Day 2- Exploring the Tip of the Nicoya Peninsula

Up at 5 am and down to check out the surf.  Wishing these villas were closer to the beaches.  We go to Playa Carmen, also called CoCo and park on the beach.  

John does a pretty decent session and I body surf, as I've not rented a board yet.  The waves were head high on the sets, fun lefts and rights, peaky. There are maybe 10 people total up and down this huge expanse of beach, 2 are surfing, the rest are walking dogs, and it's very clean.  When we go back for breakfast John chats with Roger's sons who are both surfer pro hopefuls at 16 and 17.  The younger one is way more interested in the “Thumper”.  Not unusual as this board often causes quite a stir- being this hybrid of a shorter fun shape with really clean rails, and he and John end up chatting for awhile about waves and surf spots, which isn't surprising given he's reportedly the better of the two. 

 
John also greets Christopher and Cecilia from France who he met the night before.  But they are leaving today which is too bad, as John would've enjoyed surfing with Christopher who is a financial rep for Billabong.

Back for breakfast and Rosie is cheerful, not bilingual, but a great cook.  Eggs and sausage with toast, fresh fruit, coffee (coffee in the room too which made J happy). 

We decide to ATV that day as the forecast for a swell is later that week and the rest of today's surf just looks thick and sloppy.  Plus this tour is part of the package and sometimes on a surf trip, if the waves aren't happening, its nice to have some other options. ATVs make total sense here and if we ever move to this place, we will own one for sure!  Roger leads, and we are joined by Mikini (rhymes with Bikini) and Marilyn, two young, beautiful women from Brooklyn.  Mikini gets a quick lesson and Roger is leery but she makes the hill so she's good to drive.  We go past Mel Gibson's joint, just as he's flying in on his private helicopter- and down into Cabuya.  We see a possible wave break on this eastern side of the peninsula and mark it for checking out later for possible surf.

An unremarkable butterfly farm, with exception of a bug expert who chats to us about spiders and such, and we hike from there to the Waterfall.   It's a pretty scary path with one way- straight down, but doable.  The falls remind me of the High Sierra's granite pools from Silver Lake, called the Potholes- a favorite camping place of mine if you’re ever on Hwy 88, just south of Kirkwood ski resort. 10 and 15 foot jumps into the pools.  Ice cold refreshing water though it's brown from 3 previous days of much needed rain. There's even a rope swing and we all practice being Tarzan except for Marilyn who can't swim. After the falls a short drive to Montezuma, a hippie haven, for lunch of fish Casado  - Tico standard fare- grilled meat, rice and beans, plantain and cabbage salad.  Coconut milkshake and crepes with banana (an entire banana left whole, no less) and nutella for dessert.  There's a huge French influence here and French Canadians heavily travel the region.

Pretty beat from dust, swimming and bone rattling roads upon our return.  Later we drive to Santa Teresa to rent me a board but get skunked as the recommended place is only open 9-5 pm.  Seems a bit odd when dawn patrol is a must here- but then again there's just not that many people so its probably not worth it.  We ate a big lunch so we just get some ceviche and chips for dinner from the ice cream store.  That’s CR for ya- ice cream and raw fish appetizer at the same place- that only sells those two things.  Tomorrow we plan to surf most of the day.

Another early night but with A/C - yeah! 

Costa Rica April 2013: Day 1 - Logistics of a Nicoya Peninsula Surf Trip on a Budget OR Tolerating the Worst Airline in the World to Squeeze Out One More Night in Paradise

John and I needed a vacay and plans to do so before the current theatre production I was working in didn't materialize. Add to the scheduling nightmare that J's work does a huge pro-bono night and that was end of May and his services would be required at least 2 weeks prior. And my daughter and grandkids were coming in June. Possible productions, weddings, workshops crowded the July horizon. I was definitely getting an aneurism and John was irritable with my crankiness. Imagine! But being the consummate planner and head strong to boot, I figured out if we left the night the show closed we could squeeze in 13 days in Costa Rica. Done!

 Spirit Airlines- what can we say. They still let you wear the clothes on your back and have one purse, small backpack or camera case without charge. But everything else costs-. But we have this figured out. $100 each way for a surfboard bag but here's the curious thing for a company that gives parsimony new meaning- they don't have a height restriction (longboards rarely can fly the Friendlier Skies) nor a weight restriction. They only say " maximum 2 boards per bag". So our 7'6" surfboard coffin with wheels holds 2 boards( The Thumper- a custom fun shape 7'2" that catches every kind of wave possible and a 6'11" big wave gun plus hoards of towels, rash guards, bathing suits, flip flops, all sundry items and snacks. Then the rest of our needs like camera, IPhone, IPad, t-shirts, shorts, sundresses fit into our small backpacks. 2 1/2 hours from Ft. Lauderdale at midnight lands us in San Jose, CR. BTW- we got tons of applause for outwitting Spirit with our board bag strategy.

