Chicama: The Longest Left on Earth

Puerto Malabrigo (Chicama), La Libertad Region · Peru

Moderate7 daysSouth America~£450 est.

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Overview

At Puerto Malabrigo, on Peru's grey desert coast, the left point at Chicama peels for over two kilometres — the longest surfable wave on the planet, protected by Peruvian law as a national heritage break. On a proper south swell you link the sections one after another: Malpaso, Keys, The Point, El Hombre — legs shaking, arms on fire, until the pier finally calls time. Nobody rides it all in one go, but chasing that idea is the whole trip. The smart logistics are gloriously lazy: surf lodges on the bluff run zodiac shuttles that drop you back at the top of the point, turning a forty-minute walk into a five-minute boat ride and letting you bank ten kilometres of riding in a day. The Humboldt Current keeps the water cold (a 3/2 or 4/3 year-round) and the desert wind blows offshore almost every daylight hour. Fly Lima to Trujillo, then drive ninety minutes north through sugar-cane flats. The town is tiny and sleepy; lodges provide meals. The variable is swell size — Chicama needs a solid pulse to connect its sections, so April to September is the window. A week with lodge board, zodiac and boards is around £450. Bring a wave-catching machine, not your shortest board.