Comments...

comment by Juan Delmar, 2008-07-27 23:47:59

San Bartolo, the bes place to stay
I stayed twice at Antonios surfcamp and there`s no better place to stay around Lima. His hospitality does not has limits.
And in addition, there are first class waves all around!

comment by Luke , 2007-09-20 00:45:49

Place to Stay
I too have the same advice as the last couple of posts. I’ve been lucky enough to have been traveling for two years around south and Central America, and in that time I ended up spending time covering some famous surfing destinations including Costa Rica, Mexico and Panama but in the end I visited Peru twice and spent around 4 months surfing and visiting the usual haunts. I realized that in visiting Peru I was going for the waves and not so much the environment, landscapes or warm weather and to be totally honest in my opinion (and Jason’s last comment) a trip up North is essential if you want to score decent point breaks.

The Peruvian people are awesome and the travelers I met there were pretty open-minded which made for a great trip. When I first arrived I felt under prepared traveling solo and with limited knowledge of Spanish, I really didn’t know what to expect. If your going to visit Peru and are flying into Lima I couldn’t recommend enough the services and warm hospitality that Antonio provided at his hotel (www.surfpenascal.com) everything was organized for me and at a super reasonable price. He and his family were solid, warm and dedicated to helping me with everything I needed from getting a new surfboard to sorting out a road trip up North.

The place is enormous and private almost like hiring out a beach apartment with cable TV and a kitchen, the food was incredible with plenty of it, fresh and consistently varied. Generally there was always a wave to surf and when there was those moments of no swell Antonio was happy to take a road trip into the mountains where we had the chance to check out some Peruvian sights and culture with the help of his local knowledge.

Easily I’d have to say it’s the most unique and comfortable surf stays I’d had over the last two years hands down... Well worth the stay and a great starting point for anyone visiting Peru - All the things said in the lower post are true although I didn’t much mind the surf spots south of Lima and around Penascal, at least in the winter time they are uncrowded by Sydney standards. Enjoy!

comment by Anonymous, 2007-07-16 17:57:05

Great place
The last post was right on. You can't beat the food, rates, service or location! Antonio was great.

comment by Jason, 2006-05-30 07:50:48

Penascal
I was in San Bartolo for 7 days. I am leaving today. This is what I learned. The surf in San Bartolo was pretty fun but there are better waves to the north and south. However, San Bartolo is an excellent hub to surf the area´s breaks. The place is an utter ghost town in the winter (summer for North Americans) and is definitely not Jaco. There is an eternal fog over the place and water is coooold (from FL). Entry is very tricky at Penascal (right in San Bartolo) and the exit is worst. There are rocks and urchins everywhere. If you surf Penascal, San Bartolo, Pico Alto, or Puerto Veijo,San Bartolo is a good host town and Antonio at Penascal Surf Hotel is the man. The guy has a great spot right in front of Penascal and he is a generous and knowledgeable host. The surf was small for a couple of days ( chest to head) so we spent a three day trek into the mountains and jungle highlands past TARMA. UNREAL. i ADVISE TAKING SOME TIME TO DO THIS. ANTONIO SHOWED US ALL OVER THOSE AREAS FOR COST. WE JUST PAID FOR HIS FOOD AND HOTEL, ETC. WE SAW SOME AMAZING THINGS. THE JUNGLE TOPS THOSE OF COSTA RICA, THE MOUNTAINS TOP THE ROCKIES, AND THE TOWNS ARE CHARMING AND CHEAP. BE PREPARED FOR THE COLD. THE COAST IS DESERT, THE HIGHLANDS HIGH AND DRY, AND THE JUNGLE EXTREMELY LUSH AND WILD. DRIVING IN LIMA IS UNBELIEVABLY CRAZY. PERU IS AMAZING AND YOU MUST GO. STAY HERE FOR A WHILE. DONT only STAY ON THE COAST, THE REST IS TOO BEAUTIFUL TO MISS OUT ON. THERE IS NO PARTYING TO BE FOUND ON THE COAST OUTSIDE LIMA IN THE WINTER (SUMMER IN THE STATES). LIMA IS CRAZY AND WILD (THINK MIAMI) AND THE GIRLS ARE RIDICULOUS. FOOD CAN BE BLAND IN THE COAST HOWEVER IF YOU STAY WITH ANTONIO THE FOOD WAS AS GOOD AS THE BEST RESTAURANTS IN LIMA FOR ABOUT 3 DOLLARS. ANY QUESTIONS AND I´LL TELL YOU WHAT I KNOW. THE PERUVIANS WERE GREAT AND THE BRAZILIANS WERE JERKS THAT DROPPED IN (BUT IM SURE YOU KNEW THAT ALREADY) BRAZILIANS SEEM TO BE PROUD THAT EVERYONE THINKS THEY ARE RUDE AND IGNORANT LOSERS; STRANGE THOUGHT PROCESS. THE WOMEN LOVE THE AMERICANS AND EUROPEANS AND THEY WILL LET YOU KNOW THE MINUTE THEY HEAR YOU SPEAKING English. YOU DONT REALLY NEED A RENTAL CAR. YOU CAN TAKE A TAXI TO LIMA FOR $15. yOU SHOULD JUST RENT THOSE DAYS YOU WILL BE EXPLORING THE MOUNTAINS AND JUNGLE, FOR THIS FACILITATES FREEDOM OF MOVEMENT. jhicks@law.stetson.edu

