Costa Rica: Surfline unveils new pocket guide
Picture yourself on the wave in the photograph. But first, picture yourself on an airplane bound for Costa Rica, site of this zipping right-hander, and many others like it.
This is your first or possibly second journey to the sun-drenched, surf-blessed Central American paradise, and your sense of adventure is soaring.
If this is or will soon be you, do yourself a favor and pick up Surfline’s new “Costa Rica Surf Guide” ($14.95, Surfline.com). It’ll help you get more out of the experience.
It’s not intended to be the most comprehensive surfing guide. In fact, it’s pocket-sized and features only a few dozen spots and, as Surfline founder Sean Collins states, “We avoid pointing out the exact locations of some of the more sensitive frontier spots so you may continue on that tradition of surf exploration.”
But the guide does transport you to each prime region and highlights many premier surfing breaks. It notes the best means of access and optimum times for each season and swell direction. It describes what kind of board you’ll want for each spot, and explains which spots are suitable for beginners.
It also touches on the local vibe and hazards to watch out for, in some cases crocodiles!
It will assist greatly during your adventure, but extensive odysseys in rugged realms almost always call for detours and ad-libbing.
The Surf Guide, for example, profiles Pavones, a remote destination that features incredibly long waves and a jungle backdrop.
It almost dissuades surfers from visiting Pavones — home of that world-famous freight-train left-hander — by citing the break’s fickle nature, an eight-hour bus ride from the capital city of San Jose; or if flying from San Jose to Golfito, a bone-jarring two-hour cab ride.
However, there’s another way. I discovered Pavones by accident, while on a fishing trip out of Crocodile Bay Resort on the Osa Peninsula across Golfo Dulce. Our captain drove us to Pavones, we saw the tops blowing off 4- to 8-foot breakers, and for some in our group, a fishing trip became a surfing expedition.
Crocodile Bay, which has since added surfing expeditions to Pavones and nearby Matapalo to its list of guest activities, is not mentioned in the Surf Guide. (Nor is it for budget-conscious travelers.)
But that’s what adventures to foreign lands are all about. It’s wise to load up on proper literature, but the best discoveries are sometimes those you make on your own.
-- Pete Thomas
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