Things to Do in Grover Beach

Most days, Saul Alcaraz can be found toiling over his 2,000-degree glass oven, often surrounded by an enraptured crowd. A surprisingly graceful practice, his glass-blowing is often as artful as a ballet performed in a volcano as he deftly spins, rolls, blows, and cuts his pieces. Having studied the craft since 1988, today Alcaraz splits his time between making effervescently vivid pieces—such as such as custom lamps and iridescent perfume bottles—and teaching teens and adults to do the same. In classes, he trusts his students to work toward shaping their own forms, even helping them introduce color into their creations to make them more attractive bait for trapping rainbows.

At Santa Barbara Seals Surf School, a Surfing USA accredited program, instructors teach the art of wave riding during private lessons, after school classes, and 10-week camps. Lessons can mix practice on land with time in the water, and cover a wide range of skills, from mounting a board to catching a wave without yelling “Hey, wait!” During camps, beginners spend most of their time learning to ride waves, while more advanced students also travel to select surf spots, and even get a chance to tour the famous Sex Wax factory and visit local board shapers to learn about the history of the surf industry in Santa Barbara.

Crouched behind a broken-down truck, the player hears incoming paintballs smack all over the automobile. Scanning the field, he plots his next move—possibly to the field’s upturned section of corrugated tubing, a large cable spool, or the makeshift plywood blockade. The outdoor fields at River Park Paintball challenge teams to work together through this dilapidated yet sneakily helpful terrain, which evokes the same kind of urban-warfare setting of popular video games. In other areas, stretches of field give players tall, speedball-style inflatable barricades that offer cover from incoming shots. Paintball enthusiasts make up the staff that oversees the fields at all times, ensuring players adhere to safe play and honor house rules, such as washing up before the traditional midday tea and scones. River Park's team requires that players make reservations, as the facility keeps limited hours Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

For more than 20 years, Channel Islands Outfitters's Paddle Sports Center has helped humans commune with nature through their guided expeditions, courses, and gear rentals. Their expert guides lead kayakers and hikers to California destinations such as Anacapa Island and Santa Cruz Island, where explorers enjoy picturesque scenery and native wildlife that haven’t yet learned about sarcasm. The outdoor fitness center also offers instruction for outdoorsmen ranging from courses that cultivate Wilderness First Responders to lessons in the art of standup paddleboarding. Meanwhile, their surf shop doles out aquatic equipment such as surfboards, paddleboards, and an array of kayaks that are available in single-seat or tandem models.

Twin Lakes Golf Course is much more than the sum of its parts. With a 9-hole, par 28 executive golf course and practice facilities that include a driving range, 8,500-square-foot putting green, and chipping area, it gives players countless ways to better their game. Visiting players can hone short, half-swing approaches and full, walloping drives on holes ranging from as close as 70 yards to as far as 360, much as they would on a full-length course. The driving range also expedites the learning curve with full-flight Pinnacle range balls primed and ready to be pummeled from real grass or synthetic tees. In the short-game area, Titleist Pro V1 golf balls simplify the act of chipping onto the green or into target nets, even as players line up shots from nearby bunkers, slopes, and grasses akin to the rough and fairway. And when players are left with nothing else to do but admire themselves in the reflection of the nearest water hazard, Twin Lakes’ resident instructors—Don Parsons, Buff Platt, and PGA head professional Jim Ley—are there to take the reins and help clients shave off a few more strokes.