Puerto Chicama
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Malabrigo also called unofficially Puerto Chicama, is a port and small coastal city in northwestern
Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = Seal (emblem), National seal , national_motto = "Fi ...
, located in
La Libertad Region La Libertad (; in English: ''The Liberty'') is a region in northwestern Peru. Formerly it was known as the Department of La Libertad ('). It is bordered by the Lambayeque, Cajamarca and Amazonas regions on the north, the San Martín Region on t ...
, some 70 km north of Trujillo city. The town is home to the Chicama wave, the first legally protected wave in the world, as well as the world's longest left-breaking wave"The world’s longest wave?" on NASA’s Earth Observatory website
/ref>—see External Links.


Chicama waves

Locals have called the waves at Chicama, from the top of the Cape to the pier over a distance of about 4 km, "Malpaso", "Keys", "The Point", and "El Hombre". At other times other names have been given, but these are the names from locals as of 2005. "The Point" is considered the best part of the wave and is the most famous, which will break for around 1 km up to about 6 feet in size (
Hawaiian scale Hawaiian scale is an expression of the height of a wind wave affecting water. It is the expression conventionally used by surfers in Hawaii and is also used in Australia and parts of South Africa. The expression, always given in feet, is a scaled ...
), but to ride longer than this all the way to the pier (about 2.2 km) on a single wave needs a swell >6 feet, which is quite rare. The wave is well-shaped, fast and moderately hollow, breaking over soft sand, but not a genuine tube, nor very powerful, unless the swell is very big (e.g. >6 feet). The bigger the waves, generally the better the wave, and the main point will hold at least 10 feet Hawaiian scale (i.e. about 20 feet faces). The wave tends to speed up and slow down alternately, and it is rare to ride a single wave along the length of the point for this reason. There is also a middle section along the point which is rocky, generally hollower, but also fast and difficult to make after about 1000m, but locals claim to have achieved a single ride all the way to the pier, for a distance of about 2.2 km, in 10 foot swells. Even this distance is not as long as the length of the pointbreak at nearby Pacasmayo, which is at least 2.5 km long, and which has also been claimed by locals to have been ridden all the way along on a single wave, on very large swells.


Surf in Malabrigo

Winds at Malabrigo are consistently offshore, but the swell is notoriously inconsistent. It needs a good swell to break properly, and days above head high are relatively rare. As a guide, wave sizes at the main point are around half the size of open ocean swell charts, and waves less than about 4 feet on the point (i.e. 8 feet on the swell charts) tend to be quite weak and slow. Best surfing is from around
Easter Week The Octave of Easter is the eight-day period, or octave, that begins on Easter Sunday and ends with the following Sunday. In Christian churches that celebrate it, it marks the beginning of Eastertide. The first seven of these eight days are als ...
(
Semana Santa Holy Week ( la, Hebdomada Sancta or , ; grc, Ἁγία καὶ Μεγάλη Ἑβδομάς, translit=Hagia kai Megale Hebdomas, lit=Holy and Great Week) is the most sacred week in the liturgical year in Christianity. In Eastern Churches, w ...
) and through the winter months in the southern hemisphere to about September when great storms in the
Roaring Forties The Roaring Forties are strong westerly winds found in the Southern Hemisphere, generally between the latitudes of 40°S and 50°S. The strong west-to-east air currents are caused by the combination of air being displaced from the Equator ...
direct their wave energy toward Peru. The water is cool (17–22 °C), like much of Peru, due to cold currents from the south. Climate is warm and springlike (15–28 °C), however
wind chill Wind chill or windchill (popularly wind chill factor) is the lowering of body temperature due to the passing-flow of lower-temperature air. Wind chill numbers are always lower than the air temperature for values where the formula is valid. When ...
is a factor, created by the
venturi effect The Venturi effect is the reduction in fluid pressure that results when a fluid flows through a constricted section (or choke) of a pipe. The Venturi effect is named after its discoverer, the 18th century Italian physicist, Giovanni Battista V ...
s from the headland. A 2–3 mm
wetsuit A wetsuit is a garment worn to provide thermal protection while wet. It is usually made of foamed neoprene, and is worn by surfing, surfers, Underwater diving, divers, windsurfers, canoeists, and others engaged in water sports and other activit ...
is recommended as well as
boot A boot is a type of footwear. Most boots mainly cover the foot and the ankle, while some also cover some part of the lower calf. Some boots extend up the leg, sometimes as far as the knee or even the hip. Most boots have a heel that is cle ...
ies for walking up the beach. Malabrigo is about 560 km north of Lima by air, or 94 km (an hour-and-a-half drive) northwest of the city of Trujillo. is reached by taking 15 km detour at Paiján, at Kilometer 614 of the North Pan-American Highway. Various tour operators, expedition outfitters, and guides are available to take you there. There are buses and collective taxis from Lima and Trujillo. Primitive lodging and food are available in Malabrigo. A high-end resort called Chicama Surf Resort has also opened for surfers right on the point. Many modern conveniences can be found in the City of Trujillo (Visit
Huanchaco Huanchaco is a popular seaside resort city in province of Trujillo, Peru. Huanchaco is known for its surf breaks, its caballitos de totora and its ceviche, and is near the ancient ruins of Chan Chan. Huanchaco was approved as a World Surfing Res ...
to see traditional fishermen riding the waves on reed fishing boats called "Caballitos de Totora", perhaps oldest form of surfing still practiced to this day).


See also

*
Ascope Province Ascope is a province in the La Libertad Region, Peru. It is bordered by the Trujillo Province on the south; the Pacasmayo Province on the north; the Cajamarcan province of Contumazá and the Otuzco and Gran Chimú provinces on the east; and ...
*
Ascope Ascope is a town in Northern Peru, capital of the province Ascope in the region La Libertad. Instituto Nacional de Estadística e InformáticaBanco de Información Digital, Retrieved June 17, 2008 See also * Puerto Chicama * Chicama *El Brujo ...
*
Chicama Valley Chicama Valley is an area located at north of the Valley of Moche in La Libertad Region, northern Peru, it has agricultural resources where one of the main products is cane of sugar; this valley has been formed on both sides of the Chicama River. ...


References


External links


World's Longest Wave BreakLocation of Puerto Chicama by WikimapiaSurf spot info
{{Authority control Surfing locations in Peru Beaches of Peru Beaches of La Libertad Region Populated places in La Libertad Region