Who took the biggest wave? The biggest waves in the world. Shipstern Bluff. Tasmania, Australia
5 most famous surf spots where legendary huge waves come
The biggest
waves of the world
5 most famous surf spots,
where the legendary come
huge waves
Waves most often calm and mesmerize the person watching them. Just imagine: the beach, the setting sun drowning in the ocean waves, one after another rolling in white foam onto the golden sand. “Idyll,” you say. Now imagine: strong gusts of wind, a cooling breeze and a huge 30-meter wave that grew right in front of you in a matter of seconds. “Idyll,” the big wave surfers will say. Today we will talk about the most famous spots with big waves: how and where these ocean Hulks come from and who is hunting for them.
Mavericks, California
Perhaps these giant waves have become the most popular and are familiar even to people far from surfing, and all thanks to the film “Wave Conquerors” (2012), which tells real story the young surfer Jay Moriarty, who conquered those same Mavericks. But that’s not about that now. The spot got its name back in 1967, when three surfer friends came to surf the unnamed spot. With them was a dog - a German shepherd named Maverick, who loved to swim next to the guys. Leaving the dog on the shore, they swam by boat to the line-up, but the dog still went after them. The boat had to be turned around in order to tie Maverick more tightly - the weather had become very bad, and it was unsafe for the dog to be in the water. In terms of riding, that day was not successful: the guys were surfing close to the shore, and the giant waves rising far in the ocean seemed very dangerous to them. Returning to shore, they decided to name the place after the dog, who was much luckier that day.
Since then, the small town of Half Moon Bay in southern California has become a mecca for surfers who cannot live without deadly waves. But not for everyone. For many years, the spot was a great secret, jealously guarded only by a select few. And all the rumors about Mavericks looked more like crazy nonsense. Only in the 90s, thanks to Surfer Magazine, the spot received wide publicity and became a magnet for everyone who wanted to watch and ride the rogue waves.
These waves acquire such power thanks to the unique bottom topography: at a distance of about one and a half kilometers from the shore, the reef has depressions that, like a pump, pump up the wave with an additional volume of water coming from other deep-sea reefs. But this is only “meeting a good friend on the threshold”: the waves themselves are formed long before approaching the shores of California. Mavericks in their pristine state - echoes of storms in nearby areas of the northern part Pacific Ocean. Overcoming a distance of 320 km (ideal), the waves move south, driven by the westerly wind. Another important component for a large Maverick is the period with which swell waves arrive at the reefs, this period should exceed 16 seconds. When all the factors come together, a huge 25-meter wall rises in front of you.
Nazare, Portugal
Nazaré waves are “fed” by strong Atlantic storms, reaching a height of more than 30 m.
Who would have thought that an ordinary fishing village would instantly become a surfing center of attraction? And all thanks to the recently opened spot of the same name with truly terrifying waves. As in the case of Mavericks, the deep Nazaré Canyon (“Canhão da Nazaré”) plays into the hands of surfers. This is the largest underwater gorge in Europe, stretching along the coast for 170 km. In some places, the width of the Nazaré canyon reaches 5 km, and the depth is about 300 m. The waves of Nazaré are “fed” by strong Atlantic storms, the swells of which move towards Europe. The canyon, like an arrow pointing straight to the beach of Praia do Norte, enhances the power of the waves, and the sharp difference in depth between the gorge and the reef allows the waves to grow in height, reaching 30 m, and sometimes more. There are plenty of madmen who have conquered such giants. Take, for example, the Guinness record holder, American Garrett McNamara, who rode a wave 23.7 meters high in 2011. And after 2 years he increased his success by conquering, all in the same Nazar, a 30-meter giant. The deadly St. Jude storm helped Brazilian Carlos Burla beat McNamara by 1.5 meters. By the way, Burle’s girlfriend, big wave surfer Maya Gabeira, almost lost her life after falling from a giant wave in Nazaré.
Jaws, Hawaii
The Hawaiian spot Jaws (Jaws) on the northern coast of the island of Maui is happy to open its “mouth” to everyone from November to March. This name was given to it by local surfers in 1975 in honor of Steven Spielberg’s just-released blockbuster of the same name. The waves that arise here are really similar to the unpredictable behavior of a shark: suddenly a quite friendly wave can turn into an 18-meter monster. Jaws arrives thanks to the storms of the big wave-rich entertainment of the Pacific Ocean. These high, fast and powerful waves attract town-in-surfers, i.e. those who get caught on a wave by being towed on a jet ski. By the way, this method was invented precisely at the Jaws spot in the 1980s. Jaws appears thanks to an underwater ridge that appeared as a result of a volcanic eruption. The ridge sharply slows down the rapid movement of the swell, driven by sharp gusts of wind, and the reef, concentrating this entire mass, collapses it in a certain place. In the same place where the XXL Big Wave Awards will be held on May 1.
