Photo: Rich Van Every
Jason Ford forcing the tail around - with style.

If you snowboard you know what leg burn is all about...well to get that surfing is a beautiful thing! And that is just what happened on a recent surf trip down to mainland Mexico with good friends Jason Ford and Hjalmar Hedman the Viking Wonder.

Photo: Rich Van Every
Jason Ford finds the secret spot.

The adventure all began with a Surfline wave alert text message to Ford's phone. Having just been at the Surfer Poll Awards a week ago, seeing all the amazing footage of surfing got me jonesing to score some waves of my own. Within a few hours we were at the International Terminal at LAX for our Aeromexico flight. Six hours and a handful of Tecate's later we found ourselves in 85-degree water surfing some awesome right hand point breaks.

Photo: Rich Van Every
Unknown dropping into a bomb.

Spot 1 was an undeveloped beach break that is said to produce a 300-yard perfect right. We were getting just half of that but it was more than enough. Though the winds ended up being a bit shifty with mixed swell direction, what a dream it was to paddle out with warm water, surrounded by tall and majestic rocks as the sun set. The primary zone we sessioned has gotten more attention than the locals like over the past few years and is now quite crowded therefore were not telling you were it is.

Photo: Rich Van Every
Hjalmar - a handful of pesos and a pair of shades is
all you really need.

Despite the last minute nature of the trip we were able to secure 5-star accommodation for three for just a few hundred bucks for the weekend. Given the current economic times many resorts and hotels are making screaming deals available. It's a great time to travel!

Photo: Rich Van Every
Beach break barrels to die for.

The next day we pushed further south near Salina Cruz, which required a guide to drive us through remote ranches. It was another long ass wave that made my back leg feel like it was going give out. It was intense just getting out to the lineup with such strong currents that nearly swept me away in just knee-deep water! The point breaks have high exposure to rocks if you take off from the peak, which makes for full commitment drop-ins.

Photo: Rich Van Every
Hjalmar picks his line on this right with Ford
approving.

It was intimidating at times seeing double overhead sets roll in arms fried and doing my best to keep me breath. It's a lot of paddling in strong current and large surf, yet the setup of these point breaks allowed us to walk back up the beach and have a semi-short paddle out to the peak. That walk was also a good time to rest and drink more water because with the intense heat I was consuming nearly 2 gallons a day! Being in water that warm was so comforting though, like being back in the womb. Not once did I get cold, on the contrary I was overheating at times!

Photo: Rich Van Every
Yours truly...loving it.

The wildlife down there is amazing too. I saw a black bat ray fly out of the water right by me. Mr. Turtle cruised by to say hello and the highly intelligent frigate birds were dancing in the sky above.

Photo: Rich Van Every
El Iguana

The waves, wildlife and people of Mainland Mexico are all so amazing and getting around is pretty easy as well, though a few essentials are must: a large hat, lots of sunscreen, extra money and a camera. Be mindful about the water and ice you consume, too, unless you want to be having unpredicted emergencies. Take note: ice with holes means it's purified at restaurants and hotels.

Photo: Rich Van Every
The food in Mexico is great... just watch out for
the ice cubes.

This part of Mexico is classic, clean and uncorrupt for the most part, and with the discounts and great surf readily available, a trip to the mainland is a must for any surfer looking to score waves and sun on the cheap.

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