Ask a lifelong New Englander about seasons. They’ll probably mention that spring is for watching the first flowers emerge; summer is for lazy beach days; fall is for watching the leaves change to crimson and gold;  and winter, the longest season, is for snow days and hot chocolate.

But ask a New England surfer about the changing seasons. It’s more likely they’ll mark this same passage of time by the thickness of their neoprene wetsuit. They surf year-round in water temperatures ranging from mid-70s in the summer to near freezing in the winter. New England surfers simply add millimeters of neoprene the way hikers add mid and heavyweight base layers. 

New England's identity is rooted in making the most of sometimes harsh and unforgiving winters. For a lifelong Californian born and raised in “sunny San Diego,” where it is socially acceptable to complain anytime the temperature drops below 60 degrees, the idea of shoveling snow and actually using the defrost function in my car was otherworldly. My first winter in Rhode Island was nothing short of eye opening. 

While my friends at home passed up going to the beach on Labor Day, knowing that the next two months were perfect beach weather without the crowds, I learned that Labor Day in Rhode Island is the last-hurrah for seasonal farm stands and beach side ice cream shacks. In the weeks following, the temperatures drop and the days grow shorter. What surprised me the most was that even social life seems to grind to a halt. With shorter and darker days came fewer invites to watch the sunset or grab beers after work.

That first winter in New England, I felt a little frustrated. I wish I had known that the window to make new friends closed after Labor Day. I also found myself getting used to the cold more slowly than those around me —maybe because I didn’t realize my ripped jeans and Vans wouldn’t cut it in freezing weather, even with a big jacket. How was I supposed to know that the key to a weatherproof outfit was in the layers? On the surfing side, I also felt that I was slow to adjust to the comparatively cold water temperatures, and after a few sessions ended early after I lost feeling in my toes, I realized that I’d need something more than the 4/3 wetsuit I had brought from California. Much, much more.

And as the weather outside worsened, my mood also changed. By early November, though I was still surfing, I was feeling the winter blues, also known as seasonal affective disorder. 

As I look back, I can see that my social calendar became less busy after Labor Day — as many group activities began to wind down for the year. That makes sense for a region where the first snow tends to arrive early in the fall.  But as a new transplant, I feared that maybe it was my fault and that I wasn’t trying hard to make friends and find community.  Despite my love of surfing, I began to have doubts. Maybe my time would’ve been better spent buying gear and lift tickets. If only I had researched how to get into snow sports like skiing or snowboarding, maybe I’d feel less sad. 

Through the long nights spent in bed, revenge scrolling through Instagram, I stumbled upon a few content creators — local women passionate about winter surfing. I had seen winter surf content before on apps like NobodySurf or some of the cold-water surf content from Billabong, but since these starred either men sending freezing overhead barrels, or professional surfers in expensive gear, I didn’t really relate. 

This account (now sadly deactivated), was called Cold Water Women and they had even produced a short film with women I had definitely seen in the lineup. I remember intently watching clips of ladies tucking their hair into winter hoods and nose riding in 15 knot offshore winds. Some of the surf clips even showed women surfing while it snowed. I was hooked. Most importantly, what I gleaned from the film was that the group seemed to stick together through the frigid water and temps. Maybe this was the key to surviving my first winter in a colder climate!

With winter coming, I scrambled to lean into the new surfing friendships that I had found in the fall. Which booties do you wear? Do you wear a 6/5 wetsuit even though paddling in that much neoprene is a full workout? Or do you tough it out in a 5/4? There were endless questions about gear quality and fit and so much local knowledge on best winter surf practices. Best of all, having other people to go with, especially other women, was empowering and motivating. Sharing the stoke of winter wave riding helped me combat seasonal affective disorder and my mental health improved a lot. I looked forward to the challenges of surfing in the winter–though my sessions were shorter due to the low temperatures, I loved the rush of feeling the cold wind in my face as I slid down a wave. At first it was difficult to wear so much gear, but I found that having to adapt to wearing a hood, which dampens sound, and boots, which prevent you from feeling the board under your feet, allowed me to get to know my equipment and assess conditions more critically, making me overall a better surfer. I found myself by building community. Experiencing these tough conditions fostered a great sense of camaraderie among other winter surfers I met. When I experienced my first snow surf with one of my friends, I remember sharing so much joy as we relished in the beauty of snowflakes coming down into the water around us as we paddled into wave after wave. 

During my first winter, I was able to not only survive but thrive from the advice my new friends gave me. Here are just some of the essential surf tips I learned that winter: 

1. Change into your wetsuit at home or change in the car with the heat on full blast to avoid changing outside.

2. Wax your board inside at home, otherwise it may be too cold to wax effectively.

3. Never leave wetsuits or booties or gloves in the car overnight, otherwise they might freeze.

4. Keep a hot beverage and a protein-packed snack in the car to refuel after a winter surf session.

These days, I’m approaching my fourth winter in Rhode Island. When I’m walking from my car to the spot entrance in my full winter gear and there’s ice and snow on the ground, people often ask me why I do it. To be honest, I can’t imagine why I wouldn’t. In a proper New England fashion, I’m embracing the cold because even though brighter days are ahead, there is so much winter fun to lean into.