Teahupoo, Tahiti
The Teahupu spot (or rather, the name is pronounced “Chopu” in the local dialect) is located in the southwest of the main island of French Polynesia - Tahiti in the Pacific Ocean. Translated, the name sounds like “tear off the head” and it fully justifies itself. Of course, it appeared as a result of the bloody inter-tribal wars that happened in these parts hundreds of years ago. But these days it does not lose its relevance. And all because gigantic heavy waves rise 500 meters from the shore and crash onto reefs slightly covered by shallows, sharp as a thousand knives. This is due to the strong southwestern swell carrying the left wave, and the unique semicircular “jagged” relief of the reef, sloping steeply down, allows it to show itself in all its treacherous, ponderous glory. It seems that giants simply grow out of nowhere.
Rhys Wartenberg
Surfer, traveler
“When I climbed out of the water after my first brutal “kiss” with the reef in Chopu (on my thigh), one of the surfers warming up on the shore said that I was lucky not to grab this beauty with my face. And then I realized: yes, damn it, I really am the lucky one!”
Chopu is included in Transworld Surf magazine's "Top 10 Deadly Waves" list. Surfer Bruce Taerea experienced the full power of the “head off” in 2000. An unsuccessful attempt to duck dive a 4-meter wave ended in death for a professional athlete: a powerful wave pushed the athlete, throwing him onto the reef. From a broken neck and spine, Bruce fell into a coma and then died in the hospital.
Pipeline, Hawaii
What can we say, Hawaii is the historical birthplace of surfing, attracting riders of all levels and ages to its waves. But big wave hunters have a specific point here - the Pipeline spot on the shore of the island of Oahu, or rather, on Banzai Beach. In winter, huge (up to 10 meters) pipes stand here, which, when closed in shallow water, add another 10 points to the danger level. It is noteworthy that, depending on the size of the incoming swell, the wave on the Pipeline breaks into several peaks, the most traveled of which is First Reef. This is logical, because the reef, extending into the ocean, is divided into three parts by depressions, giving the incoming waves additional power. Encountering shallow water, this whole huge mass collapses, creating a perfect, but damn dangerous pipe. By the way, about pipes. The Pipeline spot got its name, surprisingly, not because of the characteristics of the waves. It was 1961 when director Bruce Brown decided to film some guys on anonymous waves for his surfer film In Search of Summer. And very nearby there was work going on to lay underground communications in the ocean. So Brown christened the place - the Pipeline - very unromantically. Since the 1970s, The Billabong Pipeline Masters competition has been held here annually, where the strongest athletes compete against the elements for a prize of $425,000. But everything is not so rosy: since 2000, 6 deaths of professional surfers and photographers have been recorded here.
Of course it's not the only places on Earth, where you can come face to face with huge waves. But to learn, and most importantly, to understand them all, you need to make a lot of effort. Not only physical, but also mental. After all, big wave surfing is a deadly undertaking. And for those who still dream of riding, for example, Mavericks, we have come up with the motto: “Explore. Go for a ride. Rule."
Waves blown by the wind and breaking at the shore are one of those things that you can look at forever. Especially if their height is so record high that the water can cover you to your full height. There is a special place on our planet where you can regularly observe the highest waves.
Nazaré - a fishing village with giant waves
In Portugal on the shore Atlantic Ocean there is a small village called Nazaré. This is a real fishing village, founded in the 16th century, where about 10 thousand inhabitants live.
The village is colorful, with beautiful sandy beaches(according to some sources, the best in Portugal), with good-natured residents who can still be found in colorful traditional outfits. There is even a fisherman's museum, and in addition, other attractions: the Church of Our Lady, the Sitiou quarter with a stunning panorama, a 900-year-old chapel and a lighthouse. But this is not what travelers come here for. The fact is that here the waves are of gigantic height, on which surfers set world records.
Therefore, everyone who loves surfing simply needs to visit here. And also for those who want to look at the raging elements, because nothing fascinates as much as the ocean, its strength and power.
Waves that set records
IN summer time Nazaré looks like a classic resort: heat, sea, beach with many tourists. But the fun doesn’t stop here even in winter: real extreme sports enthusiasts and lovers of gawking come here, and swimming here at this time is a real murder. It is in winter that the surfing season begins: the waves off the coast reach 25-30 meters in height.