Immigration was not crowded at that hour and after a small wait for the board bag, clearing customs and there's our name on a small hand held white board ready for our free ride courtesy of the Trapp Family Country Inn where we planned to grab 5 hours of sleep and collect our car. The shuttle was a taxi- but paid for by the hotel and oops- gotta always mention that there's boards aboard. But the board bag was squeezed in by a determined cab driver who was not going to lose this fare- and we took a bumpy ride less than a mile from the airport through that really sketchy part of San Jose. Down a small rough road amongst heavily barred Tico houses and pull up to a guardhouse with gate. Once inside it was hard to imagine the rough slum like streets we'd rumbled on to get here and aside from hearing the jets overhead, hard to believe that the airport was around the corner. This beautiful, immaculate compound with patios, pool and gardens was like another world. We were led to our room quietly and we were pleasantly surprised with two over large queen beds, TV with cable, private patio, large heavy Spanish colonial furniture. A touch worn, but still extremely clean and attractive. OK mattress and we got some sleep. (www.trappfamilycostarica.com)

 Morning we went to the restaurant area for the most beautiful breakfast imaginable and we had the place to ourselves. Fried plantains of course- an obligatory offering at every Tico meal, rice and beans, scrambled eggs, coffee, OJ, toast with tropical jam and slices of pineapple that tasted like pure sugar.

Our host called Adobe to make sure that our car would be delivered on time and also recommended that we get the GPS. It would be worth the extra $9 per day. Jump in the pool since we had 45 minutes before the car arrived, but a couple of laps and it pulled up. Hairo, with Adobe, was a sweetheart and we sat in bathing suits under the veranda and filled out our car rental agreement. And of course, he brought a GPS just in case, which by this time we were sure was going to be a good idea given the area to which we were headed. I've rented cars all over the world and have NEVER been so relaxed or well treated as in the quiet and spectacular beauty of our hotel. Props to Nelson Chacon, Adobe manager, who made these arrangements, under the recommendation of Rich Burnam from SurfingNosara website. (www.surfingnosara.com More on these guys later when we hit Guiones)

Oh its a 2013 Hyundai Tucson 4 WD and voila- the boards fit inside. Off we go after programming the GPS and saying goodbye to Trapp Family Inn- travel tip... This place was $107 total for the night through Kayak and with the breakfast, security and comfort it afforded? Priceless! GPS- also priceless as no roads have any signs or markers. However we planned to take the ferry from Puntarenas to Paquera and the GPS doesn't calculate water routes. Garmin wanted us to drive way up to Liberia and then around and down. Fortunately we figured this out before we went too far past Puntarenas but it got John agitated and he got all "slam, bammy" until I put in 2 routes- one to the Ferry and then Paquera to Mal Pais- our destination. In Puntarenas we found the Ferry after a guy on the street holds up a sign that says "Ferry". When we stop, he gives pretty good details on how it works, getting in line, getting a ticket, then taking the ticket to the fares office to pay which gives you the boarding ticket, getting your car lined up in the loading queue. All that info for a measly $3000 colones- $6 people. So we gave him $2. But it was good intel for the money and we made the 70 minute crossing on the 2 pm Ferry for $28.00 ($30 if you count our knowledgeable buddy).

The first thing one notices upon embarking in Paquera is a simpler, less fearful quality. Houses don't have huge gates and imposing bars at every window and egress. It's more agricultural and Brahman cows are everywhere- including around corners of steep, narrow, graded roads which Garmin dubs "unpaved". It was after 4 pm now and we had about an hour left on these bumpy, twisty roads. Our first view of the Pacific caused us both to squirm a bit with excitement.

 Mal Pais and Santa Teresa are pretty much the same town defined by a cross in the road. Mal Pais goes south, ST goes north. We head for Vista de Olas for our Living Social* 4 nights with extras. Up a really steep, no I'm not kidding, steep road that makes us glad we have this vehicle, we pull into our digs. Roger, the owner, meets us and the bad news is our A/C is on the fritz in our villa, but it will get fixed mañana. That's a scary forecast in CR, but this time, it was true. However, it’s an interesting sort of customer service malaise to not offer some sort of recompense for this lack. These are, after all, $175 a night digs, though we didn’t pay that courtesy of Living Social.com.   It's Costa Rica, end of the dry season, 85 degrees plus with no A/C?  But it’s “Pura Vida” here so no one gets too worked up. We followed suit. The crowning glory of the joint is an infinity pool with view of about 25 miles of Pacific coast. With swim up bar. The downside of the entire region is food, drink etc. is the same as the states. An expat who pays to use the pool tells us she blames Mel Gibson and Tom Brady, who both built huge compounds. The same thing exploded here as when Harrison Ford bought part of Wyoming. Everyone wants to emulate the celebs. (www.vistadeolas.com)

