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Getting old and slow with a bad back is what caused my problem. It had little to do with technique (although I could have stayed seated the whole time and got wet but slid up the beach upright). As anyone with sciatic problems can tell you, you cannot jump up and move as quickly as you used to. That being said, I had no gear lost and almost no damage. I had a small nut pull out of the top of my bait tank that holds my gaff holder. And maybe some sand in my reels.
San Onofre is a different animal for launching and landing than most beaches due to the shallow reef extending just off the shore to good ways out. It does not allow for much clearance for pedal drives, except during the high tide. At minus tides, you can have to drag your kayak a couple hundred feet out to clear the rocks. This reef also makes for multiple sets of breakers for different swell heights and directions. So you have to take care when traveling parallel to the shore there. Also, depending on the surf, what is the perfect approach for one size and direction of swell may be the wrong approach for the next encounter. There is a small channel between reef sections just South of the parking area that is a great route in on small to mid size days. But the biggest waves are there when the surf is up.
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