Hawaiian surfer Garrett McNamara first brought popularity to the town. He came to Nazaré to ride a board. It was here that he conquered the world's largest wave on a sandy bottom. Its height was 24 meters. A couple of years later, the surfer returned and broke his own record, this time the wave reached 30 meters. After this, the lighthouse in Nazaré was turned into a museum named after Garrett McNamara. The main exhibit here is the same board produced by Mercedes Benz on which the world record was set.
Where do such big waves come from?
In fact, such waves are quite rare (of course, if we are not talking about tsunamis or rogue waves). However, in reality everything is explained quite easily. The fact is that the village is located next to the largest underwater gorge in Europe - the Nazaré Canyon. And this gorge is actually huge: it stretches for about 170 kilometers in length, and the most deep point canyon - 5 thousand meters from the surface.
And his impressions of the fall. One can easily imagine that without proper preparation, riding many waves, if not costing your life, can lead to serious injuries. TransWorld SURF magazine was tasked with finding the most dangerous waves in the world and offered its top ten of those that should only be ridden by professionals of the appropriate level.
Map of the most dangerous waves in the world (TransWorld SURF version)
Banzai Pipeline
Located on the North Shore of Oahu, Hawaii, Pipeline is without a doubt the most powerful and deadly wave in the world. The trumpeting powerful left and right (Backdoor) waves break close to the shore over a coral reef with many cracks.
Bad start on the Pipeline. Photo: Brian Bielman
Over the years, the Pipeline has claimed the lives of more people than all other spots combined. Those killed include local bodyboarder Joshua Nakata in March 2008, renowned water photographer John Mozo in February 2005, Tahiti pro surfer Malik Joex in December 2005, Japanese pro surfer Moto Watanabe in January 2004, and veteran Puerto Rican surfer Joaquin Velia in January. 2007. The list of victims goes on...
Ironically, the most dangerous days on Pipeline are not those when the forecast is at its worst, but when the swell is growing quickly and the waves begin to rise sharply closer to shore over the inner part of the shallow reef. Despite the well-known dangers, Pipeline remains one of the most crowded lineups in the world. According to the Pipeline Master title holder: “On Pipeline you are always on a knife's edge. You're always hanging by a thread. You're never completely in control."
Ghost Trees
Located inland from Pebble Beach in northern California, this wave is teeming and colder than most spots in the world. Add here the huge boulders that are scattered along the beach and the bottom, and you will get an idea of the most dangerous wave in California.
Alistair Craft on the wave. Photo: Nelly
This deadly right-hand wave, usually requiring towing by jet ski, recently claimed the life of renowned Californian surfer Peter Davi. In order for it to work, it requires a collapse of gigantic proportions, and when this happens, Ghost Trees accumulates enormous energy from the North Pacific Ocean, and the height of the wave can reach 80 feet (25 meters) with 20 feet of whitewater, disfiguring wave wall. A recent find, Ghost Trees attracts only the most experienced of bigwave surfers.
Mavericks
Picture yourself as a young Jeff Clark, walking home from school every day along the cliffs of Half Moon Bay in northern California, looking at this giant right-hander a few hundred meters offshore. The wind is howling, the air is cold, the water temperature is approaching freezing, and great white sharks the size of school buses prowl beneath the surface.
Local from California Ben Andrews on Mavericks. Photo: Jack English
In 1994, Mavericks claimed the life of legendary bigwave surfer Mark Foo. The heavy crest of the wave is notorious for its brutal power. Waves can crush you underwater and slam you into boulders the size of houses, and there are also shark attacks. The wave can be sheer and sharp, and when people talk about freight train on the water is what they mean.
Teahupoo
Rated as one of the most challenging waves in the world, Teahupu is located on the southwestern tip of Tahiti, the main island of the French Polynesian archipelago. An insanely heavy left wave is half a mile offshore and a few inches above a live, razor-sharp reef.
Even the best can make mistakes. Bruce Irons. Photo: Jones
What makes Teahupoo unique is the special nature of the wave - during a big swell it looks as if the ocean is bending over itself, rather than like a normal wave. Teahupoo, or Kumbaya as it was once known, ended the life of one surfer, Tahitian Brice Terea, who, while trying to dive under the 12-foot monster, was caught by a wave crest and thrown onto the reef below. Nicknamed "The World's Heaviest Wave", Teahupoo lives up to its nickname every time a huge southwesterly swell hits Tahiti. Another scary fact: When translated, Teahupoo means something like "tear off the head", which is associated with the local tribal wars that happened here hundreds of years ago.
