COSTA RICA
Pura Vida
Dan Fischer
- Pavones is located on the extreme
southern Pacific coast of Costa Rica
(Central America) right above the
Panamanian border.
- Located just on the inside of
southern half of the The Gulf of
Dulce
- Pavones is 400km from Costa Rica’s
capital and largest airport San Jose.
 Costa Rica’s seasons consist of Wet and Dry. Also referred
to as High (dry) and Low (wet) from a tourist standpoint.
 Wet season ranges from June to December, and Dry from
December back to June.
 Waves are typical good all year round however waves height
vary as well as conditions.
 Major well season lasts from April to October but cleaner
conditions can be found from December to April
 Water temps in Costa Rice vary very little season to
season with an average yearly variation of about 7
degrees
 Water temps range from 77 degrees to 84 degrees on
the southern coast, so wetsuits definitely wont be
necessary
 Pavones works best on a south west or south/south west swell, due to
its location on the inside of the Gulf
 Any swell From the west or From the north will be blocked by the
Peninsula de Osa, shown of the map.
Due to it’s inside location, Pavones is
referred to as extremely fickled. In other
words it only gets good sometimes, and
can often be flat with no waves.
The best swell for Pavones is at least a 6ft
to 10ft south west swells, but the majority
of the time the swell is in the 4-6 foot
range, as shown from the table. These 4-6
foot or smaller south west swells are often
not enough to push through to the inside
of the gulf where Pavones is located.
The most common swell periods are
around 16 second long period ground
swells. Typically Costa Rica experiences
long period ground swells all year round.
 Pavones is referred to as one of the longest left point
breaks in the Americas. The area where the waves
breaks is almost a mile long, and on a perfect day, you
can easily ride the wave this far.
 On any normal given day you can ride the waves about
300-500 meters (Apx ¼ mile)
 Pavones has sand and rocks on the bottom. The
shoreline consists of cobble stone rocks which tapper
off to all sand near the main break.
 Pavones acts like a reef break, changing very little in
the way it breaks, however it is not, and the closet reef
is miles away.
 The rocks along the shoreline help keep sand from
moving around too much, making Pavones seem
almost like a reef break
 Most commonly people travel to Costa Rica in High
season. The waves in High season, October-April (our
winter months), are generally smaller but very clean
with offshore winds lasting all day.
 If your looking for a bit more punch in wave power and
wave height, April-October (our summer months) are
typically the best swell season.
 However, most likely you will get good waves any time
of the year
 Airline prices are significantly lower during the
months of December and January.
 Continental Airline Runs flights to San Jose from
Newark about twice a day during these months.
 Example –
-Departing - 7:25 a.m. Sat., Dec. 1, 2012 New
York/Newark, NJ (EWR – Liberty)
-Arrive - 11:50 a.m. Sat., Dec. 1, 2012 San Jose,
Costa Rica (SJO)
Total Travel Time - 5hrs 25mins Cost – $608
 From San Jose you have two options to get to Pavones
By Bus – From San Jose to Golfita, just north of
Pavones, the bus ride is about 7 hours. From Golfita you can
take a 4x4 taxi to Pavones in about another 2 hours. The cost
is cheap, about 5800 colones or about $11 for the bus and
another 5$ for the taxi.
By Plane – For about 75 dollars you can take a small
plane form San Jose to Golfita and then get a 4x4 taxi, a bit
more expensive but definitely worth it.
*Also keep in mind Continental Airlines charges $200 for a
board bag EACH WAY, regardless of how many boards are in
the bag.
 Costa Rica experiences dominant offshore winds in the winter
with smaller swell. In the swell season (April – October) the
winds vary with offshore winds
usually early in the mornings.
 Offshore wind at Pavones are from
the North or the North East, directly
opposite the south south west swells
that come through
 As most surfing beaches experience
afternoon onshore sea breezes, so does
Pavones, so its best to get it early
in the morning.
 Generally, any tide works good at Pavones due to its
reef like structure.
 The Tide effects the take off spot, moving it up and
down the beach, but does not alter the length of the
wave, or the quality.
 Any board will give u a quality ride at Pavones. If you’re
the long board type, go for it. You can easily fit a big
board in this open wave, and still be able to make
sections and do turns.
 If you want the full effect however, a shorter more
maneuverable board is ideal, offering you more
versatility and things like deep barrels and hard top
turns.
 1. Crowd - On a good day at Pavones, you can count up to
200 heads in the water. If your not comftorable with crowd,
this can make it not only frustrating but dangerous.
 2. Sharks – Although rare, some species of sharks like to
hang out around the river mouth and feed. Attacks are rare,
but have happened before.
 3. Water Quality – During the rainy season, a significant
amount of rainfall can wash pollution down the river and
into the surf area. Although the water can get dark, it
usually isn't polluted. However some diseases and parasites
have been found it the runoff before.
 http://costa-rica-
guide.com/travel/index.php?option=com_content&tas
k=view&id=498&Itemid=702

 http://www.surf-forecast.com/breaks/Pavones

 http://www.surfline.com/surf-report/pavones-costa-
rica_5796/travel/
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 http://www.govisitcostarica.com/region/city.asp?cID=
294