Watch: Cahuil Perfection
First things first: Kudos to the filmmakers for not releasing the footage until well after the fact.
The following is taken from the video's introduction:
"In August 2023, a warm frontal system brought intense rainfall to central and southern Chile, accumulating up to 791 mm of rain in just six days. This event caused significant flooding in rivers and estuaries, altering the natural course of the Cahuil estuary in the O'Higgins Region of Pichilemu.
"The Cahuil estuary expanded unusually due to the rains, temporarily changing its geography and creating ideal conditions for the formation of a perfect wave.
"On August 28th, coinciding with a south-westerly swell, waves with long, powerful, and perfectly formed barrels were generated, the likes of which had never been seen before in Cahuil.
"This wave, born from an exceptional combination of natural factors, will likely not be repeated under the same conditions."
Comments
damn.
wow looks like chopes on that opening ride!
Enjoyed that
Thanks Stu !
Reminds me of somewhere I know...
Yes very similar
Jeez that’s magic.
Really enjoyed that, the water quality didn't seem so bad considering the flood waters. Wonder how cold it was?
Chilean coastal water is generally pretty cold even in Summer due to the Humboldt Current which comes up from Cape Horn - August is cold, like 13-16C water temp... the current flows along the whole West Coast right up to Peru. It's like when we get cold upwelling here on the East Coast of Australia but almost all of the time over there...
Cheers for the info benwaa. It's been a bucket list destination for so long, still hoping to get there one day, though it appears a 4/3 will come in handy....
Wow! Waves don't come much better than that, do they!
That first sizeable wave looked just like a cold water version of Cloudbreak.
Oh, to have been on the spot!
unreal! I love the 'surfboard view' as opposed to the jetski view.. catching glimpses of a thing, as you would if you were in the session.
(though 'Ambient Background Harp Relaxing' is an epic name for a musician/group, the tune is Frozen Time by royalty free composer Epikton: https://motionarray.com/browse/producer/epikton/ )
Love the water angle.
What would you be riding?
I had a good think and a talk to a couple of shapers (about a spot that's sort of similar, but mostly faster and - mostly - less throaty). My ideas: 6'6-6'8 swallowtail quad; just enough nose rocker, but not too much; subtle single to double to mini vee out the tail; extra volume but not too fat through the nose. No surprises shape.
Not claiming any revolutionary deep insights, just what I think would work.
? https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/588546286841972/
Without feeling it up or seeing the rocker, I'd say pretty much spot on
Ha b6 you beat me to it, was gonna suggest the same thing. That's an heirloom board with that glass job
driving me nuts. will you buy it @fliplid?
It's been a process to tone down the temptations and I've been making progress so don't want to fall of the wagon now. Gotta say though, Udo ain't helping
Whaddaya Mean...
:-]]
: P
word to that @fliplid.. this stick is such a solid looking generic reliable for just positioning, paddling buoyantly, and keeping your head down with a hood on.. partly it looks like the dream lone option in a minimalist bolthole I wish I owned somewhere like nth/w Alba/Eire..
(but then I also wish I was still young and bendy and didn't get short of breath after an hour's sesh in cold water..)
I'm not young or bendy either but thankfully there's too much volume in that one for me, and udo, now you're just twisting the knife
I once got a step deck board made for me to get some extra volume. Saw one with a travelling surfer once. Actually felt like surfing in thongs or thick shoes though. I hated it and I still have it somewhere
wow. heavy. from multiple aspects.
Oh so glassy too.
G maps usual set up below
Yeah, looks like a unicorn setup. Probably why they were happy to broadcast it.
On top of the unicorn sand buildup was that it was only on for a couple of hours one morning, Wind came up mid morning - one local pro who missed it the morning deemed it unsurfable in the afternoon. Following days conditions didn't come together like that morning
Would have been difficult to get waves I'd imagine - didnt look overly crowded, but it was most of the main locals out.
Ramon Navarro must surely be the surfing world's equivalent of Forrest Gump, he's ALWAYS in the right place at the right time.
Beautiful. Isn't it wonderous when storm and river and sand; wind and swell and tide come together?
Well delayed. The secret to happiness is to admire without desire, I can take great joy in seeing the session these guys had. Mind surfing it, if I could make the drop goofy, I'd surf this one goofy.
Pichilemu is one of the most incredible surfing towns in South America.
I was lucky to have two weeks there in 2012 mid winter, bloody freezing but plenty of swell and often I’d surf by myself. Beautiful part of the world. Reminds me of the surf coast 30 years ago.
Have watched it a few times now, and it really is perfect. Good sand is magic.
Incredible and very well played!
beautiful photography documenting ephemeral perfection
Beautiful..