Surfing El Salvador

My first trip to El Salvador was in May of 2010. I stayed in El Tunco in a rad little bungalow overlooking the rivermouth at La Bocana. During this trip we surfed mainly along the west coast, taking just one overnight trip to the east to surf Las Flores. Although most of our days were spent surfing, we also got to see beautiful volcanos, ancient Mayan ruins and the fishing village, La Libertad. It was during this trip that I started to fall in love with El Salvador.

I visited El Salvador again in November of that same year. I was doing a medical mission in Guatemala and after it's completion we decided to cross the border for a few days. During that time I stayed in El Zonte. El Zonte is a small surf village divided by a rivermouth. The rivermouth helps form a perfect right point break that produces consistent waves. I met amazing people, ate incredible food and surfed some pretty fun waves in El Zonte. This trip solidified my love for El Salvador.

Since that last trip to El Zonte I've traveled to many places, but I was left dreaming of El Salvador. The sounds of roosters waking me up at dawn, chicken and cattle roaming the streets, the delicious pupusas, endless right point breaks, warm water, consistent waves, beautiful sunrises and sunsets, the tranquility and peaceful vibe, surfing until the point of exhaustion, naps in hammocks, the culture and the wonderful people… My list could go on and on.

My friends laugh at me when I say "this place has my heart". But, it does. I needed to go back. Period. And so, this past week I found myself back in El Salvador, back in El Zonte to be exact. 

~El Zonte~

El Zonte was just as I remember. This time we stayed on the east side of the rivermouth at K53 1/2 at a place called Casa Tia Tita. I cannot say enough good things about this place. The owners, as well as the caretakers are some of the most amazing people I have ever met. I can't imagine this trip without them. Mario, Morena and Laura took care of us from the moment we walked through the door. Mario was up with us at dark each morning ready to help us load our boards and take us wherever we wanted to surf, even if that meant driving to multiple locations. We came home from surfing each morning and an amazing El Salvadorian breakfast was on the table for us within minutes. I could write a whole post on the meals that Laura cooked for us each day, but briefly put it was like staying in the best local restaurant in town. We asked for only local cuisine and each day we had 3 deliciously prepared El Salvadorian style meals. Besides the waves, this was definitely a highlight of our trip!

El Zonte is a very small town and it was amazing to see some of the same people I had met 3 years ago. More amazingly they remembered me as I have not been in contact with some of them for years. Through word of mouth it had gotten back to one of the guys that I was in El Zonte and our last night he appeared at our house with his wife and new baby. It was so great to see him and meet his son. People always ask me why I love El Salvador so much and honestly this is part of it. Besides the food and the waves the people of El Salvador will keep me coming back.

rivermouth in El Zonte

low tide ~ cove in El Zonte

A few polaroids I took while hanging around Casa Tia Tita.

pool area

boys checking the surf

downtime before the next session

With surfing comes early mornings and without fail I was up each morning to watch the sunrise. Mornings were pretty epic in El Zonte. Sunrise along the beach was majestic, with no two mornings the same. Here are some pictures from my early morning walks along the beach in front of our place. 

Early a.m. lightning storm 

low tide by the river mouth

Unfortunately I don't have much for wave pictures. We traveled along the coast to surf various breaks and when it was good I was out there. Lucky for us that meant our whole trip. We scored shoulder to head high waves every day and the first few days had waves in the overhead range. Here are a couple pictures I took in front of the El Zonte beach breaks. These beach breaks are located to the West of the main point on the other side of the rivermouth. 

For one reason or another I wasn't nearly as good at capturing the sunsets. Sometimes I was swimming or just out surfing, other times the hammock held me captive. Here are a few of my sunset pics. 

El Zonte

These first two shots were taken in the evening just after sunset. I hope you like them as I got eaten alive by mosquitos in the process.

~K59~ 

K59 is a right-handed cobblestone point break that is arguably one of the best waves in El Salvador. It is situated in a gated community with limited access which helps keep the crowd to a minimum. My friend Walter lives at and runs K-lodge. I met Walter 3 years ago in El Zonte and we have remained in touch since then. K-lodge is directly in between K59 and K61 (this break is known by the locals as Middles). I would recommend his place to anyone that is traveling down to El Salvador and wants affordable lodging in walking distance to K59. The walk from Walter's house to K59 takes about 10 minutes, but offers some pretty amazing views along the way. The first day we surfed here the sets were a solid 7-8ft. I am proud of myself for even paddling out. The wave is fast and that day the line-up was pretty packed. The current was strong and the paddle out was tough, but I made it. We surfed there again later in the week as the swell started to fade. That day still had shoulder to head high sets, but much more manageable as far as I was concerned. That day proved to be one of my favorites. 

 cattle along the path from K-lodge to K59

beautiful views along the way

I had no idea Samuel was tucked in the palapa snapping pics or I would have waited to put on my war paint… haha

fun waves on our last day at K59 ~ photo credit Samuel Gonzalez

~Punta Roca/La Paz~

Punta Roca is a world class right point break with three main sections. The top of the point is a hollow, fast wave called "La Punta". The middle section is in front of the cemetery and the inside cove is called La Paz. This wave is located in La Libertad and visitors to this spot should use common sense when in and around this town. It can be a dangerous place for surfers and theft is very common.  

