There’s been a lot of wind and rain on the South Shore this past month, and while April offered up some decent days of rideable surf, it was mostly a bust, with a lot of overcast conditions and cold temperatures. The skies were grey, aside from a few days of sunshine, and yet I decided to shed the thicker wetsuits anyway, transitioning to rubbers in the 4/3 millimeter range, but with hoods, boots, and gloves still a main part of the armor. Some guys will pull their hoods down when the sun is out, but I get brain freeze too quickly, plus I like the extra protection to help keep water out of my ears… so I’m usually hooded for longer into the season than others.
Currently, I'm on a plane on my way down to Central America. The forecast for the Guanacaste area in northern Costa Rica is looking fun with Jeb-sized SSW swell pulsing in a few times during my stay. Somewhere around the middle of the trip I should see all the breaks in the area where I stay light up with chest to overhead surf and decent winds. Tides are lining up for some fun morning sessions right in my neighborhood, and my strategy of surfing the better known spots, at less crowded times, finding river mouths at lower tides, and hunting shoulders at the more closed-out peaks down the beach, should serve me well.
I’m not used to surfing in crowds anymore. I avoid them at home like the plague. So sitting in a pack of 100 surfers isn’t my first choice, ever. The last few times I visited Costa Rica, the waves were large and in charge, the beach breaks were maxed out, and everyone was surfing the river mouths and points for protection. This time things should be a little more spread out. Some of the more exposed beach breaks in the area have a way of turning small swell into overhead epic-ness. I’m hoping I catch it good, or not. Either way, I'm glad just to be in a tropical climate.
I brought the GoPro with me, and I hope to clamp it to a nearby tree to get some landscape shots of my surf sessions. So expect some content above and beyond my typical Instagram postings. I’ve been working out the hips constantly the past month and getting myself in shape to perform at the highest level my 50-year old body will allow. Bulging discs in my neck and lower back, sciatic nerve pain down to my toes, crickety-crackety knees, hips, and ankles… fuck it, I’m out there until I can’t anymore. That’s how it’s going to be. I hope you’re surfing where you are.
APRIL GALLERY (not including recent CR)
I'm not your average normal dude...