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Tamarindo. Costa Rica. My new favorite place in the world. I recently got back from a 12-day surf safari where I stayed at Witch’s Rock Surf Camp. Normally I would write a large entry on all of my adventures and thoughts. But this trip is beyond words. For once, I find it difficult to write about my experience there. In fact I would go so far to say that the experience transcends the written word. Much like seeing the Grand Canyon for the first time or being in love (corny, yes, but to hell with it).
What did I do on the trip? Surf. Surf my guts out. Surf till my arms, back, elbows, and shoulders groaned with pain. Surfed till my armpits were rubbed raw. Surfed till my lips blistered and my skin darkened and my eyes became dazed red pits of dryed-out sun-burned shells. Surfed, gloriously surfed.
Costa Rica, amazing. The waves, delicious. I can’t even begin to convey how many good waves were scored. El Golfo, Playa Grande, Little Hawaii, Ollie’s Point (more about that later), Casitas, Marbella, Avellanos, Tamarindo Rivermouth, Langosta. All surf spots which served up warm, clean, waves of joy.
Playa Grande. Offshores with 2-3’ overhead barreling surf perfection, racing beach break peaks running left and right.
El Golfo. A reef break accessible by boat with heavy A-frames. Shallow rocks just below the surface make this wave one that makes you think twice. And makes it twice the fun.
Marbella. Oh sweet Marbella. Heavy, pitching, overhead racing barrels of thumping deep water beach break.
Avellanas. Sometimes hot, sometimes cold. Fun with the right wind, swell, tide, and crowds. Fun, friendly beach/reef combo break that is user friendly.
Little Hawaii. My last surf session of the trip occurred there at sunset. A fast, boiling, ledgy right hander breaking off of a super shallow reef. Only works on low tide.
Casitas. The local break. Fun to play around on. A beach break that runs left and right.
Ollie’s Point. What can I say about our day at Ollie’s Point? One word: epic. Not the epic occasionally thrown around to describe a good day of surf on a nice day. The kind of epic that describes beautiful art. The Sistine Chapel. Mona Lisa. This is a world-class break located in a National Sanctuary. A deep cove focuses and organizes the open-ocean wave energy. The waves move towards the shallow northern reef rocks where they are thrust upward and outward into a singular breaking point. The wave breaks off the rocks then races right along the perfect sandbar created by the rivermouth. All of this takes place in untouched natural beauty.
By itself this wave is an extremely rare formation and rare combination of different elements not found in many places in the world. But the stars further aligned for us. Imagine: a weather system that delivers clear blue skies and strong offshore winds, a big and strong long period south swell, a Panga boat loaded with a small assortment of surfers…one of them being an East Coast boy who is on his first visit to Costa Rica, who only started surfing 6 years ago when he rolled the dice and moved to San Diego, who by chance now finds himself at the crossroads of all of these conditions. Conditions, combinations, fate, and perfection like this could only possibly occur every decade or so to a lucky surfer such as myself.
When we first arrived to Ollie’s, the waves were only chest high. As the morning went on, the lines of fate and nature crossed and diverged until they formed a perfect point of pure light. Double-overhead sets were standing up and delivering rights that raced as fast as you could go. Offshore spray trails were blowing up and off the waves like small tornados. The steep waves were perfect for hard turns of delight, the board spitting and chattering as it skipped across the water at top speed. I can’t even begin to tell you how many good waves I caught that day. I can still hardly believe it myself. Surf perfection in a perfect setting of idyllic nature. Like a knight standing in shining armor, the power and beauty of the ocean, sky, and rain forest presented itself that day in all of its royal glory. I’m a truly lucky man to have been there.
Pura Vida.
Looks stunning. Costa Rica is going on my bucket list.
Thanks for sharing!