September Surfing in Tamarindo

For many of us, September and October offer a brief respite for the craziness that tourism, the life and blood of this hamlet called Tamarindo, brings. Don’t get me wrong, we love tourists and their value to us enables most of us to enjoy the Pura Vida lifestyle to which we have become accustomed.

Just like my second home, Whistler, September and October are our slowest months - our off-season so to say. And let’s face it, everyone needs a vacation. Even the Tamarindons. (Is that a word?). A lot of restaurants including my favorite Chinese to go place are closed, and the bars are quiet at night. But there isn’t anyone on the surf breaks…anywhere!

This past week it has been a perfect storm here of sunny mornings, excellent southern hemi swell, light winds and open breaks. During the high season, I never surf the main break in Tamarindo because it is full of beginners taking lessons…and I feel that anyone who can hold their own on a board has no right to be surfing with the people who have flown thousands of miles to learn a life changing experience.

So to be able to surf the main break for me is a treat!

This past week we have seen some excellent swell hit on a SSW vector almost veering into a westerly at times. Waves have averaged 4 to 5 feet in the past couple of days, with bombs coming in overhead plus.

My personal favorite break is Pico Grande, the rocks just to the south of Witch’s Rock Surf Camp. While the waves usually trend to the south side creating a right break, this week boomers have been hitting the point break on an unusual direction making for an outstanding left surf break. Just don’t do what my friend Rudi from Radical Surf did, and wipe out on the take off over an exposed reef. Damn it was a top ten wipe-out! But he pulled himself together and showed us all why he is one of the best instructors in town!

This morning Joe Walsh, the owner of WRSC, and I hit the river mouth early. Joe kicked some ass while I pretty much got my ass kicked. Coffee, some French toast and a new application of wax, and we hit Casitas across the Tamarindo Estuary for about 90 minutes until we got blown out by the onshore winds. We both caught some half decent waves while Joe’s brother-n-law Happy filmed us. And there were only 4 of us on the break – sweet!

On my last wave I got shacked! ( Shacked means a perfect wipe out right? Hahaha! - I am still pulling sand from out of my ass.

So if you want to come down for perfect surf, and enjoy Tamarindo with the locals, then these are the months to do it!

Visit Patrick Smyth's new bog at www.patrick.tc