Surf Ballard

My wife and I decided to try paddle boarding and went to surf Ballard. We couldn’t have been happier that we did! Amazing experience! Fantastic staff that never made us feel silly having never done paddle boarding before. Friendly, warm, and helpful staff along with an absolute amazing afternoon paddle on the water. We look forward to doing it again soon!

Staff wasn’t very friendly to me and my sister, a bit condescending when I didn’t have the right reservation number printed out for SUP rentals.
There are better options for SUP locations, but the Groupon is a great price.

These guys are genuinely good guys. We needed to rent some surfing gear outside of their regular hours and they came down to the shop and got us what we needed. We emailed again to rent after hours recently and got a email back in short order offering to help– although we didn’t end up going. Awesome customer service and a great shop.

The real deal, for surfers, by surfers. Have a question? They have an answer. Great boards, great suits, and good people.

This place is awesome. I booked a reservation the night before without a problem, got there early and wiggled myself into a wet suit and booties (all rentable). Most everything is self explanatory, though I would keep in mind that the struggle is real when the wind is against you.

Question to all the people who gave 2 stars because they had to carry the Sup board they rented.
IF YOU RENT A BIKE DO YOU EXPECT THE SHOP TO RIDE IT UP A HILL FOR YOU?
If you answered NO then welcome to the real world of physical activity. I know a SUP is heavy so knowing that plan accordingly. Ok done with my comment.
I dropped by to get some wet suit cement and the guy working was very nice and helpful they had what I needed and he answered my questions about Sup rentals. I will be back for future surf supplies.

I’ve never been paddleboarding before and had a blast trying it for the first time yesterday! You make your reservation online and you can watch the short instructional video (6 min long) on the website before you come in if you wanna maximize your time on the water.
Equipment is in great shape and it only takes a couple minutes to get you a board and paddle. You have to walk your board across the street to the beach which is no big deal… The boards aren’t heavy. It took me a while to get the hang of it and I fell in the water only twice! But by the end I was standing on the board and paddling away.
We paddled down to the draw bridge and back. I saw two seals! It was fun just chilling in the water and admiring all the houses with private beaches.

I adore this place for a Sunday morning retreat on the sound finding my santosia in shavasana during paddle board yoga. This has become a tradition of me and a close friend and we look forward to it and are sad summer is almost over. The rentals are we cared for and staff very helpful. They teach you proper technique and I feel like a pro now I had to buy my own paddle board

I used an Amazon Local deal here Summer 2014 and enjoyed my first ever stand up paddle boarding experience. It was a very good introductory deal for a fun time on the water. ($ 20 for a couple hours). There is a short instructional video you watch, and then it’s up to you for the rest of the time.
I can’t believe the babies on here complaining about having to carry their own board across the street to the water. Someone call the Waaaaaaaaamubulance! What a bunch of privileged whiners!
And who are these people complaining about not seeing wildlife on the water when they went? Was this a whale watching tour?! Was there any advertising that even implies you are paddleboarding to go wildlife watching? Of course there wasn’t. A seal would have been a bonus, not a let down.
This was a very fun, low cost experience. I got a bit of exercise. I got a slight tan. I tried something new. I realized I liked that something new, and now have interest in doing it again.

Late review for paddle boarding in July. 5 stars for the nice, friendly bearded boat man who was extremely gracious (and did not charge us extra $$$$$$) when we went 1.5 hours over the return time due to drifting too far from the wind. Thank you!!!
Please follow his instructions of where to paddle board exactly, and not go off course like we did!

The draw to paddle boarding here is that you are in a bay… not so crowded and there’s a chance to see lots of wildlife, seals, etc… However, we saw no seals, it was low tide so we had to walk through a ton of muddy, smelly seaweed to get started, as well as carry the board to and from the shop — about 1.5 blocks. I went with kids so they had a really tough time!
I have paddled here before, at high tide, saw seals and had a great experience here. Today was just pretty bad and we were entertaining a friend from out of town. Instead of lunch we went straight home and showered since we were smelling pretty bad.