Dinner is BarBQ and part of our package for one night of our stay. They give you the meat to grill yourself along with salad bar and potato. The Mahi-Mahi is fresh and yummy. The filet Mignon is huge but beef here is very lean and lacks the marbling for flavor we red meat eaters crave. The other guests are semi- aloof and we note that as odd. The villas are lovely with comfy King beds, coffee makers, refrig, a safe, and combo indoor outdoor shower. And the place abounds with the family dogs and 2 cats- Kung Fu and Panda. Kung Fu is super friendly and spends part of the night curled up on the bed. Sleep comes easy as it’s been a long travel day and surfing is on for tomorrow!
*No kidding people! You have to watch Living Social for these surfer deals. We paid $600 for 4 nights in Mal Pais (regular $175 per night ) PLUS Dinner at their restaurant 1 night ($50 value), bottle of wine ($30), ATV tour ($75) , surf/horseback riding or zip line for 2 ($100) and 1 night of happy hour (4 beers or 2 cocktails each). Well worth the money!

New Contributor

Greetings! My husband John and I are both surfers over 50. I should amend- he is an amazing surfer over 50 (58.5) and I am a 56 year old kook with great intentions who manages to mostly stay out of the good surfers' waves. Anyway, John and I met through surfing. After having had a really great time at a women's camp in Nicaragua, I wanted to expand my friendship of surfing friends so I joined fitness-singles.com which is sort of Match.com but aimed at active lifestyles and those who might have a deep passion for one type of sport or another. I was charmed by a Florida surfer who wondered how surfing was a passion in a land locked state- I was at that time living in Lake Tahoe. He was funny, sincere, could spell (or at least use spell check correctly), and had something to say, so we started a long distance relationship marked with cross country plane flights and surf trips in Costa Rica, Baja and Southern California. A year ago we made the arduous cross country journey in a 26' Penske truck to bring way too much furniture and "stuff", my cat and dog, and me to reside in Juno Beach, Florida. Thank God we preceded that awful trip with a short stay in Cerritos Beach, Baja and Encinitas, California. I'm getting good at finding surf deals- and, if you're like us,(one paycheck and one pension check per month), you might find some of our travel information useful. And always happy to share further in the comments section. Posting next: Day 1 of 2 weeks on the Nicoya Peninsula. Pura Vida Kaz

New Board

I'm excited to show off my new board from Rich Harbour of Harbour Surfboards in Seal Beach. It's the new "Super Revolver!" The board is a spin off of the original "Revolver," only this is a 2+1 fin set up, no nose channels, concaves between the fins for increased speed, and a bit wider for stability and driving down the line. I decided to go shorter this time with an 8' 0" since standing up has become somewhat more difficult. This way with a shorter board, I'll still be able to catch waves, and then turn the board a little easier while on my knees, as compared to my other boards of which are all 9' 6" in length. This board was the first one to be made with the new "Super Revolver" logo. Haven't had the opportunity to get her wet yet, as rotator cuff surgery has me high and dry for a couple of months. Ain't getting older fun?!

Specs on this beauty are as follows: 8' 0" x 16 3/4" x 22 7/8" x 15 1/2" x 3".

a few more quotes from the forums...

Swaylocks again, that is.  Here's a few quotes the over-50 crowd might relate to:

a surfer never quits surfing, even when he can no longer paddle out.
Back when he could still make the short trek up the trail,  used to occasionally see old Stan Ross on the bluff at Ross's Cove, leaning against his cane, watching the waves.
"Hi, Ross.  Whatcha doing?"
"Surfing"....
 (ICC)


One thing that takes the fun out of surfing is the younger generation of it's all about me, had I acted like this as a youth, a severere beating would have been the result from my old man. Todays young surfers have NO RESPECT for the older surfers or any other person in the water, but if you are balding or white haired, you are fair game to be ripped off on any wave they see you paddling for. There is no way an older person could possibly surf well, so rip them off at every chance and tell them you'll beat their ass too.

Assault on the ederly is punishable by 5 years mandatory, no parole.

It has made me not surf for months at a time, I surf for the closeness to God, clear my head of the troubles of the day, experience the thrill that only a surfer knows.

Not being so pissed off in the water that it all that is in my mind, I had to turn up under some 20 something at Church's on Monday, me was going to take the wave from me at any cost, I hope it cost him plenty to get the ding fixed, when you drop in on me and I lose control, my board might fly out from under my feet and hit you in the head, be careful of us old surfers
(jim the genius)

Petite Bonjour..............

