It’s by far one of our favorite surf destinations for a quick winter getaway. A few winters back we traveled to Rincón, Puerto Rico with some friends. Although we didn’t score epic conditions it was still a great trip. We landed at Aguidilla Airport, saving ourselves the three hour drive from San Juan and making for an easy commute down the coast to the center of Rincón. After securing the board bags to the roof of our impressively small Toyota Corolla we ventured toward our hotel.
Our path soon deviated as hunger struck. Being “hangry” on a surftrip is never a good thing. So with our limited knowledge of the area and meager grasp on the Spanish language, we pulled into the most american thing around: Burger King. I know, how sad. But there is nothing worse than starting a trip hangry.
Bellies full, we arrived at our hotel, La Casa Verde. It has upgraded since this trip and is far more luxurious today, but back then it was our ideal spot. It had everything you could ask for. A room with a fan, a shower and a bar/restaurant that doubled as the area’s party spot. And it’s always a bonus to be near one’s own bed after a night of cervezas.
After getting settled in we finally got to searching for waves. Luckily, we were only a few minutes walk from Pools, a great close-to-home wave for the laid-back days. Shoes or flip-flops are highly suggested for the walk. I stepped on some reef and had to walk home with a piece of it still lodged in my heel. No bueno (It took nearly a month to get that sucker out). The other days we ventured out to Marias-Domes and Tres Palmas. There is an excellent local breakfast spot on the way that is a must have every morning. Make the effort to order in spanish as a gesture of respect to the locals. Unfortunately, we didn’t score at either spot, so we packed up our trusted Corolla and ventured northwest to Aguidilla.
Once there we paddled out at Jobos, a really fun but short right-hand point break that comes around a small cliff. Some of the guys jumped off the cliff straight into the lineup. The place definitely has a lot of local flavor with small restaurants nearby, something that keeps the crowds full here, but still great vibes.
Once we couldn’t feel our arms from all the paddling we traveled down the road to Middles, a ASP World Tour stop some years ago. It’s a fast breaking wave with tons of sea urchins on the inside, making for a challenging entrance and exit, but keeping the crowds to a minimum. There is a trick to getting in and out, but you’ll have to ask the locals for that.
We surfed until the sun went down each day. Four days of trial and error made for a great experience.