Waimea
The north coast of Oahu is packed with world-class waves, and just off the Pipeline is the bay where the granddaddy of them all, Waimea, “rests.” While the tau-in surfing boom is shifting the focus of big wave surfers toward offshore reefs, Waimea remains the litmus test for big waves around the world. A life-threatening event, Waimea has defined the standard of big wave surfing for 40 years, and the competition in honor is one of the most respected surfing events in the world and is only held if the swell reaches a minimum height of 25 feet.
Bruce Irons on Waimea. Photo: Checkwood
With a combination of bone-crushing shorebreaks and waves reaching heights of 60 feet, Waimea claimed the lives of Dickie Cross in 1943 and Californian professional surfer Donnie Solomon in 1999. Legendary surfer Titus Kinimaka broke his hip after a bad wipeout in 1989. As Hawaiian pro-surfer/shaper Dennis Pang said about the wipeouts on Waimea, “On Pipeline, when you're underwater, everything is white, but on Sunset, everything is gray. Waimea is black.”
Shipstern Bluff
If there is one wave that could be a mirror image of Teahupoo, it is Shipstern Bluff, located in the south of the island of Tasmania. The wave can be reached either by a two-hour walk through National Park Tasmania, or a long and bumpy boat ride from the nearest port.
Australian surfer Lauri Towner at Shipstern Bluff. Photo: Jones
The bottom on Shipstern is a granite slab that absorbs the blows of giant swells traveling from the deep part of the ocean and splashing out all their energy on this reef. The wave appears directly opposite the cape littered with boulders, which adds even more risk to an already almost impossible start. Add to this that you will have to wear a 4/3 thick wetsuit and surf shoes almost all year round, and you can guess that only the most frostbitten guys ride this wave.
Dungeons
Located on the coast South Africa near Hout Bay (Cape Town), Dungeons not only offers the danger of some of the most serious waves on the planet, but is also located in an area with the most big amount in the world.
Mark Healey in free fall at Dungeons. Photo: property of Red Bull BWA
It so happened that Northern part The coast of Cape Town is a refuge for thousands of seals who have chosen a small island as their home. There are tons of great white sharks surrounding the area, just waiting for the seals to enter the “death zone” that includes the area around the island. These sharks are also known throughout the world for their style of attacking victims, grabbing them from below and flying completely out of the water.
In addition to this danger, Dungeons is known for its near-freezing water temperatures, huge underwater boulders, and forces that can keep you submerged longer than anywhere else in the world. Considering that this spot got its name from a local surfer who was underwater for two consecutive 25-foot giants, it's easy to imagine why this right-hand wave has been the site of Red Bull's bigwave competition since 2000. Plus, the only way to get to the wave is by boat, so it's best to be among the top jet ski teams before heading to Dungeons.
Cyclops
On our list, Cyclops is the least tested wave, and for good reason. Situated opposite the Esperance coast in Western Australia (7 hours from Perce), Cyclops is only accessible by boat. Although still new to the world surfing radar, this wave has the heaviest and largest crest in the world.
Duckdive on Cyclops? No options! Photo: Scott
The difference in depth here is colossal, and when the giant swells arrive, they unleash all their power on the razor-sharp coral reef. This causes Cyclops to form a wave unlike any other in the world, practically swallowing itself. Cyclops earns its name for its oval trumpets, which are created when a thick ridge falls onto the reef. But not every wave here is perfect, for the most part it is so shapeless that you can easily put it in your pants. Even if you manage to find the right spot, good luck with the launch and the shallow, deadly reef below.
Ours
In New South Wales (Australia) there is a wave so tough that even Pancho Sullivan once admitted that he didn’t want anything to do with it. Sheltered in Karnelsky National Park, Aurs is a steep fast powerful right wave crashing against a huge rock. Even if you manage to take off, which most likely won’t happen, you will have to drive at full speed through a pipe that wants to tear you into pieces. And if you fail to get out of the pipe, you will be pinned to the cliff that we have already mentioned. it's the same favorite place for the well-known Bra-boys; so if they're on the water, which only happens when it's pumping, you don't want to be there. If the wave doesn't kill you, the locals will.
Wave Aurs. Photo: Jones
New Smyrna
Compared to the other waves on our list, New Smyrna is just baby talk when we're talking about about the strength and energy of the wave, although it is one of the best in Florida. When it’s pumping, it can be one of the top spots in the region, but on the other hand, everyone knows about it.
Local to New Smyrna. Photo: Dorsey
So, the question arises, why did this spot make it onto our list? Well, we have 18 reasons why New Smyrna ended up here, and they can all be summed up in one word - . Dubbed the "Shark Attack Capital of the World," New Smyrna had 18 attacks in 2008, which is within the normal range for a place where attacks occur year-round.