This is my first post on here so I will use it to introduce myself. My name is Phil and I will be 58 at the end of next month, yikes, where have all those years gone? I started surfing age 19 back in Wales when your average board was a 7' 6" singlefin and wetsuits were very leaky. I am amazed at the progression of board design and technology over the years and particularly like the variety of wavecraft we use now, all manner of hybrids. The photo shows my quiver as of last summer from fins and handplane up to an 11' 6" Naish SUP.
The white board was my most recent buy, a 6' 3" 7S Cog as a quad or thruster. This board has been a revelation and proof of how board design can help us evolve as surfers and keep the stoke alive. It is packed with foam and easily floats my 83kg's. As a quad it really flies and I love it.

Over those 39 years of surfing I have chosen to travel a lot and have enjoyed many countries and cultures at the expense of a high paying career. Some great trips to New Zealand, Australia, Costa Rica, Sri Lanka and West Africa to name just a few. We are now back in France since 2002 and are currently living in Brittany having moved up from the bustle and crowds of Biarritz in 2010. We have a house overlooking the sea and I get out on the water as often as I can. In fact, I am surfing more now than I have ever done which is keeping me fit and very happy. Fitness and core strength seem to be the keys to longevity for us older surfers so let's stay healthy. That and a warm modern leakproof wetsuit!!!

I hope to add a post or two on here as the mood takes me and I feel I have something to say. Thanks for the invite Huck.................á plus.............

Time flies.

I love to surf.  It's the one thing that keeps me grounded.  My first time was in '72 on the south shores of Oahu.  My ship was returning from a western pacific cruise and we were enjoying some rest and relaxation for a few day.  That was the start of it.  When I got back to San Diego I got a board and started surfing whenever I got the chance.  Most of the time I'd surf in Imperial Beach where I lived.  Other times I'd go to northern Baja with my buddies or maybe head north toward Del Mar.  It was a lot of fun and it taught me a lot.

Several of my surf buddies were building their own boards.  That got me interested in shaping and soon I was shaping in my backyard.  It wasn't long and I was making and fixing up boards for myself and friends.  I was able to complete my studies at SDSU and finally graduated.  It was all good until the Industrial Arts programs in the San Diego school district were cut back.  That lead me to move to Florida where there was still a demand for shop teachers.  Anyways, I'm retired now and enjoying the good life in Ormond Beach.

I purchased a beach house a couple years ago and just celebrated my 60th birthday last August.  The waves here can be alright sometimes and the water never gets cold.  I still like to build boards and try out new ideas.  It still makes me excited to paddle out and share some rides with friends or by myself.  I think that surfing has kept me healthy.  I'm going to keep doing it as long as I can.

Denny Hanson

a call for contributors - share the stoke of surfing after 50

This blog currently has 5 actively contributing authors (during the past year). We don't know what happened to GrayBeard, but we hope all is well, and he will return with tales of bold adventure and great waves!

Meanwhile, we'd like to add some more contributers to the roster, and get some added imput from you stoked surfers who just don't want to quit surfing and being stoked!

You don't have to be a surfer over 50 to be an author - just someone who is determined to stay fit, enjoy the active lifestyle, and never stop being stoked no matter how old you are!

If you'd like to join our blog as an active contributor, please email Huck. Just scroll down to the list of contributing authors, click Huck, then click email under my pic. Look forward to hearing from ya'!

more Swaylocks wisdom for the aging surfers...

It's all genetics.  Genetics loads the gun, diet pulls the trigger... All your buds and associates having coronaries, becoming diabetic, even the old arthritis... High intake of sugar and fat is mostly what does the trick, and of course all the chemical flavoring agents, preservatives, conditioners, etc. I love the Michael Pollen quote, "Eat (real) food, mostly plants, not too much." That about covers the basics. If it required a factory or worse, a chem lab, to produce, it ain't food.  - Dr. Strange

Flatwater stand up paddleboarding 5 miles a day, five times a week...Core, balance, endurance, and you can drink a beer while doing it...And while my wife doesn't surf she does paddle, and that counts for a lot... - Paul Jensen

It's all mental......lose your Mojo and you are in for a long uphill battle. I'm not Fat but I'm no fitness dude....Life beats you down with money issues and health issues and whatever else....want to surf? go surf ! ...yes...go surf! GO SURF !  I've had several real life beat downs over the past few years...Get your mind in order..it's not EZ...and then go surf...no amount of anything can replace a good surf....I got my Mojo back this year...but it took alot of hard work...and there's nothing wrong with a 30-45 min session in crappy waves.....that's what get's you ready for the good stuff.   I surfed a longboard for 2 hours today....waist high....my friend did a drive by and left me a voice mail that the waves sucked today..................No.............the waves were great today!  - Stingray

Bill at Torrance - 58 years young!

bill, 58 y.o. (closer to 59)  surfing torrance beach 11/2012 on a 9' 6" epoxy board,   tri fin , ISLE surfboards - board is about 1 year old. his brother took the pics with a nikon.