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| various surf breaks near popoyo |
Nicaragua is most famous in surfing for its off-shore breeze. After a week of what I would call an "off-shore hurricane," I'm calling it over-rated.
Because of a huge inland lake (Lago Nicaragua), the prevailing wind here in Nica is constantly blowing from the lake to the ocean (off-shore). This means you can surf almost any time of day and not worry about the wind ruining the waves. Timing the waves with the tides or just with sleeping in is no problem.
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| catching a wave at sunset |
But, the wind actually blows little waves from the beach at you. Sometimes, when you stand up on a wave, you will literally be blown off your board. Between sessions, while relaxing in the shade, the wind will blow sunglasses off your head and tear pages out of your book.
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| overlooking Popoyo from "Mag Rock" |
This wind also creates a natural phenomena called "upwelling" (the science of this was described to me late one night by one of our bunkmates in the dormitory at our hostel, I don't understand it any more than I do basic math, so if you are curious, I suggest the Internet).
Upwelling makes the ocean water a lot cooler than anywhere north of here that we have surfed on this trip. We did little-to-no research, and just assumed the water would keep getting warmer as we went south--silly us. Most people surf here with a long-sleeved rash guard or even a spring suit. But, if you have ever waterskied on Memorial Day Weekend in a lake in Minnesota, this water will feel great by comparison.
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