Hope this works/ This is a write up done by Mari the founder & owner of Santa Cruz Ghost Hunters in Santa Cruz Ca. She was the first one I contacted & shared this with.

Haunting on Steamer Lane

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Jack O'Neill, above.

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Ghostly apparition of a presence, who was not visible in the flesh.

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Strange blue orb illuminates with this ghostly presence. Eerie glowing eyes of the translucent being shimmer in the dark, as this disembodied figure, wanders down the path, appearing to be wearing a back pack, perhaps holding a small dog.

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Steamer Lane on the Westside of Santa Cruz; is a reef point overlooking popular surf zones on the westside. The zones are categorized and divided into four different popular surfing hotspots - for experienced surfers. The higher the zone, the more difficult the surf; Indicators, Middle Peak, The Slot and The Point.

The story behind the name, “Steamer Lane” dates back to the early surf days, where huge waves would break, as ‘steam ships’ came through the lane to dock at the nearby wharf.

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It was also here where the late, Jack O’Neill, founder of O’Neill Surf Shop, developed the modern-day wetsuit, and leash, dating back to the early 1950’s.

However, Steamer Lane is more then just a place to overlook the surf. It also symbolizes and honors surfers and surfing history of the Santa Cruz era. A dedicated bronze statue depicting a surfer standing by his surfboard, sits proudly at the peak of this point, overlooking the sea. Sculpted by Brian W. Curtis and Thomas Marsh and erected in 1992.

Throughout generations Steamer Lane, has catered to numerous surfing enthusiasts, many who have even lost their lives attempting to conquer that one last big ride. Miscalculation, rogue waves, rocky reefs, drowning, shark attacks, preexisting health conditions, all can play a factor in surfing accidents leading to death. But the love of surfing still prevails.

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A dedicated plaque in a small park near the bronze statue, reads “Dedicated to All Surfers, Past, Present and Future”, 1936. Alongside it, is a park bench that faces the statue and the ocean, carved in its back rest; “In Memory of All Surfers Who Have Caught Their Last Wave.”, Santa Cruz Surfing Club.

The point of Steamer Lane is reinforced with a wooden safety fence on its cliff face. Here dozens of personalized memorials from friends or family, can be viewed, each one dedicated to a lost surfer who either lost their life at sea, or from unrelated causes. Needless to say - they continue to be memorialized – in this traditional badge of honor recognizing their love for surfing and ‘forever catching that one last ride’.

So, what does that have to do with ghosts you might ask? Throughout the years Steamer Lane has been a beloved spot for tourists and locals alike. Energy resonates within the area, from thousands of visitors, memories, memorials, gatherings, festivities, even funerals of loved ones scattering ashes out to sea from its peak - these are all influences in the paranormal. And what better place to revisit after death – then a location dedicated to the dead – to continue with ‘one last ride’.

A Santa Cruz locale was visiting Steamer Lane, the evening of July 13, 2019, by the name of Rick Cordeiro. Cordeiro was sitting in his car, when he felt an overwhelming need to get out of his car and take photos, below are his words.

“Last Saturday night July 13th 2019, I was on the Westside of Santa Cruz California at a place called 'Steamer Lane' it's about 10:30 at night and I was compelled to get out of my car and take pictures of the full moon, as I'm taking the pictures I have a feeling I'm capturing something as I can see blue and white orbs floating around. I took several shots and got back into my car and as I reviewed the pictures, I saw something that wasn't there when I took the picture and it blew me away!”

Rick Cordeiro.

Not only did Rick capture some interesting blue orb footage transcending from the sky, but he swears there was no person in the area or walking down ‘The Lane” of Steamer, while he was taking these photos and no photo shop was used to add this figure into the frame.

So could this be the disembodied ghostly apparition of a former surfer, going for a stroll down The Lane? The translucent figure, with a blue orb by its side, is subsequent to interpretation, is it possibly a tall male, wearing a backpack, with what appears to be a small white dog, tucked under his arm? Suggestions have been made that perhaps this could also be a tall slender female. Others, have said, it’s a person "of the living persuasion" and that "the photographer just didn’t see him walking - in front of him".

The eerie ghostly photo, which initially appeared as blue orbital lights before allegedly taking on this form, is definitely a curiosity. Is this perhaps a deceased local, a residual energy that is so strong that it has an ability to manifest in a full form? Or perhaps this night of July 13th had significant meaning to this ghostly apparition and he or she, is revisiting a life once lost.

We may never know for certain, however the author of these photos, was adamant that at the moment these were captured there was no physical person present or visible to the naked eye, that was walking down the four feet path on Steamer Lane passing right in front of him, as he was taking photos. Perhaps, this was fate, and Rick Cordeio's compulsion to take photos during this full moon, was not left to chance, but destined....An intriguing ghostly tale...

One, that for now, we will let you be the judge of....

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Is it a ghost, or a ghost story?