Winter in Chile is not a place for the faint hearted, if you surf that is. Freezing air and water temperatures mean thick hooded wetsuits, boots and a constant bombardment of very large swells. Never have I seen surf forecasts quite like the ones here in winter, actually surf forecasts have never made me feel nervous before, but the ones here have a tendency to give you that sick feeling in your stomach. Picture entire forecast periods spanning weeks filled with swell predictions that read anywhere from 10-20ft with good or light winds in the mix. There is nowhere to hide from the swell, no protected bays with beautiful 3ft point waves spinning away…nope, if you wanted that you should have stayed in Peru. Winter in Chile is a place for big surfboards and even bigger waves, if you don’t want that, your only option is to not come or expect to spend a lot of time out of the water.

Arriving back to a familiar place was nice after travelling so much for the two months previous. The town of Pichilemu is empty at this time of the year and the weather can be horrible at times but it is this slow pace that allows you to really unwind.

Before we get into the waves something that we haven’t mentioned in any previous posts was the Copa America. I’ve always loved soccer and grew up playing it, and it’s great that Beth really enjoys it as well. We had been following the entire tournament that was being hosted by Chile, and obviously tensions get very high in major soccer tournaments in South America. Not long after we got back Chile qualified for the final against Argentina which was to be played in Santiago. Beth, Adam and I made the call to go to Santiago for the weekend to soak up the atmosphere and watch the game. But this was not just a game…this tournament is a massive deal here, and Chile had never won the Copa America in its 100 year history. Argentina is one of, if not their biggest rivals. It was going to be monumental. I had a good feeling that we were going to watch history go down. We were not disappointed.

We couldn’t get tickets to the game but we did get to see history go down. Chile won on penalties after a 120 minute epic and the winning penalty was slotted home by the national hero Alexis Sanchez. It was pretty special to see how much this meant to the people of Chile after we have spent so much time here this year. It’s easy to get carried away in the emotion of it all when an entire nation pretty much loses its mind after a feat like this. We were, with the majority of the nation, intoxicated with liquor and cheer, and walked the streets to see the entire scene unfold before us. Everything from people car surfing to destroying property, you name it. We even jumped on the back of a moving garbage truck to the cheers of people on the streets, and high fives from the garbo! As the night wore on things got pretty out of control (read; warzone) and it all culminated at Plaza Italia where there must have been tens of thousands of people with flares, fireworks you name it. Fútbol in South America….absolutely batshit crazy. Then when the dust settled, Beth had one of the worst hangovers in the history of mankind. We found out in the celebrations that the night before a supermarket in Santiago was looted by a crowd of hundreds, and three people died in separate incidents. It’s horrible that things get so carried away that lives are lost, but we have now seen first hand how it occurs.

            

The waves down here over the last six weeks or so have been cold and mind blowing. Our plan was to base ourselves back at Casa Verde in Pichilemu with Ben and Adam, and do another little mission further south when the forecast lined up. Winter here means that you get some days with north winds and rain which destroys all of the waves in the area (as well as the roads of Pichilemu) but sitting around the fire getting warm and waiting it out for a day or two wasn’t all that bad considering the waves that followed. Once again I’ll let the pictures do the talking.

Big, glassy and perfect out the back past Los Morros. This is me bottom turning and Adam out in the channel paddling back after catching the one before it. I think we had three solo surfs that were identical to this in the week that this photo was taken. With just the two of us in the water and big perfect five or six wave sets, it was just a matter of taking turns and deciding which one you wanted. It’s a pretty cool feeling making it to the channel after a good big one and turning around to hoot your mate scratching into another one right behind you. Above picture taken by Kimber, one of our many new, like-minded friends we’ve met on the road.

Beth and another amazing winter sunset at Punta de Lobos. I’ll never get sick of these and love sitting in this spot with Beth to watch another day come to an end.

Hood on and running to take the plunge on a big day.

Another really big day at Lobos. I was surfing by myself on this morning and got myself into a bit of a bad place on this one, it was a bit of a memorable flogging haha. There was so much water moving around on this day and the swell was coming up fast so when this big one popped up I was finally in the perfect spot on the ledge after half an hour of paddling, it looked so perfect that I couldn’t not go even though it was a 50/50 chance of making it down the line.

I love this photo, Beth always captures the whole scene so well. I’ve never seen anybody else take such amazing unique photos of this place to give you such a cool perspective.

Punta de Lobos post surf empanadas from a local lady, and still in a hooded suit and booties. It doesn’t get much more Chilean than that.

