Ecuador Surf Advice?

Mompiche is a great wave.. when it fires. Unfortunately, it only goes off on NW swells. And it takes a big NW swell to get down there with enough oomph to really make it go. That said, I've had a lot of fun even at 2-4ft Mompiche. It is a left and heavily tidal-dependent. All of the inside sections are dry at low tide. On high tide it can flatten out at which point there is an interior beachbreak that might be working but the local groms will be on it. The takeoff at Mompiche proper is basically paddling straight for a reef wall. You drop in within a few feet of it, and make the first turn, or you eat reef/rock-wall. The first turn can be a barrel section if its really working. The rest is point-break hack-and-slash + carving. If you hang out on the outside of the lineup waiting for something to "swing wide" you will be starved. Nothing swings wide there, you have to go mix it up and get in the lineup and go shoulder to shoulder with the locals if you want a set wave, else you will be picking off scraps on the second section.

You will likely find no worthy board rentals there. The town has only had electricity for about 5 years.

Whatever you do, don't go to Montanita.

ps. re: montanita: unless its to shop for a board. there are stocked shops there. its otherwise a surf ghetto and the break isn't worth the hassles you'll get in the water there.

I fucking loved Montanita. I thought the locals were awesome and the waves fun. When the point starts working on a big swell it gets pretty gnarly. I spent a month there surfing and partying and I would do it again.

I surfed and studied Spanish in Montanita for two weeks last summer, got three good days on the point and a couple of fun beach break days, but honestly couldn't stand the town - although it's definitely a good place to get plastered on whatever you desire, if that's your thing. If you do swing through there stay at Kundalini - a nice guy named Pancho runs it and he's happy to shoot the shit, practice Spanish with you or tell some outlandish stories. If I had to do it again I wouldn't stay in Montanita, but man Ecuadorians are nice people and some other areas of the country are amazing. No localism in the water for me, although I wasn't fighting for set waves, they were all really chatty and psyched to hear about SF and correct my jacked up Spanish.

cross the border to Peru .... better waves

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I lived there for about a year and would agree with the montanita advise. get a board there and surf any of the better spots nearby. just look around and you'll score. mompiche is great, but fickle. if you're going soon, the beach breaks do well in winter. i bought boards there, though it's slim pickings outside of montanita. travelers will trade/sell boards sometimes though. canoa has decent boards on occasion if that is closer to you than montanita.

yeah, canoa's a nice place. well worth visiting. not just for the surf, though there is some (mind the sharks following the fishermen's pangas back in as they clean their catch and throw it overboard though). there are some cliffs there i recall people launching off of w/ gliding gear, and some good food, with a really low key vibe overall.

@ Seria: I brought two boards down with me and told the airline there was only one in my bag. Montanita definitely had the biggest board selection I saw, but that doesn't say much. The Montanita Spanish School has great instructors with classes overlooking the beach, though the Aussie dude who runs it is kind of a douche.
@Going Left: After my month in Montanita I went to Peru for a couple of weeks. Stayed/surfed in Mancora and did trips to Lobitos. Beautiful waves and people.

Hi Sereia! Where will you be volunteering in Mompiche? I'm having a hard time finding out about local NGOs etc... Thanks!