It’s Europe’s infamous big wave spot and a crew of lucky people got to witness it breaking.

Words and photos Sharpy

A bunch of lucky blighters that had the smarts to enter the Sharp’s Brewery Big Wave Surf Adventure competition got to go on an adventure. A mission to the world’s most insane big wave spot and get a guided tour with the British surfer who’s name is woven in to the Nazare narrative: Cotty. We tagged along, well, there was free beer on offer…

Waves are funny old things. From six inches to 60 feet they behave in pretty much the same way. That’s the physical rules of this universe for you. The six-inch kind are common. Most beaches anywhere in the world get six inchers every now and then … not so many get 60 feet. 

Another strange thing is there have been stone cold surfable 60 footers reeling off in Portugal for decades and no one seemed to notice. Sure the fishermen knew the dangers for centuries and the hectic conditions shaped local culture. Indeed the carnival going on at the same time as this swell event is a celebration of life, from the days when a lot of fisher folk didn’t get to enjoy very long ones.

It’s a baffling notion that the spot where feasibly the biggest waves ever going to be ridden has only been in our consciousness for just over five years. All because some locals sent a photo to Garrett McNamara and asked if he’d come check out the potential. The rest you’ll know, Garrett, Cotty, and as the years have gone on, an expanding crew of big wave warriors have made the joint as famous as the more renowned big wave amphitheatres like Mavericks and Pe’ahi. 

Initially derided as being a bit ‘soft’ those early critics had never stood on the famous headland and felt the ground shake. That’s how much power is in the waves there. A big one you will actually feel through your feet if you’re stood on top of the fort that clings precariously to the end of the headland. The sentinel witness to so much crazy in the last five years.

The mini-earthquake was just one of many moments that left the rag tag mob of recent Sharp’s Brewery winners with their jaws dropped. We all looked at each other with the same quizzical look. Yep. The floor did just actually shake as another huge wave slammed into the point. 

A last minute excursion to catch mahoosive Naz is a tricky thing to plan for one person. Even more so when you’ve got eight winners … a veritable cat herding situation. With the last big storm of the winter turbocharging off Greenland and all eyes focussed on the charts the surfers were frantically booking flights and prepping skis. Cotty green lit the winner’s trip on and even though the wind forecast was a bit suss it was deemed worth the risk for the biggest swell in a very long time. The Sharp’s Brewery winners just had to blag the time off work to come see one of the craziest shows on Earth.

Nazare is all of an hour and twenty minutes drive from Lisbon airport so it’s not a killer mission. Two-hour flight from the UK on top of that and you’re there. The Sharp’s Brewery winners flew early doors on the big Tuesday at the end of February and timed it perfectly arriving mid-morning. 

The dawn session was too windy, Cotty and co whizzed out at dawn on the skis to check it out but it was fugly. ‘Sketchy’ and ‘dangerous’ aren’t two words you want to describe conditions when considering towing ultra huge surf. 

As the day went on the wind backed down and conditions began to sort themselves out. The winners were more than happy to get a guided tour of the fort; which has now become a kind of mini museum to the developing phenomenon that is Praia do Norte’s big wave scene. Ironically on massive days the fort is shut to the public for safety reasons mainly so the camera crews don’t get bumped over the edge with 50 grands worth of camera gear by someone frothing to take an Instagram shot. There are no fences up there you see, just a wonderfully un-health and safety approved foot high ledge.