California dreaming - searching for the soul of surfing

In search of perfect waves and the history of the California surf scene, journalist and author Michael Fordham took a road trip from San Francisco to San Diego Photograph: Michael Fordham/Guardian

Ocean Beach, San Francisco – a legendarily difficult break a few miles out of the city Photograph: Michael Fordham/Guardian

Classic Californian sunset, out in the water. The Beach Boys sang in 1963, “If everybody had and ocean, across the USA, then everybody’d be surfin’, like CALIFOR-NI-A” Photograph: Michael Fordham/Guardian

Michael Fordham waiting for a wave at Ocean Beach, San Francisco Photograph: Michael Fordham/Guardian

Michael Fordham's surfboard, bought at Mollusk Surf shop in San Francisco's Ocean Beach Photograph: Micahel Fordham/Guardian

Danny Hess, artisan surboard builder from San Francisco Photograph: Michael Fordham/Guardian

Santa Cruz surfboard shaper Michel Junod has been involved with surfing for 50 years. "When I rode my first wave on the south side of the Santa Monica Pier in May of 1962, the surfing craze of the early 60s was hitting every coastal area of California" Photograph: Michael Fordham/Guardian

A surfboard undergoing renovation at Michel Junod's Santa Cruz workshop Photograph: Michael Fordham/Guardian

Santa Cruz grom Kelly Suneris Photograph: Michael Fordham/Guardian

Sean Carr, Patagonia surf shack, Ventura, California Photograph: Michael Fordham/Guardian

Beach wall at Malibu, California Photograph: Michael Fordham/Guardian

Surfers at the beach in Malibu, California Photograph: Michael Fordham/Guardian