comment by anonymous, 2005-03-09 02:36:59

the temperature in march is not cold but not hot, however i recomend to use a jacket(spring suit) or a full wetsuit

comment by anonymous, 2005-02-01 22:31:19

Water TEMPERATURE
What is the water temperature in March?

comment by Edson, 2005-01-28 18:57:38

Great and Strong Wave!!
I am a local Bodyboarder of San Bartolo and I used to ride this wave on big swells. It always felt like a huge wave, it´s very powerful, even if it was only 10-12ft it felt like 16ft. One time I remember it was a perfect sunny day of march, 10 feet walls, with the tubular section working perfectly, and me and 4 of my friends (we were around 15 -16 years old) paddle out. No one else was there. Everyone caught a few excellent waves and we were well positioned in the point. Suddenly, the sky turned gray and windy. It was like winter time. We looked at the horizon and saw that a set of bigger waves (about 15 feet)were coming toward us, but the point had moved and we were way inside. Those waves broke right in front of me and I had to duckdive. Big mistake. I felt like I was inside a washing machine and I thought I was going to die. I had no air and I even saw the light...thank God it was the sun and I wasn´t dead. Terrible experience for a 15 year old kid.
A lot of time has passed since then and I had surfed in a lot of spots worldwide, and I´ve never felt the power of "Peñasco´s" whitewater elsewhere.
Viva San Bartolo!!

comment by Daniel Rodriguez, local of San Bartolo, 2004-12-21 17:35:50

Respected right wave in San Bartolo
Excelent wave specially in summer (from November to March) with glassy conditions and waves of 2 to 3 mts. can be a dream. Good tubes and long, fast and heavy walls. The wave roars loudly.
The spot is beautiful and you can paddle to Peña Rosa a good left which works very good with north swells and to Huayco also a good short left very hollow and fun.
Peñascal is mostly for very experienced people. I remember once going with a friend who was not very fit and he was not concentrated too: he was washed out to the rocks and tried to walk out through the rocks with his board . Big mistake. He got hundreds of scars throughout the whole body. The rocks on the shore are covered with a small and sharp shell called pico de loro (parrot mouth).
If you feel like being washed out paddle to the left side as fast as possible to escape from the sets of white water on the shore.

Try this wave is a unique experience

comment by anonymous, 2004-09-10 04:11:17

surf it huge
When you go there and it's the biggest day of the year, you will pass by the San Bartolo bay and you will see no one on the water, but the bombing solitary rights at penascal will always be there, letting themselves cautivate by the passion of surfing

comment by www.peruazul.com.pe, 2003-11-11 05:47:03

San Bartolo Local
4 meters of Penascal is just like 7 meters of Pico Alto...trust me on this one dude. This wave is way harder and feels like concrete.