Great Escape: Coastside Edition

You don’t have to be a big wave surfer to experience some of the benefits of big wave surfing when there's standup paddlingboarding, the new craze for watersport enthusiasts. Standup paddleboarding (SUP) is a great way to get on (and in) the water, strengthen your core, burn mega calories, and have a ton of fun in the process. SUP is part paddling, part balancing, part surfing.

And you don’t have to venture too far from home to do it. Pillar Point Harbor, because of its flat inland waters, is an ideal location for standup paddleboarding. The jetty and marina provide calm harbor waters and sheltered safety so you can cruise and glide while touring the local sites.

Beginners can take a lesson to learn how to select a board and paddle, self-launching, balance techniques, proper stance and paddle strokes, different ways to turn, self-rescue and differences between race and surf strokes. Maneuvering around moored boats will be your only real challenge here.

On small swells, you can easily paddle into and ride the waves. More experienced paddleboarders can venture to the open water of the ocean where there are waves and the opportunity to combine the talents of kayaking and surfing to catch and ride waves in to shore.

Lessons and rentals are available at , Half Moon Bay Kayak Co. and in Pillar Point Harbor. If you have your own equipment, HMB Kayak Co. is a public launch site so bring down your SUP and paddle the open seas for a great escape that promises to get you in shape, too.