Ramon Navarro on his 10’6″ later the same day at the peak of the swell. Amazing to watch.

Infiernillo is a really fickle wave right in town in Pichilemu and I still hadn’t surfed it after we had spent months here on this trip. It’s really exposed to the wind and needs a really low tide, a good sandbank and solid, long period swell to break. Ben was always raving on like; ‘Infiernillo is for me the best Mels, this is the best wave in town. When it turns on is like a switch, on and off. Muuuy buena Mels.’ Anyway I must have checked it a million times during all of our stays here then one afternoon low and behold the switch turned on. It was like a mirage…6-8ft, fast and heavy but peerrfect barrels spinning down a shallow sandbar. It was an amazing afternoon and one that I will never forget. Beth as usual had camera in hand this time with a big lens attached. She casually noted that I should drop her off half a mile up the beach as it ‘should be good from up there’, and of course she nailed a whole bunch of amazing photos of one of the best surfs of the trip and my life. Lifelong memories. Then just as quickly as it turned on it was all over again. Looking at the following photos I still can’t comprehend just how good that wave was when it appeared for a few hours that afternoon.

This is an amazing photo! It was overcast but the sun burst through and created this amazing green backlight. Classic western coastline afternoon light.

It was full on. Late takeoff, one big pump and hold on until you either get pounded or spat into the next section. I made two…it was definitely better odds for the goofyfooters. One of the best waves I’ve ever surfed.

A rare one that I could slow down and drag through.

An empty amazing one with the sun out.

This is a Chilean guy by the name of Ismael who was completely ruling it. He is an amazing backside tube rider.

I really like this one. It’s one of Beth’s arty slow shutter photos that she is really good at. This guy obviously got a pretty good one. That’s me in the channel claiming it for him.

All in all it was a pretty memorable afternoon. The funny part is that the dust had barely settled from this session when the forecast for down south started to look really really good. We were down there for four nights and the first two days completely pumped. Adam and I surfed on the second morning at a lefthand pointbreak that had the most perfect sandbank I have seen EVER. Four feet and below sea level for the length of the point. We were out on dead low tide at first light and traded perfect round barrels minus the fear factor that was present at Infiernillo. It was two hours and one broken board until anyone joined us. We were so blown away that we were hooting and giggling like kids at our good fortune.

            

I love these trips down south. Remote dirt roads, and amazing countryside. It truly is a beautiful part of the world.

            

Surf dogs. They used to be a big part of Australian surf culture but all of the rules at home regarding dogs at the beach means that it is sadly becoming a thing of the past. Good to see the loyal surf dog is still alive and well in Chile.

       

       

       

 I love this part of Chile. This time we got to see its full potential. This was the first afternoon just as we arrived and the current was bad and there were lots of wash throughs. Still pumping as you can see. Then the next morning it was a bit smaller and everything came together. This is such an amazing wave.

Our home for a few days. A beautiful little house in a secluded bay.

            

We had fun little waves for the next few days once the swell dropped.

The last couple of weeks there has been a lot of north wind but still plenty of days in between that have been really good. Its been big again as well, including one day that was XXL and a few lunatics charged on 10’6″s. Too big for an 8’6″ that’s for sure. I flirted with the thought that I could get a couple out there and then saw a set that caught everyone in the water off guard. That made up my mind pretty quickly, I don’t think I would ever be ready for that.

Ramon Navarro again. Always on the biggest and the best waves. Way behind Los Morros here.

Got the guns out again. This was only a couple of days ago and was another surf just by ourselves again. Not as big this time but the waves were still powerful and really good, you still needed a big board to catch waves. The headland still takes my breath away every time I am walking along it. Punta de Lobos is a beautiful place.

Waiting…

Beth took some more beautiful photos in the really nice but tricky light on this afternoon. This one’s me.

 Adam bottom turning on a good one.

And putting himself right in the sweet spot for a nice speed run to the channel.

Trying to hook it on a big board takes some practice. Normally I’m not turning when I’m riding my gun, just shitting myself so it’s nice to have some big but not so scary days.

This could have been my last surf on the big fella! This is hands down the most amazing surfboard I have ever owned, something that I can hold onto for life and hopefully pull out again someday.

Time is counting down and as of today our car Señor Vánchez is sold. We’ll throw a few details up about this in a few days but for now we are feeling kind of shattered about having to sell a car that has become our noble steed and best friend.

Until next time.

ciao b+m