How these are made
Every place on this site has a source file behind it. The sources are printed on the page itself, along with the claims we could not document — because a print of somebody's home town should survive being checked by somebody who lives there.
Research first
Before anything is drawn, each place gets a source file. How much documentation it needs follows the claims the text makes: a page that states a year or an event carries more sources than a page that describes what the picture shows. Where the record is thin or contradictory, the text stays narrow. Gaps are not filled with plausible-sounding history.
Drawn, not photographed
These are original illustrations built from reference, not photographs and not tracings. Detail is removed on purpose so the thing that makes a place recognisable is the thing you see first. Each page says what was left out, and why.
Made with AI tools, edited by people
The artwork is produced with AI-assisted illustration tools under our own art direction, then reworked by hand for print. Facts are checked against named sources in a separate pass from the writing, and the date of that check is printed on the page.
Common questions
Are these prints affiliated with the places they show?
No. Surf Haunts is independent. A place name is used only to identify the subject depicted, never to suggest endorsement. Where a venue has given written permission, the page says so directly.
What if something on a page is wrong?
Write to us with the correction and, where possible, a source. Corrections are made on the page and the verification date is updated.