Nazaré (wave)

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Relief representation of the underwater gorge near Nazaré
Big wave at Nazaré with surfers

With Nazaré also will surf spot in Portugal referred, named after the city of Nazaré . The wave breaking here is one of the largest surfable waves in the world when the conditions are right.

location

Nazaré is located on the Portuguese Atlantic coast, about 120 kilometers north of the capital Lisbon . The surf spot is located north of the village on a rocky outcrop below the São Miguel Acanjo fortress . The wave breaks a few hundred meters from Praia do Norte in the open Atlantic .

Wave formation

The unusual height of the wave breaking here has several causes. Off the coast is the Nazaré Canyon , a sea gorge over 230 kilometers long with a depth of up to 5000 meters. The end of this underwater canyon is just off the coast of Nazaré, which results in large differences in water depth in a small area. Furthermore, under appropriate conditions, a water current is directed along the beach at the ledge into the sea, so that the wave is enlarged further. Provided there is a corresponding swell , the waves can break more than 20 m high.

history

On November 1, 2011, the American Garrett McNamara managed to surf a wave over 23 m high, which was considered to be the highest wave ever surfed. The height of the wave was confirmed by the jury of the Billabong XXL Award , which has been awarding the world's largest wave rides annually for over 10 years. Garrett McNamara then received an entry in the Guinness Book of Records for the wave he surfed off Nazaré . In 2013, this record was possibly exceeded several times in the same place, although no formal confirmation has yet been received. On May 1, 2015, Sebastian Steudtner received the 'XXL Big Wave Award' in the “Biggest Wave” category for a ride on an estimated 21.6 m high wave off Nazaré.

The first big wave contest of the World Surf League in Nazaré was won on December 20, 2016 by the Australian Jamie Mitchell , who beat 23 other surfers who had to conquer waves more than 10 meters high.

The peculiarities of wave formation at Nazaré have led to numerous accidents in the past. The sandbank has had a name since the 18th century , which basically goes : the bank that makes widows .

The wave does not yet have its own name; a naming for better tourist marketing is being considered.

Web links

  • Website with information, maps and current readings from the Nazare Canyon

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Location of Nazare in the aerial photo on Google Maps. Retrieved December 31, 2013 .
  2. ^ Luis M. Pinto: The Mechanics of the Nazaré Canyon wave. surfertoday, November 27, 2012, accessed December 31, 2013 .
  3. ↑ Largest wave surfed (unlimited). Guinness Book of Records, accessed January 3, 2014 .
  4. ↑ Internet presence of the XXL Big Wave Award competition , in English ( memento of the original from December 17, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.billabongxxl.com
  5. ↑ Hendrik Ternieden: Monster waves in Portugal: The monster of Nazaré. SPIEGEL ONLINE GmbH, October 29, 2013, accessed on January 3, 2014 .
  6. ↑ Big wave surfing in Nazaré. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung , December 21, 2016, accessed on December 22, 2016 .
  7. ↑ a b Fabian Heckenberger: Much fuss about the wave. Süddeutsche Zeitung, May 4, 2013, accessed on December 31, 2013 .


Coordinates: 39 ° 36 '15.4 "  N , 9 ° 6' 0.5"  W.