Surfing in Esquinzo on the east coast of Fuerteventura

small green waves at Fuerteventura's east coast
friendly line up in Esquinzo on Fuerteventura's east coast

Esquinzo is the name of a stretch of beach on Fuerteventura's east coast. Thanks to the strong trade winds, there are often wind waves here. The special: These waves generated by local wind almost always meet offshore wind. This makes these waves very clean and easy to surf.

As with our last two blog articles, I continue to explain the beaches where we keep our surfing course. After presenting two beaches on Fuerteventura's west coast in the last two articles, we focus today on the picturesque east coast of the island.
 

The east coast of Fuerteventura

Fuerteventura's east coast, with its lovely bays, endless white beaches and clear blue waters, is rarely listed in surfspot directories. This coast is more associated with catamaran sailing, windsurfing and kitesurfing in. Often there is hardly any current on this coast, no or little waves and often offshore wind.

Especially on the east coast of the southern peninsula Jandia, the wind is almost always offshore. Surfers love offshore wind. Offshore wind makes waves break later, steeper and also slightly larger. The best thing is: In offshore wind, the water surface is very smooth only the really breaking waves stand out. You can see the incoming waves from afar and the waves break very clean and controlled.

The prevailing wind direction on Fuerteventura is the trade wind from north-north-east. This trade wind is like a strong vortex that blows parallel to the African mainland at the height of the Canary Islands, and then continues to become an easterly wind on the open Atlantic. Early discoverers like Columbus used this wind to cross the Atlantic.

In the northern part of Fuerteventura the trade wind is onshore at west and east coasts. The island is almost exactly in the wind direction. The southern peninsula of Jandia is slightly inclined to the west, so this trade wind is always offshore from La Lajita.
As the trade winds grow stronger, he also builds up wind waves. These wind waves can become shoulder to head high on some days and often have a period of over 8 seconds.

The further south one drives on the east coast of the southern peninsula the bigger the waves become. Different beaches and coves form different types of waves here. These waves almost always break off during offshore wind.
 

Surfing in Esquinzo on Fuerteventura's east coast

One of the most well-known Windswell surf spots in Fuerteventura's south is the left-breaking Pointbreak Esquinzo.
Under the small settlement Esquinzo just before the place Jandia is the beach of Esquinzo. At the height of an old uninhabited beach villa, the bay kinks inwards. Round rocks on land flanked by soft sand form here a promontory at the southern end long left-hand waves run.

Depending on the wave height, these waves can even be upside down. Usually they are about hip high. Thanks to the offshore wind, these waves break not only very long but also very clean.
The perfect surfing spot for single-fin retro shapes, longboards, Malibus and fat twin-fin fishboards. In Esquinzo, especially in summer, small clean waves are almost daily for relaxed surfers.

With our surf course we drive regularly to Esquinzo. Especially advanced people love this beach. Nowhere else is it easier to learn and practice surfing in green waves. Aloha.