Cute local surf shop across from Shilshole Bay. Got a great deal on a groupon for a paddleboard rental, and now I’m going to give the SUP yoga classes a try. Easy check in, check out process, and you can use the changing room to swap out your gear for a paddle. Kudos to the team on their educational video :)

On Memorial Day weekend reserved my paddle board with a friend. At 11 am on Saturday. It was cloudy and rainy and we arrived at the Surf Ballard shop. Logan was few min early to open the place. He greeted us with great energy and a smile. We chatted about the weather and he offered a rain check for another day, however we all decided that it was just fine to paddle on a cloudy morning with almost nobody around. Logan was helpful with board choices, offered surf booties for no extra charge, gave us extra time for a cloudy day … We had a great time paddling, returned and Logan run from the shop to help us out with boards and rinsing the gear, chatting and smiling. Awesome first time experience. Be back. Highly recommend.

Fun surf shack just south of Golden Gardens. Paddling the sound is an adventure — especially on an advanced board that goes much faster. We made it to the lighthouse of Discovery Park and back in 90 minutes, including a break in the middle.
There are boats coming from the Locks as you first leave the small bay, then the waves can get pretty rough due to the vast open water and large watercraft coming by. It’s fun once you’re used to it!
Great staff, and a fun place to ride your bike, paddle, eat cuban sandwiches, drink a corona, and enjoy Seattle’s surf community.
The only negative to Surf Ballard is the walk to the beach carrying the heavy board. Wear good shoes — my flip flops were not a smart move.

I’m not impressed with this place. Bought a Gropuon with a friend for a 2-​hour paddleboard rental. From my first interaction with they guy working the front desk he was rude to me. He was a bit condescending and generally just not very friendly, and it seems that others are complaining of the same thing, so I’m guessing it’s the norm here.
That I could get over, but the bigger problem was that they have you carry the paddleboards a couple of blocks back and forth. Seriously, those things are heavy, and after you get out of the water, the board is covered in sand and seaweed, so it’s super hard to hold on to, and the sand rubs against your arm. We had a really hard time getting the paddles to stay attached to the boards on the way back to the shop, and it fell out for the 4^th time while we were crossing the street, so it was dragging around. Not fun.
At the VERY least, they should provide some kind of clip to attach the paddle to the boards. But, really, they should have some kind of dolly that you can carry the boards across the street and through the long parking lot on. They have people sign up in 2 hours blocks, so there are a handful of people putting the boards in the water at the same time and returning to the shop at the same time. They could easily help out their customers (many of whom are way too small to carry these boards alone) by making one trip out with the dolly every 2 hours to drop off and pick up boards.
The equipment itself was fine. The poor service I could deal with. But because of the way they expect you to move the equipment back and forth, I will never rent from this place again.

Went stand-​up paddle boarding for the first time. I was super excited to try it out. The boarding itself was fun, but I was pretty disappointed with my rental experience. First, they knew it was my first time but didn’t offer any instruction or anything. Only when I came back did they say «did you watch the video?» No– nobody said anything about a video beforehand, when it would have been useful!
The bigger problem was this place is located about a block and a half from the beach. Not a long walk, but when you have to carry a giant heavy paddle board to and from the shop by yourself, it can be tricky. I could barely lift the thing, and got stranded on the beach for a bit on my way back until I could get someone to help me pick it up. I was really surprised they didn’t get it down to the water for you– I know the places on Lake Union just put you right in the water.
I would paddle board again, but with a different company. I’ll do Lake Union next time.

Funky fresh PNW peeps searching for paddleboarding outfitters: I have mad love for you. I was torn for a while about whether or not I wanted to expose this gem on Unilocal because I don’t want to fight crowds at my fav SUP locale in the future. I’m just hoping to rack up some Jesus Points at this time. Don’t squander my generosity.
Y’all remember Paul Rudd’s character in forgetting Sarah Marshall? Chuck was an easy breezy cat, man. Sand in his crack, smile on his face. When you show up at Surf Ballard, embrace your inner Chuck, bros.
LOVE:
–SB is chill and cool! «Trip» the black lab roams about as mascot.
–They have a bird’s eye view map so you can orient yourself as to where you are and what route to take. We were advised which way the wind would be directed so we knew how hard we’d have to work out and in.
–They give you boards, paddles, PFDs, BUT ALSO booties (+1 because this is actually pretty uncommon). And a bicep workout.
–You have to carry your SUP down to the water. It’s a little jaunt, okay? But I’m telling you upfront. And I’m telling you it’s worth it.
–There is pretty minimal boat traffic so the water is calm. As the sun drops down over that westward view, you experience one of the best parts of summer: a glorious, glowing sunset on the water.
The prices are good and SB is spitting distance from Paseo. I don’t know what could make visiting these folks any better.

