recreational needs of humans is a little bit higher than that of our four legged pets. Times have changed and there are people who have been surfing in the Great Lakes for almost half a century. They deserve to have places in the lakes that are parks for them to get healthy exercise. Surfers need natural surf parks. It is in the interest of public health that Americans and Canadians are encouraged and given opportunities to get up off their seats and get out and exercise.

Trestles deserves being designated as a world class surf park. In the Great Lakes we should see that surf areas be forever given proper designation as surf park areas. Ships have shipping lanes and surfers need surfing free wave riding zones.

The surfline.com article about Trestles:

Body Glove Helps with the Installation of Interpretive Panels at Trestles April 20, 2007 Redondo Beach, CA - Body Glove International is proud to announce their involvement with California State Parks Orange Coast District's southernmost park unit of San Onofre State Beach, in the construction and installation of three "Interpretive" panels at Trestles Beach, home of the annual Jeep Body Glove Surf bout professional surfing contest.

The new panels titled "Surfing Trestles" provide a much-needed educational component to the experience of quality outdoor recreation at this world famous surf break. The panels, richly illustrated by renowned artist Phil Roberts, will be placed at strategic pathways and be highly visible to all park visitors. They will identify the specific surf breaks of Cottons, Uppers, Lowers, Middles, and Church as well as provide essential information such as wave type, preferred equipment, and skill level. The panels will be completed and installed on April 19th, 2007, prior to the start of the Jeep Body Glove Surf bout, which begins April 24.

San Onofre Chief Ranger, Steve Long has stated that the California State Park System welcomes the opportunity to partner with Body Glove in producing an educational and informative message for the hundreds of thousands of surfers who visit Trestles annually. Body Glove's contribution begins a new chapter in raising awareness of Trestles as a "World Class Surfing Park."

Scott Daley, VP of Marketing, explains why Body Glove wanted to be a part of the project, "The Body Glove Surf bout has had a tremendous run at Lower Trestles for over 15 years. The Meistrell family, who owns Body Glove, spends a lot of time at San Onofre State Beach and they consider it their second home. This gives us an opportunity to enhance the experience for all surfers who come to Trestles."

About San Onofre State Beach
San Onofre was created as a State Park in 1971 by Presidential decree of Richard Nixon with support from California Governor Ronald Reagan. The parklands were formerly part of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. The park includes the world famous "Surf Beach" and "Trestles" beach, as well as popular campgrounds and beaches at the "Bluffs," and the campground and hiking trails along San Mateo Creek. San Onofre State Beach, including Trestles, is the fifth most visited State Park in California. San Onofre and Trestles are threatened by urban encroachment and a planned toll road bisecting the park.

About Body Glove
Founded in 1953, Body Glove is a leading, worldwide action sports brand specializing in wetsuits, swimwear, clothing, footwear, accessories, and technology accessories. Its contributions to action sports include the Jeep-Body Glove Surf bout (4 Star WQS event), and continued support of the NSSA National Scholastic Surfing Championships. The company sponsors one of the most respected surf and wakeboard teams in the industry with such powerhouse names as pro surfers Bruce Irons, Mike Losness, Alex Gray and Holly Beck and wake boarders Rusty Malinoski, Phil Soven and Jeff McKee. Through Reef Check, SIMA's environmental fund, and the Surfrider Foundation, Body Glove works to preserve the purity of the waters it loves. Body Glove products are sold in the U.S. by a network of independent retailers. Body Glove is also sold in approximately 50 countries internationally.

I seem to remember being told that Woodlawn Beach on the US side of Erie was a recognized surf beach by the state. In the summer months many of my spots over here on the NYS shoreline are life guard patroled and surfing is not possible until after the gaurds go home or early in the am.

Andy surfers used to have to sneak into beaches to surf. How come dogs are being treated better than surfers? Dogs have places to freely recreate in public parks but for some crazy reason without any sort of justification surfers cannot ride the same waves that wind and kite boarders freely access. If the wind cuts out and a wind or kite boarder is far offshore they have to sometimes be rescued. Boats sink all the time and people get rescued. Decades have gone by and I have never seen a surfer that needed to be rescued. Lake surfers will say something to other surfers if they are doing something dangerous or if they are not properly wearing the necessary gear for the conditions. That's the way watermen and women are.

Almost every single year in the Great Lakes there is a documented and undocumented rescue of a person in distress in the Great Lakes by a surfer. Our presence in the water makes it safer for the general public and we too deserve for our own health the freedom to surf in public parks controled by cities and states in the Great Lakes.

This discrimination must change. We are unfairly being denied our constitutional rights to freely access the waters of the Great Lakes which are under the control of the International Joint Commission. That is why surf parks must come into existence on the ocean and here in the Great Lakes. Save Trestles, The Bridge, Presque Isle, Chicago by sending your representatives in Congress and the Senate and your MP's written letters (not emails) asking for surf parks in the area where you surf in the Great Lakes.

"You're your own train and you can go anywhere." Charles Olson

Agreed, last summer ar Evangolia Park I was out in the morning and surfing along the point at the end of the park beach area well over 200 yards from the swimming area. I had been out for over an hour without incident despite the guards pressence. When he spotted me he abandoned his post to walk all the way down beach ignoring the swimers in heavy surf so he could inform me that despite surfing there for years that I could no longer, this area hosts a fleet of Hobie cats much closer to the swimmers than I was and surf kayaking is allowed anywhere but the marked swim area, you are correct I posed no threat and was unlikel;y to require assitence unlike the cat crowd who are routinly in need of help and the yakers )of which I sometimes am have a better chance of whacking there head on the bottom than a surfer. Makes no sense and I will put together a formal letter for my representatives.

The more the world seams to be heading towards a brilliant future stories like yours remind us of the zanyness of the human condition.