Surfing Waves

I've been looking around the forum for info on the minho region of north portugal but there seems to be not a lot.
There also seems to be a feeling of reluctance towards giving information, probably due to the fact not many people go there as most head south leaving the northern region fairly uncrowded, which is understandable.
Anyway, I was wondering if anyone could tell me about the surf there in the summertime and those pesky northerlies. I should be around afife and ancora beaches in a cottage for a couple of weeks in july.
Any tips on equipment, water temps etc would be greatly appreciated.

Hopefully I might find some decent surf!
Cheers

scuba steve wrote:I've been looking around the forum for info on the minho region of north portugal but there seems to be not a lot.
There also seems to be a feeling of reluctance towards giving information, probably due to the fact not many people go there as most head south leaving the northern region fairly uncrowded, which is understandable.
Anyway, I was wondering if anyone could tell me about the surf there in the summertime and those pesky northerlies. I should be around afife and ancora beaches in a cottage for a couple of weeks in july.
Any tips on equipment, water temps etc would be greatly appreciated.

Hopefully I might find some decent surf!
Cheers

heya,




in portugal the places that receive more swell in the summer are ericeira, peniche, sagres. but if you're going to minho go to matosinhos, afife, ancora... good waves, cool people, beaut and nice place.

you can find uncrowded spots int he north as like in the center or south. it's logic that beaches near cities are more crowded.

water temperatures round - 20º-25º , the north is more cold, as you're going south the exterior and water temps get more harm due to is proximity to north of africa.

bring a 3/2 suit and a summer board.. a fish malibu or something else...

respect the locals and you'll be respected, they will be the first people to help if you need.

hi there, i travelled from n.spain to s.portugal from september 06-march '07, and went through northern portugal at the end of sept to mid october time, so i can tell you a bit about it.

the time of year i was there, was pretty rainy hence why i didnt stop for long (i was travelling in a van). But i stayed at Afife for about a week, and it was definately the best surf i had in Northern Portugal. I can imagine there would be considerably more people there in the summer but for me it was fairly quiet. Maybe 20 people at its busiest, and surfing alone at other times. afife is a long beach broken up by the odd sprinkling of rocks, so away from the main peaks you can probably have a quiet surf.

The main wave was a hollow left at the south end of the beach, when we were there. It was pretty awesome! Has been compared to Supertubos (Mid Portugal) without the crowds, which was definately the case for us. a variety of peaks along the beach though. waves for learner to pros.

As far as water temps go, we were surfing in 3/2's and shorties at the end of Sept so i would imagine July will be the same or more likely boardies.

We didnt visit Ancora, but just north of that was a beach called Moledo, which was pretty decent (although not sure of the cleanliness of the water).

Not sure how much swell you'll get in July (although up there will be picking up more than the rest of portugal), and it is renowned for its northerly winds, so it will be down to luck.

Hope ive helped though... hope you get some waves!

ps: nearby (a place called Guarda) you can get a ferry to spain for just a couple of euros. there are some good reefs nearby aswell as beach breaks, if you feel like exploring.