In my last blog, I briefly mentioned Panga Drops the surf
break that we've been surfing the most here on the Iguana property. It is a break that definitely deserves its
own blog if not for anything other than the varying levels of fun and
frustration that it dishes out pretty regularly. There are almost always waves breaking on the
reef to surf, and we were lucky enough to have 7+ days of solid waves due to
back-to-back-to-back south swells that pushed through Central America starting
on Friday the 13th. The downside was
that several of these days were accompanied by 30MPH offshore winds. I've never
in my life seen white caps on the ocean surface due to off shore winds
until last week. Santa Ana winds in
Southern California at their peak seem like a mild breeze compared to what
we've been experiencing. This is due to
the large lake (Lake Nicaragua) that lies due east. Normally it'll produce mild to brisk off
shores making this region a surfer's paradise during south swell season. The winds that have been hitting us in
December are typically more characteristic of January, but they decided to show
up a little early this year.
Photo: Blown
conditions in the December swell:
The building days of the biggest of the three shots of swell
we received produced occasionally fun conditions last Friday 13th, Saturday 14th
and Sunday the 15th when the winds weren't crushing it. Even when the waves are fun, you can catch
one and then have to take a set of 10-12 overhead waves on the head to get back out to the lineup. To get into waves out here you also have to constantly
paddle to put yourself in position to catch the wave since the peak shifts over
the reef with regularity changing the takeoff spot. This can be the most frustrating side of
Pangas.
Photo: Pangas when
you don't want to get caught inside:
The fun side of Pangas can be a left, or more frequently, a
better right, that can produce a speedy wall of water that will allow you a few
solid turns as it peels over the reef propelling you towards the beach. Good rides out here can be 100 yards or more
on a solid day when it's lining up.
Another really fun side of the break is the local crew that we've gotten to
know surfing out there. Always great
conversation, joking or discussion about what the days conditions are, even if
a cleanup set just came in and sent everyone half way back to the beach.
Photo: Playful Pangas:
On Tuesday the 16th, one of the peak days of the swell, we suited
up in the morning after seeing mild off shores and set waves in the 2 to 3 foot
overhead range. A great looking day out
at Panga's based on our visual morning surf check. Within 5 minutes of paddling out the winds
were gusting well over 30MPH causing the wave to be very difficult to catch,
even at size. You could easily paddle
your guts out on the breaking peak of a 7 foot wave only to be blown out over
the top while receiving a blinding blast of water in the face which is probably
the equivalent of being shot with a fire hose.
Photo: Beat down Pangas:
While difficult to catch these waves, they weren't
impossible. It definitely changed the
take off making it more vertical on the peak by the time you could match the
wave speed with paddle speed and quite often blinded you until you got to your
feet to actually surf the wave. If you
didn't make the wave, the backside of the peak would pelt you with a stinging
rain that shot back at you from the foamy lip that just passed. Both Melissa and I had several fun sessions
this last week with great waves, but this Tuesday session was by far the least fun of them all
(for me at least). I chose to ride my
FireWire which is an epoxy board far too light to paddle in these
conditions. This resulted in no waves
ridden and many inglorious beatings as I
tried futilely to stroke into some bombing inside waves. Melissa ended up catching a couple really
nice waves. One that I watched from the
beach as I licked my wounds was a long right that clocked in at a few feet
overhead. As she took off she looked
like she was moving in slow motion while the ripping winds almost held her in
place as she popped to her feet. Once
she broke free, the wave walled up giving her a beautiful ride all the way to
the inside.
Photo: Representative
of the bomb Melissa caught:
The last few days of the swell saw the winds die down and
fun head high to overhead conditions. We
all were scoring lots of great rides as
the morning winds and tides cooperated on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of
this week. There are noticeably more
people in the water with the Christmas holiday afoot brining people in for an
extended holiday.
Photo: Party wave
with the crew at a busy Pangas on the holiday:
As the Christmas Holiday filled in we had plenty of fun
small waist to chest high swell on the reef and the beach break. The low tide tended to favor the reef
when it bottomed out and the high tide made a sand bar just a click south of Pangas super fun.
We're looking forward to another 5 weeks in Nica before
heading to Bocas Del Toro, Panama on Feb 7th.
Special thanks to Tom for the photos and the local crew that make
surfing Panaga Drops so much fun.
Cheers to you all!
Note: Many of these
photos were not taken during the week I've written about here, but they are
entirely representative of what surfing at this break is like, no doubt.
Photo: Sunset on Panga Drops:
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