I’m still an island girl at heart. I love being in the water and the Puget Sound is such a gorgeous place to do standup paddleboarding. Yes, it’s a hassle to haul your board across the street and down to the beach, but do it 2−3x and you’ll get used to it… And the view is breathtaking; it’s totally worth it. Yes, the «beach» is kind of gross with algae (we are in Seattle after all and it’s 20 minutes away from downtown; it really doesn’t get much more convenient than this).
Let me tell you a story: Once upon a time, there was a not-​so-​little girl who couldn’t figure out what made her happy (and was in denial that she was unhappy). One day, she felt like she needed to get herself out of a rut, so she quit a good job, left life in the big city (and her awesome friends!), and moved back across the country with no plans on what’s next. She got some help, self medicated plenty, tried a cocktail of psych meds, read a bunch of self-​help books, and more… Randomly, she found Surf Ballard, found herself on a paddleboard in the Puget Sound and she felt 100% at peace. I’ll spare you the hippie talk, but I think there’s something incredibly soothing about being in the water, being gently rocked back and forth by the tiny waves, against the vastness of the ocean. I’m happy staring at the water, floating on for what seemed like forever (okay, 2 hours) with no plans, no direction and no purpose whatsoever.
While you might not find your ultimate bliss on the paddleboard, you’re bound to have fun while getting a good workout. Andrew is awesome and everyone else who works there is super friendly and efficient. They get really busy in the summer time, so be sure to reserve your board online (
) or call ahead. You’re likely to see some adorable seals and jellyfish (they look like plastic bags at first glance) along the way. And if you’re not blown away by the blue sky, the water beneath your feet, the mountain ranges and the gorgeous Pacific Northwest landscape, you’re probably dead inside :) It’s also a fun social activity. I’ve taken out of town guests, friends, family, and just about anyone I can drag along with me. Every single person (except for my sister, who can’t swim and was pretty much scared to death the entire time) kept saying what a great idea it was and how they couldn’t wait to go back. I took one of my out of town friends here last week. Since it was kind of spontaneous, he showed up in sneakers (while I was in my daily uniform of flip flops, shorts and tank). Andrew was so kind to let him borrow a pair of waterproof booties and to squeeze us in for two boards despite them being super busy. Another time, my friend and I came here for evening SUP yoga and despite the 75-​degree weather, it was pretty damn cold once you get on the water and they let us borrow sweaters! Andrew & team are just really knowledgeable, considerate and amazing all around. I highly recommend Surf Ballard.
As if you need more incentive to try them out, they also have Groupons! And they’re located right next to Paseo! Go! Bring a towel, wear something that can dry quickly (lululemon shorts and workout tops are great), and don’t forget sunscreen.
P. S. That’s probably the only downside to this place, they sell a small bottle of sunscreen for like $ 10!
P. P. S. They rent out waterproof pouch for $ 3 so you can bring your phone and take pictures of the seals (if you’re like me). You can also ask them to keep your keys for you while you go SUP-​ing.
P.P.P.S. Their bathroom rocks.

Got an amazon deal for SUP. The ladies at the shop were very nice. The shop has an instructional video online (if you’re a newbie watch it! So helpful). Also, highly recommended to make reservations online.
Only downside as many reviewers have mentioned is having to carry the board across the street to get to the water. The boards were a little heavy for my friend and I on the way back to the shop after paddling for 2 hours (thankfully, a kind gentlemen offered to help us. Thank you stranger!)
We tried to paddle out to discovery park. We probably got ¾ of the way there but headed back with an hour left because we were worried we wouldn’t make it back against the wind. Overall, it was a fun experience and I would definitely want to give it another try.
Tip: bring cash with you to grab some Paseo’s next door after paddling!

I’ve been stand-​up paddling in the Seattle area for 3 years, and this is my favorite place to rent from. While you have to pay attention to the wind and tides, it is way better scenery and animal/​marine life (seals, sea lions, bald eagles, osprey, sea stars, etc) than Lake Washington or Lake Union. No two days are ever exactly alike.
It always makes me laugh when people give one and two star reviews and then admit that they were in the wrong (came back late, took life jackets off the boards) — pretty obvious entitlement issues there. Just follow the rules and everyone has a good time.
The staff here are super friendly and once you rent a few times you feel like an old friend. Now they have a new online reservation system to rent boards too, which makes it even more convenient — just be sure to make a reservation on sunny summer weekends (although winter paddling is great too!)