Surf Spots: El Salvador

Surf Spot: Playa Los Cobanos, El Salvador

I only say this was a "surf spot" because our Storm Rider Surf Guide told us to stop there for a long board wave. Lies. No one in the town remembers anyone ever surfing there. We camped in the dining room of a restaurant on the beach. The tides come right up into the restaurant dining rooms. The rocks in the bay are beautiful. A big meal can be had for US$3. We arrived on Ash Wednesday and the town's residents chase eachother around in the dark throwing eggs, ash and water-- lots of screaming and laughing, especially from the children.

Surf Spot: Mizata, Km 81, El Salvador

All the surf spots in this country seem to be clocked by kilometers on the CA-2, the coastal road. We spotted this one from the road and parked in the sun by a barbed wire fence to walk out on the black sand to the beach break. The waves were overhead and the paddle out was treacherous if you didn't walk out the point and paddle around. It was a fun, deserted wave, but as we drove out of town, we saw a right point break wave at the river mouth that looked even better. There's a posh little place to stay called “The Last Resort.”

Surf Spot: El Tunco & Zunzal, El Salvador

Hori-zonte hostel deck-- dorm beds $12

Crowded. I mean, really crowded. Minimum 30 people, up to 100 people, on the break at Zunzal. Zunzal breaks in multiple spots, so that supports the crowd a bit, but it's still a crowd. Lots of beginner surfers. There is a beach break (Bocana) right in front of El Tunco. It wasn't good when we were there. El Tunco is a gringo-packed beach town with bars and restaurants. All levels of accomodation are available. They try to charge you $1 to drive into town. Forrest refused to pay it. They let us in anyway, realizing they would lose more than $1 in tourist spending.

Surf Spot: El Zonte, Km 53, El Salvador

Great right hand point break packed with gringo surfers and a handful of local boogie boarders. The wave is slightly tide effected, and a higher tide is better. There are still kids surfing at lower tide, but watch the rocks at the point! I got smashed and crashed on my first paddle out, and I'm pretty intimidated by the crowds, but Forrest caught a bunch of good waves. There is a great hostel with a breezy deck overlooking the surfbreak. Two pools and gardens make this a great base: Horizonte Hotel (they seem to love pun-ny names here).

Surf Spot: Km 59 or K59, El Salvador

Just west of El Zonte at the kilometer 59, there is a fun right point break. (It should be noted that the roads don't actually have kilometer markers. You have to judge where you are by the names of restaurants and businesses or ask.) The only places to stay here are private houses for rent. There are a couple guys selling beer on the beach that will watch your car if you park it by their stand. The road down to the beach is horrible. It's as if the local homeowners rip up the road in order to keep the wave more private for themselves and their renters-- not something I would put past territorial surfers.

Forrest catches a wave in a windy session at Punta Mango

Surf Spot: Punta Mango, El Salvador

On the first day, Forrest claimed: “Best wave I have ever surfed.” Punta Mango, which is just west of El Cuco and Las Flores, is reached by a dirt road. The guidebooks tell you that you cannot get there by road. This is categorically untrue. It is a 30 minute drive from El Cuco, outside the rainy season, a 2WD vehicle would be fine. There is a hostel just shy of the town of Agua Fria called Rancho Mango. The accomodations are basic but the food and hospitality is great.

The wave is a right point break that can line up perfectly and produce clean barrel after barrel. This is how it was the first morning. Boats bring international surfers in from the resorts at El Cuco and Las Flores by 6am. It pays to get up early and walk down to the ocean in the dark so you can have the wave to youself for 45 minutes. The wind picks up by 9am and sometimes doesn't die down for an evening session. It is possible for the morning session to get blown out and then the beautiful lines of barrels go away and it feels like you are paddling around in a washing machine.