RE: Exploring new Surfspots on Algarves West Coast
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Amazing photos and conditions. Yes, if I look carefully at the waves they don't look easy to get into - there is not much space between where it is already steep and feathering and the shoulder that is too flat... Meaning you have to be exactly in the right place. Big waves tend to be shifty as well!
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Cheers. Yes, pretty fat waves but they were getting better and more hollow towards the end. In Australia they would have arrived with jet skies already. :)
But so much fun to watch that day. Whats your guess on the size? I would say these huge set waves are around 8 foot?
Haha - the size depends if you're asking a Hawaiian or a Floridian! I think the whole wave size measurement system is ridiculous, and we should just measure waves by their honest height (in which case the sets are quite a lot more than 8 foot!).
It almost seems like we are told to measure waves by how tall the swell is before it stands up to break, which is ridiculous because most proper spots double in size. As someone who stands a touch over 6ft1 myself, I've basically learnt that if it's about head high it's "3 foot" and so on... (if I want to sound cool of course)... sigh!
According to a hardcore surfer (which I am not) - I think they'd say the waves being ridden are 4-5 foot, and the biggest sets look about 6-7 foot...
Personally, this looks like it would be at about my limit if I'm honest. If there was a lot of current, water moving around or the waves were difficult to catch (like you mention here) or very exposed to the open ocean rather than a perfect pointbreak, then I'd probably be using my 7'0 board rather than a normal one! I plan to surf this kind of size a little more often as I get fitter again, and I don't intend to go much beyond this size, even though there are definitely spots in Cape Town where the opportunity is there for the nutcases and 10-20 foot waves on their 10 foot "gun" boards. It actually surprises me how many nutcases they are... but it's dangerous and they have to train specially and dedicate their lives to it.
well thats true...I also never understood the size debate. I was just curious since I´m bad at guessing. But it was decent waves and anyway the most important thing is to have fun.
Although it looked tempting from the outside I´m happy I did not paddle out. Would be definitely my limit as well. I prefer smaller surf as well. For me shoulder to head high is perfect.
I know you guys have some serious spots over there. When I was in Hout Bay, the host of our Airbnb sent me a shot from a spot outside. Can´t remember the name. Thats definitely over head :) haha
For sure - your post definitely looks big enough to be scary with the clean up sets!
The big wave spot near Hout Bay is Dungeons, but this picture you've just shared is so big (surfer is on a tow board) it might even be the deeper Tafelberg Reef section at the back of Dungeons.
We also have a Sunset Reef near Kommetjie and Bayview in Hermanus that only break when enormous, and some others that look nearly doable at their absolute smallest... Nearly... not really...
I did used to surf one wave at its smallest - catching 4-6 foot insiders and trying not to get cleaned up (too often - it always happened once or twice) by maybe 6-8 foot sets - that's where I want to get back into but it's exposed open ocean power at that size and so a two wave clean up can drag you in about 100m!... That spot can break perfectly at much bigger too, and then it gets absolutely insane. I should try get footage one day.