Nicaragua...SUP Adventures and Great Times

[tde]

Had a SWEET TRIP to Nicaragua July 18-25 with three other SUP buddies....Big surf...hard offshores and a FANTASTIC TIME. We are a group of "geriatrics"...Chris (53), Skip (57) and Ben and me (63)....all still trying to "charge" and all still experiencing the STOKE!!
I've traveled a lot and NICA is a great surf destination. We had big surf and hard offshores...We used SURFARI CHARTERS who are AWESOME. (TRIP TIP... Surfari Charters will only book a total of 8 people at a time. They split the customers into two groups of up to 4, each with their own guide..During the week the groups use a boat or four wheel drive on alternating days to get you to the best surf spots. Take your own group of 3-4 SUPers and it works great...We surfed a number of days with just us SUPers in the lineup...with great waves all to ourselves!!!....Without question,  Lance and Kristin (the owners) did a fantastic job catering to our SUP needs!!)

Here is the video Chris has put together after our trip....It was a GREAT TIME....AND A FANTASTIC SUP ADVENTURE...ENJOY....Tim

https://www.facebook.com/chris.tripp.773/videos/687471978054531/

[surfcowboy]

Man, love that you scored. I've often wondered if nica was too hollow for SUP. How did you find the wave quality and height?

[Zooport]

Love that left vid from the gopro.  Makes me want to go there!  Thanks for sharing.

[eastbound]

i was warned to wait for summer, but went in march--got skunked by 25-30+ knot offshores which blew the entire time i was there--trades come across lake nicaragua, build speed and kill the coast

went out several times, often the only one in the water at key breaks, desperate to not have the trip a loser, but the wind was just too much

got one under 20 knot day at popoyo, which was relatively nice--lonely paddle outs in impossible wind at panga drops, daily at manzanillo (a left point right out front of where i stayed), and popoyo on other days

reminds me of costa rica 25 years ago

[surfercook]

Nicaragua niceties! Good job on the edit and scoring MAJOR sup time in the waves there! Surf looks amazing! Did you guys haul sups down there as checked oversized luggage? All my trips to Costa Rica I never flew w/a sup. Longboard yes. Looks like an Uli is in my future!

https://youtu.be/RfFhxX_Q2Tk

[Zooport]

That sounds like surfercook music on that vid!  Am I right? Very nice. 

[surfercook]

It is indeed "surfercook" music. Good ear, Zoo!

http://soundclick.com/share.cfm?id=10517885

https://youtu.be/xI5AZqnOnMI

[eastbound]

i had no issues flying with my aw--it cost 100$ ea way, but rental availability i saw was poor, so i was glad to have brought it--double bagged it along with two paddles.

when i was warned that it might be very windy in march, i was told that april through sept wind is much calmer.

[tde]

I see a couple of questions about Nicaragua...wave quality,size, winds, board transport etc... Here goes ...
Wave size... Excellent when south swells are running, best May-September. There are lots of breaks in the Popoyo area... Outer reef, point breaks and beach breaks. Waves can get too big 15-20' plus and waves are powerful.
Wave Quality...excellent with a lot of variety..there are not many SUPs down there...we didn't see ANY others which may be due to lack of "beginner" breaks..
Crowds...definitely a factor..but good guides can put you in good breaks at the right time to counter that. The main break at Popoyo had the worst anti-Sup Vibe.. Also, I have friends who have traveled up north where there are few surfers and good waves (but not constant offshores)
Winds... Strong offshores.. Lightest in the summer
Board transport... We flew Spirit out of Fort Lauderdale, Fla... $100 each way, two boards to a bag... Hope this helps...Tim

[surfercook]

Thanx, tde. I want! That shot of you is crazy! "Hang on to your hat"!!

[eastbound]

you sure that's you, cookie? reminded me of geo benson and other cti artists--very nice

youre having some sort of midlife renaissance--enjoy!

agreed that the vibe at popoyo was not great--some stinkeye at the bar before we paddled out-tho nbd when i was there--so much wind there were few in the water with us---pretty tight takeoff so when good might not be too friendly in the water--saw pics of the outereef pumping 20 feet--then looked out from the bar to see the setup--told me in no uncertain terms that i will always be a grom

i hear panga drops is not so sus-welcoming either--took a boat there twice with a similarly frustrated nyer i met at hotel--we just couldnt not try to get some waves--so windy, we were the only guys out, where panga can get very crowded--solid head high+, too--but prolly gusting into the low 30's--we gave up both times after 30 or 40 minutes--we had told the boat to wait, anticipating this thk goodness

[surfercook]

eastbound- "you sure that's you, cookie? reminded me of geo benson and other cti artists--very nice. youre having some sort of midlife renaissance--enjoy!"
lol, pretty positive those are me recordings!  The day I forget which jams are mine will be a sad day for sure. Hopefully my "Partaking Days" ended soon enough way back that they won't have an effect on my aging. Thanx for listenin'. 

[pdxmike]

Nicaragua niceties! Good job on the edit and scoring MAJOR sup time in the waves there! Surf looks amazing! Did you guys haul sups down there as checked oversized luggage? All my trips to Costa Rica I never flew w/a sup. Longboard yes. Looks like an Uli is in my future!

https://youtu.be/RfFhxX_Q2Tk

surfercook--nice video of you breezin' along catching the sun.

[supthecreek]

tde.... great trip edit.
You guys got some awesome waves and were ripping!

A week of travel, waves, food, beers and story.
That is the kind of trip that accents a life.... well done, great crew of guys. Looked like a blast.