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Sand-bottom pointbreak located near a small fishing port in northern Peru, about 400 miles north of Lima; often nominated as the world's longest wave. Half-mile rides are common at Chicama, and rides up to a mile or more are possible. "Just the name, Chicama, has a magical sound to it," Hawaiian surfer James Jones said after visiting the break during a good swell in 1987. "Like some Latin form of Nirvana."

May to August is the best time to surf Chicama, and even then the waves tend to be small—only a few times a year does the surf get above four feet. The two-and- a-half-mile point at Chicama is usually divided into three separate breaks. When the surf hits six feet, the breaks begin to link together, with the fastest and most powerful section of wave found near the base of the point. A Chicama wave is a joy to ride, as it changes speed often, and mixes hollow sections with softer-breaking ones, allowing the surfer to easily go through an entire repertoire of moves, tuberiding included, on a single wave. Surfers usually paddle out at the top of the point, ride three, four, or five waves down the length of the point, then exit the water and walk back to the top. On smaller days, Chicama has become a favorite among longboarders and SUP riders.

Water temperatures at Chicama during the surf season average in the low 60s, air temperatures in the upper 60s, the prevailing wind is offshore, and the surf is good on all tides. Rarely are there more than 20 surfers riding Chicama at one time; due to the size of the playing field, a majority of waves, no matter how many people in the water of the crowd, go unridden. Another half-dozen good surf breaks are located nearby, including Pacasmayo, which is just as long as Chicama, and more powerful. The landscape in this part of the country, however, is made up almost entirely of sand, dirt, and rocks, and apart from lounging in the restaurant-bar at a small number of hotels that cater to surfers, there is almost no diversion whatsoever.

The Chicama waves were spotted from the air by Hawaiian surfer Chuck Shipman in 1967. Upon arrival at Honolulu, Shipman phoned the news back to Peru; in December of that year, a group of top Peruvian surfers, including Carlos Barreda, Oscar Malpartida, and Ivo Hunza, set off from Lima to try and find the break. Magoo de la Rosa wrote about the trip in his 2010 book 

Finding the exact location of the place was more than difficult. They traveled for long hours in a VW Beetle and a Citroen 2CV, entered many dry creeks, drove dirt roads full of potholes. When they were about to throw in the towel, they arrived at Puerto Chicama. They were looking at the impossible. A wave that broke for more than two kilometers. It was an epiphany, and they were all jumping and screaming at the same time.

Chicama was listed as one of the 10 best waves in the world in a 1981 

 magazine article; the Chicama surf is featured in 

Chicama

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Encyclopedia of Surfing

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Encyclopedia of Surfing

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