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PANAMA
If Topanga is “On the beaten path”,
and K38 is “Off the beaten path”,
then the only way to describe Morro Negrito Island
in Panama is “DEEP REMOTE”. I recently
returned from a week’s stay at Steve Thompson’s
surf camp and I can truly say that he has found
some real secret-spots. I went down there with
ten buddies and guess what??? There were a total
of 11 guys surfing and not another surfing soul
to be found for at least 50-100 miles. While I
did not like every break we surfed and we did
not get perfect surf every day, the travel and
adventure experience was a priceless.
Morro Negrito Surf Camp is located on a small
island called La Ensenada off the Pacific coast
of Panama. To get there from LA, you need to fly
6 hours to Panama City; take a 6-8 hour bus ride
to a launch not to far from a town called David,
and get on a ponga boat for an hour boat ride
to a serene beach that flanks the camp. Now that
does not sound to time consuming on the surface,
but you also need to hit the launch on a high
tide. Tides in Panama are a 17-foot swing! Arriving
on a low tide turned the above journey into a
two-day trek. While we did enjoy getting some
time to explore Panama City, the anticipation
was too much for some of the guys who were a bit
cranky about the delays.
Another gorgeous sunset
Lodging: bunks and mosquito nets, electric fans
for the evenings. Restroom: manually flushing
toilets and bucket showers. If you go during the
less arid season that starts in the end of May,
you will get fresh spring water showers and all
the pure island water you can drink.
Surf Camp
Staff: friendly and helpful, Antonio is a master
at opening coconuts and Jeff the surf-guide was
great and always was looking out for us.
The Surf: To start off, the water is 80-82 degrees,
the sun is intense. Bring a long sleeve rashguard
and some good facial sun block. While there are
a few sandy breaks, the real surf can be found
with a rocky bottom, boils and tabletop reefs
that keep you on your toes. Also, the tidal swings
of around 17 feet can have a drastic effect on
any break, your surf guide can help you with the
right break for each tide and swell condition.
Accommodations
My favorite break is called Left-Overs. It is
located off of the neighboring island, Silva.
Left-Overs is a wave that sets up next to/over
a rock pile and bends around in a perfectly shaped
left that is like a little machine. We surfed
this break only a few times, but got it from shoulder
high to well over head. If you cannot surf and
enjoy this wave you should pick up a new sport.
This wave is made for cutbacks, floaters and off
the lip snaps.
Leftovers fun
Next to Left-Overs is P-Land. This is undoubtedly
the heaviest barreling wave at Morro Negrito.
We caught this break on a rather big and harry
day. It is also a left and while there were no
serious injuries at P-Land, it did claim one board
and scared the crap out of myself and most of
the crew. It breaks over a gnarly tabletop reef
and is unforgiving if you get stuck on the inside.
Later during our visit we caught it on a smaller
day we had a bit of fun (less adrenaline), but
still very challenging.
Swinging out wide at P-Land
Nestles (La Cruncha) is noted as the heaviest
wave you can surf here. It is a right break and
like most other consistent waves, breaks on a
rock reef. Imagine a much smaller version of Mavericks,
about 12-15 foot faces, and that is Nestles. A
pure adrenaline joy ride with little room for
artistic surfing and a speedy drop to the shoulder.
I personally do not like this kind of surf, but
a few of the crew could not stop smiling for days
after getting this break wired.
Some nice, overhead Nestles
The Sandbar is a break that forms off of a river
mouth and has both inside and outside sections,
left and right breaks. The guys on longer boards
liked this wave. Staying in the mix required some
serious paddling for the shortboard crew. The
rides can be long and playful. Not much if any
tube-time can be found here, but you can try out
your signature moves over and over and over on
this machine like wave.
Carving it up at P-Land
El Toro is a wave that is located in the most
insane picturesque cove with a sandy bottom. It
is surrounded by rock formations including a swim
through cave and a dense jungle shoreline. Again,
rights and lefts here and very playful. The rides
are not the longest, but we did not catch it on
a big swell. I can see this place going off on
the right swell; we had it shoulder high to slightly
overhead.
Flipping out at El Toro
Last but certainly not least is Emily’s.
This break is located directly in front of the
camp, the hammocks and your 2-story balcony lodging.
If you can imagine a perfect left that breaks
over a rock reef with a super easy paddle, then
you know Emily’s. Due to the 17ft. tidal
swings this break would light up several times
a day and die down within one to two hours. It
is a playful peeler and I wish I could have caught
in overhead conditions, it would definitely hold
up nicely.
Nice Rooster fish caught off of El Toro
In addition to surf, other highlights were: Unlimited
Mangos (pick ‘em yourself all over the island).
Fresh Coconuts (if you like them with a twist,
add rum right into the coco). Friendly natives.
Fishing, hiking and enough hammocks for everyone.
While this may not be the right destination for
everyone, I found it to be a great surf trip coupled
with an unbeatable remote experience. I’ve
surfed Indo, Mexico, Hawaii and a few other choice
locations, and I can honestly say that Morro Negrito
offers something unique and is a part of the last
frontier. And, if you time your travel right to
get the swell and a high tide arrival, you can
cut down the travel time. For me the trip was
a once in a lifetime experience and I am glad
to have had the opportunity.
If you need more information regarding the camp
or any other specifics, check the website: www.surferparadise.com
or feel free to email me: james@elporto.com
Article by James Hanrahan Pictures by Ken Pagliaro
Rainbow at Silva
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