ONLY THE BRAVE: XXL TENERIFE!
ONLY THE BRAVE: XXL TENERIFE!
ONLY THE BRAVE: XXL TENERIFE!
When powerful low-pressure systems sweep across the Canary Islands in winter, they can unleash truly XXL conditions along Tenerife’s rugged north shore. For years, a fearless crew of local sailors…pioneered by Dany Bruch…have been chasing these rare, intense days when the wind and swell line up. This is the story of one of those days earlier this year, when everything came together and the island delivered conditions that were simply off the scale.
Words and photos: André Ludewig, Mariusz Stachowiak and Simona Allesandri
Click on any photo to enlarge and scroll!
PRELUDE
The trade winds, typical for the Canary Islands, regularly blow across the well-known windsurfing spots of Tenerife, Gran Canaria and Fuerteventura. Low-pressure systems that move eastward north of the Canaries disrupt this pattern.
When that happens, Tenerife offers fantastic windsurfing conditions with waves up to mast heigh in Las Américas. The spot at Fitenia also works perfectly, with the slopes of the Teno Mountains acting as a natural wind accelerator. If the wind turns onshore, this acceleration effect disappears due to wind shadowing on the windward side.
DISCOVERY
Back in 2007, Dany Bruch and a few friends began searching for surfable alternatives in the north. Some spots were already known, such as Punta de Hidalgo. The rocky coastline makes relaxed beach starts impossible anywhere. Usually for these spots the gear has to be thrown into the water from several meters above, the sailor jumps in after it and after a few strong swimming strokes between the sets, the danger zone is cleared.
Dany chose a spot whose wave had never before seen a windsurfer. Since the wind there experienced no natural acceleration, he was the only one to reach the impact zone, using a 100L board and a 5.8m sail. At the time, spectacular photos and videos showing double-mast-high waves caused quite a stir in the scene. Low-pressure systems rarely develop into true tropical storms, but now when they do, a handful of experienced big-wave windsurfers regularly make a pilgrimage to the north coast of Tenerife.
ACTION STATIONS
One such day was set to be April 3, 2025. Weather services issued storm warnings and in high spirits, jet skis were checked, waterproof camera housings prepared and batteries charged. This time, nothing was to be left to chance. Even during the mountain crossing, with the first view of the northern coast, huge waves were already visible. Whitecaps everywhere…so it was clearly going to be windy.
On site, the final checks of the windsurfing equipment were made, and the last decisions on sail sizes were taken. The wind was gusty and offshore, making it very hard to judge. Martin Ovsik opted for a 4.0m sail and Jochen Stolz played it safe with a 5.0m.
They were joined by slalom world champion Matteo Iachino, local veteran Iván Hernández (with many years of experience on the north coast) and Nikodem Merlak. Dany Bruch was still recovering from a foot injury and drove one of the two jet skis. The other was manned by Martin Ovsik and his friend Pelda. The jet skis mainly provided safety support and filmed from the perspective from the channel.
MISSION
On foot, I covered the 3 km to the point break to take photos from land and air. As forecasted, the weather created a dramatic backdrop: heavy rain showers, stormy gusts, dark skies alternating with bursts of sun…changing every minute. At the spot, I was greeted by towering waves and flying sea spray.
Jochen was already there, testing the first waves. Gradually, the other guys arrived and delivered some spectacular rides on waves sometimes more than double mast-high. Conditions were extremely gusty, everyone was either flying or floating in the lulls.
Timing and wave selection were super tricky. Martin once entered too high, bottom-turned too low, and was washed over the rocks by a larger set. He and his undamaged gear were rescued by a jet ski…all good!
There were a few more wipe outs, but all ended safely. The only real issue came with the drone, which, despite its 70 km/h speed and 30% remaining battery, reported that it couldn’t return to its starting point. A strong gust nearly prevented it from covering the 450m back to shore. Adrenaline pumping, I managed to catch it again with of the 8% battery remaining…Phew!”
At the end of the day, when everyone was already back on land, Dany decided he couldn’t just stick to supporting from the jet ski so he headed back out!
DANY BRUCH
“The forecast that day was insane….The day was incredible! It was big and windy. I had Simona Alessandri, marketing boss of Bruch Boards and the Wind Centre, on board. She took the best photos I’ve seen of the spot so far.
The guys really stepped on the gas: Jochen had the biggest sets under control, Martin ripped properly but disappeared for 20 seconds in a monster washing machine, Matteo showed that he is an experienced windsurfer, Nikodem had his first big wave experience and Iban – The Man!!!!
Together with Peter Huhn, he showed me their secret spots in the north of the island 20 years ago. I was so pumped! I was still not fully recovered from my wipe out at the World Cup in the summer but i could not resist! At the end of the day, I headed out on the jet ski to finally capture those dream barrel shots… guys, you could fit a bus in there! I was so hooked on the action, I wanted to catch a few waves in the evening, but when setting up from the jet ski, I lost the extension…disaster…but maybe that was fate stopping me from doing something foolish!…next time!”
JOCHEN STOLZ
“Years ago, it was Dany who motivated me to look for remote spots in the north that also offer waves as big as the ones I already knew from Brittany. In the meantime, we’ve surfed almost every wave here and we know this spot from many sessions. The waves here aren’t the best, fastest or cleanest, but the higher the swell, the better it works – like today. I was fully focussed, we certainly have the most dangerous conditions on the island here. In the end, I was able to score good waves and had a lot of fun with a handful of friends and the most intense nature experiences.”
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