Located at the southern end of Ponsa Bay, New Smyrna is famous for its fishing, which also means sharks are around. And since most attacks come from bull sharks, one of the most dangerous in the world, you're practically risking your life riding this wave.
About one of the most dangerous, but at the same time the most popular surf spots in the world called Mavericks, which is located in Half Moon Bay in California. We've chosen ten more the most dangerous places for surfing, which attract extreme sports enthusiasts, despite the giant waves, bloodthirsty sharks and the risk of breaking on the rocks.
Banzai Pipeline
Located on the north coast Hawaiian island Oaksi, this spot is dangerous not so much because of the height of the waves (they reach three to four meters on average here), but because of the shallow coral reefs, which are easy to break on. Over the past ten years, five professional surfers have died here, including Japanese Moto Watanabe, Joaquin Velia from Puerto Rico and famous water photographer John Mozo.
Waimea Bay
Not far from the Banzai Pipeline there is another world-famous spot - Waimea Bay. It is not so shallow here, and the waves can reach 19 meters. Among the tragic incidents, the deaths of surfer Dickie Cross in 1943 and Californian Donnie Solomon in 1999 are known.
Peahi
And again the Hawaiian spot. It is located on the island of Maui, but if Waimea Bay is famous for almost a century of history, then Peahi is a relatively new place; surfers came here only in the late 1990s. According to surfer Mark Healy, Peahi's waves are the fastest in the world, and their crests crash against 300-meter cliffs.
Teahupo
This spot is located in the southwest of Tahiti, on one of the islands of the archipelago French polynesia. Translated, the name of the spot means “tear off your head”; the waves here fully correspond to this name. Since 2000, there have been five deaths on Teahupoo, the most high-profile of which was the death of professional surfer Brice Terea, who was caught on the crest of a wave and fell from it directly onto the reef.
Dungeons
The coast of South Africa near Hout Bay, where this spot is located, is famous for the largest number of sharks in the world. The predators that live here are known for swimming up to their prey at great speed and flying out of the water completely, sinking their fangs into it. The waves at this spot reach 20 meters, and additional difficulties for extreme sports enthusiasts are created by the extremely low water temperature and huge underwater boulders.
Ghost Tree
All the same dangers can be experienced on yourself and in North America- at Pebble Beach in northern California. Here are the coldest waves in the world, which are also infested with great white sharks. The height of the waves can reach 25 meters. In 2007, popular Californian surfer Peter Davi died in the waters of Ghost Tree.
Cyclops
Located on south coast Western Australia The Cyclops spot is not as popular as other places on this list; due to its inaccessibility, you can only get there by boat or jet ski, and the ride will take several hours. The crests of the largest waves in this spot break on the coral reef, so any mistake by a surfer here can be fatal.
Praia do Norte
The spot is located in the Portuguese town of Nazare - in an underwater canyon five kilometers deep and several hundred kilometers long, some of the most destructive waves in the world are born. It was here that American surfer Garrett McNamara set a world record by overcoming the highest wave in history - more than 23 meters.
Meñakoz
Europe cannot boast of spots as attractive for extreme sports as America and Australia, but it also has its own dangerous beaches. The main one is Meñakoz, located in northern Spain, near Bilbao. The highest waves in Europe reach six meters, and the coast adds additional danger a large number of sharp stones.
New Smyrna
The beach in Florida is not distinguished by multi-meter waves or dangerous reefs, but the spot is known to all surfing fans because huge amount sharks Every year, sharks make dozens of attacks on athletes conquering the waves of New Smyrna, most of which end in death.
In December 2004, a photo of the largest wave in the world spread across all publications around the world. On December 26, an earthquake occurred in Asia, which resulted in a tsunami wave that killed more than 235 thousand people.
The media published photos of the destruction, assuring readers and television viewers that there had never been a big wave in the world. But the journalists were lying... Indeed, in terms of its destructive power, the 2004 tsunami is one of the deadliest. But the magnitude (height) of this wave is quite modest: it did not much exceed 15 meters. History knows of higher waves, about which one can say: “Yes, this is the largest wave in the world!”
Record breaking waves
Where are the biggest waves?
Scientists are confident that the highest waves are not caused by earthquakes (they often cause tsunamis), but by ground collapses. This is why high waves are most common:
... And other rogue waves
It's not just giant waves that are dangerous. There is a scarier variety: single rogue waves. They come out of nowhere, their height rarely exceeds 15 meters. But the pressure they exert on all objects encountered exceeds 100 tons per centimeter (ordinary waves “press” with a force of only 12 tons). These waves are practically unstudied. We only know that it crushes oil rigs and ships like a sheet of ordinary paper.