La Paz

Punta Roca

~El Tunco~

In El Tunco you will find some of the most consistent surf in the country. There are four different breaks in El Tunco; La Bocana to the East, La Bocanita next and then El Sunzalito and El Sunzal to the West.

~El Sunzal~ 

Right point break that is fun on bigger swells. It is primarily a longboard wave with several sections, breaking left at times when the angle is right. 

~La Bocana~ 

La Bocana is located on the rivermouth and is one of the only true lefts in the country. It has both left and right sections and is fast and powerful.

checking the surf at La Bocana

Rivermouth at La Bocana 

~La Bocanita and El Sunzalito~

El Sunzalito and La Bocanita are powerful beach breaks that tend to be packed with locals. These breaks can get quite heavy on bigger days.  We sat at Coco Bar one afternoon and watched the local guys put on a show at La Bocanita. There wasn't much size, but the wave provided the perfect launch pad for some pretty epic airs. Here are a few pics I took while having some drinks at the bar.

the crew having some drinks at Coco Bar

The end of another adventure. Memories of good times with some pretty amazing people. There is no doubt I'll be going back, until then I'll be dreaming... 

Santa Catalina

My friends and I will use any excuse to go on a trip. Mel is leaving San Diego to attend Grad School. Sounds like a good reason to go to Catalina doesn't it? We know Riverside isn't that far and we may see her on weekends but Mel is rad and she needs a proper farewell. We're going to miss her. So we're going to mourn our loss, if you will, by celebrating with a weekend full of shenanigans and we're going to celebrate it Catalina style, complete with a 6 man golf cart. I mean, why not?!?!

and so it begins...

The 6 of us set out from Dana Point boarding the Catalina Express, suitcases in tow, ready for another adventure. The Catalina Express operates from 4 different ports and offers up to 30 round trips daily. The crew is accommodating and friendly and makes one of the best Bloody Mary's I've ever had.

Catalina Express

On the way to Catalina we are lucky enough to see a school of dolphins porpoising through the water. If you're not familiar with the term, "porpoising" refers to dolphins repeatedly jumping as they rapidly swim forward, swimming at speeds up to 22 mph. As a surfer I feel lucky to see dolphins in the water on a pretty regular basis, but never have I seen this many in the open water. As if that wasn't cool enough, on the way home the crew spotted a few whales and stopped the boat so we could watch them. Although it was no Shamu Show we still were able to watch them logging in the distance. "Logging" is a surfacing behavior that whales exhibit while at rest. It is lying without forward movement at the surface of the water with the dorsal fin or parts of the back exposed. Not much action but still very cool to see.

short video clip of the dolphins (actual clip on my instagram looks a lot better!)

Although Catalina is only 22 miles from the coast of Southern California, the island seems like another country. It is remote and can only be accessed by boat. Travel around the island is mainly done via golf cart and because there are so few cars on the island, there isn't a single traffic light. The golf cart definitely added an element of fun to the Catalina experience. Dude, where's our cart?!?! 

Catalina is one of the Channel Islands, a string of eight semi-submerged mountains off the Southern California coastline. Avalon is Catalina's main town. It is only one square mile in size, but offers many places to eat, drink and shop. It has the feel of a beach town, but because it can be a little touristy we decided to stay in Hamilton Cove. Hamilton Cove is a private cove next to Avalon. It reminds me of Greece. It has a Mediterranean feel with beautiful white villas tucked in the hillside along the edge of the water. I would highly recommend this area to anyone planning a trip to Catalina. 

view from our balcony

Hamilton Cove at dusk

along the scenic drive

having a little fun at Descanso Beach

One of my favorite parts of the trip was seeing and actually interacting with some of the deer on the island. We pulled our golf cart over the first afternoon and the deer actually came right up to us, eating right from my hand. So rad!

This guy actually had his nose right on my iPhone!

The babies were so cute!!

sunset ~ Saturday night

Another trip in the books and I'm again reminded of how blessed I am to have such an amazing group of girlfriends. They are not only my friends, but the nurses who are by my side in the hospital on a daily basis. And if you know nurses, you know we know how to have a good time :) Melblake7 your going to be missed!!