Stormrider Guide to surfing Oriente Salvaje

El Salvador, CENTRAL AMERICA & CARIBBEAN

Las Flores, Dan Haylock

Summary

+ World-class right pointbreaks	- South swells only
+ Unspoiled beaches	- Rain through swell season
+ Warm water and friendly winds	- Gets crowded during season
+ Cheap living	- Quiet nightlife

Surfers have discovered there’s more to El Salvador than the famous La Libertad rights. In fact, the Oriente Salvaje (Savage East) has forged a reputation for great waves suiting all abilities and now attracts more and more travellers to some epic right points. Fom the wilderness, boat access barrels of Punta Mango to the fun, sandy walls of Punta Flores where surf camps and a range of accommodation is available in a quiet bucolic setting.

When to Go

The narrow swell window favours S-SW swells, SW being the best direction. A true W swell will rarely get in to Eastern El Salvador unless it is huge. Highest consistency occurs during the wet invierno season from May-Oct, with some 8-12ft days. Winds are usually offshore in the mornings then shift to light to moderate SW onshores at mid-day, yet the points remain well wind-protected. Nov-Apr is the dry verano season, offering consistent surf in the 3-5ft range, when sunny offshore conditions prevail, often for days. The lack of strong local offshores prevents upwelling and the tidal range never goes over 1.8m, which only slightly affects most rocky pointbreaks.

Surf Spots

Easily accessed by road, the seaside resort of El Espino sits on a 12km long beachbreak surrounded by mangroves, a rivermouth and the impressive Chaparrastique volcano in the background. It is mainly a beginner spot, but the sand banks can line-up and offer tubes to the more experienced surfers. Punta Mango is the main attraction, an epic right pointbreak peeling over barnacle encrusted boulders. With a solid S-SW swell and an incoming tide, hollow racetrack walls deal out juicy barrels to the inevitable crowd of boaters, especially at its ideal size, from headhigh to double overhead. ItÕs possible to drive during the dry season, but the bad roads and thefts make the 30 minute boat ride from El Cuco or Flores advisable. La Ventana named after the hole in the cliff is a super-fun and very consistent beachbreak ideal for the smaller days. East of the headland has short peaks, while the west end of Ventana Beach has a righthander that can connect and get long rides in moderate swells. Best by boat and usually empty. Not for the faint-hearted, Toro de Oro is best accessed by boat due to the nasty, volcanic rock shoreline. Better with a bit of W in the swell to stop it sectioning off and swatting the unwary into a rock-strewn dead-end, it can look very appealing from the side, but only the best will negotiate the fast, long rides. Further inside in the next bay, La Vaca acts as a pressure valve for Las Flores, which gets a bit slow at high tide. The occasionally hollow rights are faster but shorter, and favour swells in the 2-6ft range. Intermediate to experienced surfers will focus on Las Flores, a Salvadorian dream set-up and one of the premier surfing locations in Central America. Compatible with the largest swells and always better at low tide, the waves first wrap around a rocky point full of palm trees, jack up over the take-off rocks, then reel off down a sandbar offering more speed and barrelling sections. Lengthy rides up to 300m are common, but the increasing crowds make it hard to get priority. Mellower shoulders at high tide but still fun. Beware of panga traffic through the line-up. El Cuco, a tiny village abandoned during the civil war is now home to several surf camps and consistent beachbreak that is often slow and mushy, but great for beginners and especially good on high tide with a 4ft swell. Characterized by its floundering ranchos on the beach, the village of Las Tunas has lots of rocky beachbreaks as well as a ever-changing rivermouth with potential quality sand banks. Also check the nearby Playa Torola and its similar setup. The majestic Gulf of Fonseca, bordered by Nicaragua and Honduras, offers a beautiful setting but inconsistent surf. The easternmost right pointbreak known as Lucky ManÕs needs a big S swell to wrap around and generate long, fun performance walls over a rock/sand bottom. There are other fickle beach and reef breaks to discover between Playitas and El Tamarindo, best by boat since it is a very wild area.

Statistics

dominant swell

S -SW

swell size (ft)

2-3

4-5

6-7

5-6

3-4

consistency (%)

dominant wind

N -NE

N -E

NE -E

SW -W

N -NE

average force

F3-F4

consistency (%)

water temp (C)

wetsuit

boardshorts

Travel Information

Weather
The dry season (Dec to April) is dusty and hot with extreme temperatures in March-April. Despite the heat, this is considered the best time to travel. The rest of the year receives heavy rainfall, which usually falls as afternoon and night time downpours and can make the roads impassable. However the cooler rainy nights make it easier to sleep. Apart from in Zunzal, the mosquitoes (zancudos) arenÕt that bad. The coast is much warmer than mountains and San Salvador.

Lodging and Food
Several levels of accommodation in El Cuco from basic to luxury. Waterways do packages at Miraflores (fr $200) and the newly-built hotel overlooking Punta Mango (fr $457). Try corn and rice flour pupusas, as well as the local pilsner beer. No nightlife.

Nature and Culture
Conchagua volcano is the highest point around La Union Bay where thereÕs good fishing. Visit the Laguna de Olomega. Parrots nest in the rocks at Punta Mango. Heaps of butterflies, often in the line-up. 7 active volcanoes including nearby Chaparrastique that erupted in 2015.