Spring Break in Cabo

The recent swell in southern California has been called some of the best the west coast has seen in years. Surfline.com’s coverage uses words like epic, all time, and going off. (Check out their photo essays for the proof). While all that was happening, I was about 1000 miles south in the town of San Jose Del Cabo watching the Sea of Cortez wallop the shore. Sitting alongside me were Shannon Sommers and Jennifer Hamrock from Hatteras- both schoolteachers on spring break. I was lucky enough to join them- leaving my almost two-year-old daughter at home with grandma and dad for the first time. A few weeks before leaving I was wondering if we would even go surfing, I had heard Cabo was a summer wave and we’d be too early for the south swells. I honestly didn’t mind. I just wanted to go somewhere warm with friends- sip cocktails by the pool, go shopping, and just have some me time. When I arrived Shannon showed me the surf forecast and I was worried we wouldn’t get to surf at all if it didn’t get any smaller soon!

Shannon and Jenn joked yet were perfectly serious about the fact that every time they go on a trip the waves are huge. We are all experienced surfers and have traveled to Hawaii, Central America, mainland Mexico, Puerto Rico and such, but our full-time jobs, weekend warrior status and a cold water winter has made us soft and weak. One day, we actually rented a car to drive away from the biggest waves with hopes of finding something more accomadating. We stopped at Shipwrecks on the east cape on our way to Nine Palms and it was firing. The whole coastline was lined up like photos in a magazine- I was in the midst of someone’s dream surf trip, and my out of shape ass couldn’t handle it! On any other day Nine Palms was probably a super mellow right pointbreak perfect for log riding. The day we drove onto the sand, it was a 30 minute paddle to the outside with six wave sets in the eight to 12-foot range and an occasional larger cleanup set. I watched one determined gal try to paddle out three times, saw some too tan sponsored high school girls get out fairly easy, saw a bomb set that sent everyone scrambling into frothy whitewater, saw another person paddling out with a helmet, and that was enough for me to stay put on the beach and work on my tan.

The waves did eventually get a bit smaller and we surfed close to our resort at break called Zippers and another wave called Old Mans. Zippers is a lot of fun- a fast beach-break, which incidentally the local bodyboarders love. Old Mans is more of a longboard wave- meaning the waves are fat and easier to catch on a bigger board, though the swell was big enough I rode it on my 6′ Okazaki and got some decent rides.

The cool thing about San Jose Del Cabo is you don’t need to bring a surfboard. Costa Azul surf shop is right across from Zippers and they rent boards (they have a wide range of styles) for cheap and will even give you a ride to a different break. Shannon and Jenn saved at least $100 in airline surcharges. (I was extremely lucky and wasn’t charged either way for my board!) Downtown San Jose has some nice restaurants and good shopping. Shannon is fluent in Spanish and was able to barter all her purchases to a much lower price. We didn’t need a car, a taxi ride is $5 to go anywhere. And taxi’s are a good option when you are visiting tequila shops where you can taste test before you buy!

The main town on Cabo San Lucas is about 20 minutes away and we did go there one night for the whole tourist experience. It’s a party town and they have adopted the slogan Las Vegas uses- “what happens in Cabo, stays in Cabo.” Over and over we heard working locals say- “you are on vacation, drink lots, nobody knows you are here, get wild, etc” So they promote irresponsibility and we saw plenty of it!  The resort where we stayed was very family oriented, so I guess Cabo and the surrounding area appeals to all types. But let me tell you when that happy hour bell rings and you just surfed all day and are relaxing under a palm tree, an ice cold pina colada is just about the perfect way to welcome the sunset.

Shorebreak Anyone?