Hello again, Inside Peak followers.
Yet another week has passed down here in Guiones at Safari Surf School, Costa Rica´s premier surf academy. As we march through the month of April there is still no sign of the first rains of the wet season. We have experienced two or three days that were tantalizingly close to opening up, but it seems that every time the clouds pass over the mountains and head towards the coast they lose their mojo. With the water levels at dangerously  low levels for some rural parts of Nosara, the rains really cannot come soon enough.
However, a crack team of SSS Instructors, (led by our resident Englishman Owen who hails from the witch capital of the world, Cornwall) have been performing nightly rain dances in the hopes of enticing the storm gods to release their bounty, so we expect to see some results soon. I wonder if a “Sustainability through Paganism” initiative could take off?

storm
Cool clouds, but no rain!

While the weather gods have been uncooperative in the precipitation department, they surely have been smiling on us when it comes to the surf! It seems like every week I am writing something along of the lines of “…and the swell just keeps on coming at Playa Guiones” because, well, the swell DOES just keeps on coming at Playa Guiones!  Storm cells in the South Pacific – which produce the strong southerly swells have been experiencing – have been particularly active. We are entering week four of continuous quality swell, and it still shows no real signs of abating.
pipe
Ok so it isn´t quite Guiones but we still know how these guys feel.

As always our clients have been right in the thick of it, with beginners to intermediates to advanced all giving their best – and having the times of their lives in the process. While some of the extra big days have made conditions hazardous at certain times and tides, we have made sure that our lessons have been situated at the optimal hours for client safety. And if moving your lesson to 6:30AM means that you get to catch the sun rise while you surf, it is really a small price to pay!
Check out a few of our more recent client shots below:

Nice drop, take 1.
Nice drop, take 1.
Nice drop, take 2
Nice drop, take 2
Lauren, up and riding on her very first lesson!
Lauren,  Seattle´s newest surfer, up and riding on her very first lesson!
Shelby takes her last ride of the trip all the way to the beach.
Shelby takes her last ride of the trip all the way to the beach.
Fox 1...
Fox goes left…
... and Fox  goes right!
… and Fox goes right!
guitars
“Watch out mum!” Guitar family fun.
anna-wipeout
Anna got some excellent waves on her trip, but I could not go past this excellent wipe out shot… Sorry, Anna! I will owe you a drink for this one next time you are here.

Our Kids Camp has continued in full swing, with the eager little grommies absolutely eating up the fun conditions on the inside break.

easy
“This surfing caper is so easy…
backwards
The backwards man strikes again!
helberth-kids
SSS Instructor Helberth lends a guiding hand.
chumi-2
Alonso and the happy campers, post surf.

On top of these great photos, you can check out this video put together exclusively for Safari Surf School showcasing some of our students and instructors in the second half of March:

As I mentioned last week, some of our instructors, and more advanced students, have been taking some trips up and down the coast to search out some of the other quality set ups in this area. I have personally surfed two breaks here in the past week that I never knew existed, and have scored some absolutely world class waves in the process. I will post a few teasers below, but keep your eyes out in the next week or so for some quality photos and footage. The surprises this place can throw up never cease to amaze me!

big-wave
This wave is a lot bigger than it looks, and is not too far away from our HQ. But where, you ask?

secret-spot
Secret spot #2 was a heavy reef break left that requires boat access… this was us bringing it ashore yesterday afternoon. But from where?

And on that note, that is a wrap for this week. As I said, be sure to follow our Facebook and Instagram accounts for more exclusive photos and footage, as well as all the latest happenings from SSS.
Peace!
taima