Best 8 Places for Winter Paddle Boarding In the U.S.
In this short post, I will show you where to paddle board in the winter in US.
In a recent post, we said it is perfectly safe to paddleboard in the winter, of course, with the right precautions.
Studies show that 25 percent of Americans prefer to vacation in the winter. In fact, it further shows that more people love winter more, followed by spring, summer, and fall in that order. So after all, winter isn’t bad at all!
Back to enjoying stand up paddle boarding in the winter, well, some places in the USA experience more severe winters. Some experience mild ones. Therefore, you have to choose the best winter paddle board destination.
Here are the top destinations to consider:
(The temperatures indicated are the highest and the lowest in winter).
1. Hawaii – 78 °F to 62 °F/25 °C to 16 °C
With up to 240 days of sunshine per year, well, you can see why Hawaii is not only the top stand up paddle boarding destination, but it is also best for scuba diving, sailing, snorkeling and swimming.
But before you pack up your inflatable or solid paddle board and head out, you need to know: can you paddleboard in Hawaii? Of course.
First, this is an island, and it has awesome places with calm waters. It is also very popular with many paddle boarders, so even if you are a beginner at paddle boarding, you will have a lot of company.
Secondly, there are tens of SUP destinations in Hawaii. These include Honolulu Bay, Kapalua Bay, Kaanapali Beach, Makena, Maliko, Kihei, and Napili Bay, to name but a few of them.
2. California – 67 °F to 48 °F/19.4 °C to 9.0 °C
You see the temperature range I have added above? Those are for winter times in Los Angeles. You can see they never get to freezing.
In the past, we looked at the top places for paddle boarding in San Diego. This city runs slightly cooler than L.A. in December, but it is a great place to have fun on your paddle board.
I also wrote of several places to paddleboard in Santa Cruz, once again, which is in California. In Santa Cruz, the weather stays between 40 °F and 50 °F in the coldest month. As you can see, this is still good enough for paddle boarding.
The top places to enjoy SUP adventures in California in winter include Los Angeles, San Diego, Santa Cruz, Orange County, Sacramento Region, San Francisco, and Lake Tahoe, to name but just a few.
Generally, Northern, Southern, and Central California regions have many paddle boarding destinations for winter.
3. Florida – 77 °F to 41 °F/25 °C to 5 °C
Florida is not called the Sunshine State for nothing, but it is because it enjoys up to 230, sometimes more days of sunshine in a year. Therefore, it is little wonder that it is one of the top winter paddleboarding destinations in the USA.
The good thing is that you can SUP in some of the most expansive beaches in Miami, and you can also go for paddleboarding in the river on the Crystal River. That is not all, because you will also catch sights of some of America’s marine wildlife in many of these places.
Some of the top winter SUP destinations for Florida include the fantastic Key West, Rainbow River, Ten Thousand Islands, Everglades National Park, Dry Tortugas National Park, Fort Lauderdale, Caladesi Island State Park, and Coastal Dune Lake to name but a few.
Some paddles are short and sweet and some are long and challenging. You can bring, or hire the SUP accessories that you need from many rental shops on the beaches.
4. Texas – 70 °F to 61 °F/21 °C to 16 °C
The winter weather in a place like Austin is thrilling, and warm. That is one of the things that have made Austin a top destination for paddle board lovers in the USA.
To add the icing on the cake, there are many places to SUP in Texas, some of them large and popular water bodies such as Lady Bird Lake, and there are smaller places such as the Barton Creek.
Some of the most popular SUP destinations in Texas for all time include the coastal city of Galveston, and Inks Lake State Park.
If you do not care to transport your stand up paddle board, you will find many places to rent a SUP board.
5. Arizona – 66 °F to 42 °F/18 °C to 5 °C
The Grand Canyon State is landlocked – it means there is no coastline. However, there is a wealth of lakes and other water bodies where you can have a lot of fun paddle boarding. Besides, you can also have astounding fun SUP-ing the popular Colorado River.
Tell you what … Arizona packs a full basket for people who love the outdoors. Therefore, take a couple of weeks to vacation there so that you can see everything. You can check out the top places to see in Arizona, and many of them are outdoors.
For stand up paddle boarding, you will most likely be having your fun in any of the several places that are on Lake Mead, Lake Havasu, and Lake Powell.
Lake Powell is a must-see for you. It has a long coastline of 2000 miles and the desert and rock views are incredible.
Lake Havasu also offers stunning desert views, and you must see Toprock Gorge, which is considered a baby Grand Canyon, and Red Rock offers a great spot for bass fishing from a SUP board.
6. Washington (Seattle) 49 °F to 39 °F/9 °C to 4 °C
Seattle is a busy seaport city in the state of Washington. But still, you can find good spots for winter paddle boarding. As you can see, the weather here is really cold, so you need to gear up. You need to choose what to wear for paddle boarding with the cold in mind.
The SUP spots in Seattle are not crowded, especially in winter, so you will have a great time to think and enjoy the views.
Some of the places to enjoy paddleboarding in Seattle include Discovery Park, Ballard Elks Club Beach, and Salmon Bay. If you have advanced SUP techniques, you might want to try SUPing in Freightliner.
7. Nevada, Black River Canyon – 53 °F to 27 °F/12 °C to -3 °C
The average winter temperatures in Nevada can run really low, so you should be keen to dress warmly when you are going paddle boarding. Besides, some places on the Black River Canyon (It is located along the Colorado River), get about 30 minutes of sunshine daily, so you can imagine how cold it can be.
If you wanted to kayak or paddleboard, the water is calm, and fun. Be sure to bring your waterproof underwater camera because to capture photos of the wonderful Black River Canyon walls.
8. Oregon, Hood River – 51 °F to 36 °F/11 °C to 2 °C
Once again, this is super cold as you can see on the temperature averages for the coldest month in Oregon that I have shown you above. Dress warmly!
The waters of Hood River can be chilly, but the scenes of Mount Hood in the distance are more than enough compensation for that.
This river is popular with wind surfers, but those are likely to come there in the warmer months.
Check my other posts on:
Easy Eddy 3 Piece Modular Paddle Board Review
Are Cheap Paddle Boards Any Good
Are Inflatable Surfboards Any Good
Which Is A Characteristic of A Type III Life Jacket?
Conclusion
There are thousands of destinations for paddleboarding in the US, but only a few are perfect for winter.
The good thing is that in Hawaii, Florida, and California, there are many spots. Besides, you will catch sights of some of the best marine animals, making your experience even more wholesome.
Always choose places that offer more than one type of fun. For instance, you can combine kayaking and paddle boarding, hiking, camping and other adventures.