Surf trip Peru.

Bermejo, this photo doesn't do it justice for me. This place is the beauty and the beast, its all for you. The beast is, its in the middle of nowhere, camping is probably the best option but....it ain't pretty. Still some great waves were had and its probably good and empty right now.

Bermejo: Everyone was kind of trying to figure out the quickest yet safest way to get out. Abo was last to be convinced.

Huanchaco wasn't doing it on this trip but its still a good place to get some nice food, see people and look at vegetation. There was a moment in a bar  with the now thirty something crew,  all the travellers wearing their jim jams sat on the floor with Jenga were I started to think....I'm getting on a bit.

Abo and myself being the culture vultures that we are decided that in 10 days and 3000 Km's we should see at least one of the 5000 ruins we would pass. Chan Chan is World Heritage but somehow we couldn't find it till we off roaded it, Golden Balls didn't want to overload himself with cultural clutter and went for a surf. Great renovations under way,a bit late for the Chimu but very impressive all round.

It's hard to be in Chicama and not look at the waves.

Hotel Suenos, last building before the point, great people. They have a boat for the line up and even though I strongly disapprove of waves for the wealthy, I succumbed. This was made even worse by the fact that I lectured the others who didn't take the boat. Still 4 quid for 2 hours, I think that was mates rates as we were staying there.

And again!

Peru gets a lot of south swell  year round but drops off over the summer. Still we had waves all day every day, everywhere we went was going off, not always world class perfect but plenty good enough. When the south swell died, the next day the north swell and the shits kicked in.

Last one I promise, Chicama from the back.

Longest left hand point in the world.

A long way to go.

Golden Balls and I had scored all time Pacasmayo in Feb 09 and though it wasn't that good this time, I had a couple of tubes and some really nice Caldo de Gallina, so happy days.

Lobitos was a disappointment this time. Jose Antonio was full (you owe me photos if you're reading this), the banks or swell weren't right, we all had the squits and the crowd and their manners were off. Still the pier looked kinda fun, until GB bounced the base of his arse on the sand bar and couldn't move to well ever after.

We weren't to keen on surfing Cabo Blanco, or Peruvian Pipe, some great waves but heavy.

Cabo Blanco

C.B.

C.B, Home to Hemmingway for a while and site of the largest Marlin ever caught (over 700 pounds), the place is very small but full of class.

These two shots are of Javier Swayne on the same wave (yes he made the tube), he's Peru's top surfer, having been the highest placed South American at the Pico Alto Billabong XXXL this year, he won the WQS event at El Gringo in Chile (a super heavy wave) and got a wild card for the WCT event in France. He went on some bombs and just got so deep I kept writing him off. A class act.

Golden Balls airing them.

The Karma catch up club, still owe the guy some Soles.

Abo and GB looking very happy about not driving the statutory 400 KM's on this particular day at Organos, which we needed another week at.

Organos reef.

Organos reef was perfect tubes before the wind is on it at 9am, who wants to get up at 6 am to take pictures! So this will have to do.

Organos tube, he made it.

Abo and I had a Hang five contest afternoon, this was made particulary hard by the fact the boards seemed to be made from cardboard and had never been waxed. Abo was in his element.

Abo emerged from the shade in the evening, I've never seen a redder guy. He arrived looking fresh if  not a bit stupid in Lima (we don't wear Barbers and Loafers anytime but especially not in summer) he left having sat in the back of an over laiden Suzuki Jimney having the same space as a kiddies seat, add in the vicious sun burn and the distance.......he was relieved to get back to city drudgery.

Where Abo wished he was sitting.

Peru is the most bio diverse country in the world, you would never guess this from driving up and down the coast which I guess falls into the "Sand/desert" environment with nothing else punctuating it, except may be a little agriculture here and there. Still there were colouful characters and memories for life.