A surf insider’s guide to autumn in Ericeira

The surfboard shaper: Nick Uricchio

‍After learning to surf growing up in California, Nick landed in Portugal and in 1982 launched Semente Surfboards with his good friend and fellow surfer Miguel Katzenstein, setting up shop as close as they could to Europe’s best right-hander, Coxos. Today, Semente’s boards are ridden by surfing champions and still designed by Nick in their workshop in Ribamar just north of Ericeira.

“Coxos is the reason a lot of us are here, but we try not to talk about it too much! The scene has gone ballistic over the decades I’ve lived in Portugal. Ericeira was just an old fisherman’s village when I arrived and about two hours from Lisbon as the roads were so bad — now it’s become a world surfing mecca.

The thing with Ericeira is they are all good waves and it’s easy to hop around, there’s a lot of great surf packed in a short distance. The breaks work with different tides, so you could be going from White Rock (Pedra Branca) on a high tide to São Lourenço on a mid-to-low tide — you’ve always got an option. Plus Peniche is less than an hour north and Cascais 45 minutes south for more waves – you’re very central. Then when the waves aren’t good I like to skin dive.

In Ribamar, I’m partial to my local breakfast places like Café Vitória and Paraíso, and later on you’ve got to try the octopus and gooseneck barnacles, called percebes – they’re a delicacy. While you’re here, come and see us at our workshop, we’ve got tons of boards ready to go — as well as making custom hand-shaped ones – plus wetsuits, leg ropes, decks. All the big guys are in town now, but we were the pioneers.”
_{@sementesurfboards}

The big-wave surfer: Joana Andrade

The first Portuguese woman to ride Nazaré’s giant apex, Joana now combines big-wave surfing and motivational speaking with her work as founder and director of Progress Surf School in Ericeira, which partners with Aethos Ericeira to help guests perfect their pop-up and nail their cutback.

“Autumn and winter here are my favourite — the crowds disappear, the ocean becomes more consistent and you start getting those beautiful Atlantic swells. For surfing, Ribeira d’Ilhas is always very special. It’s one of Ericeira’s most iconic waves and can work for different levels depending on the size. For more experienced surfers, autumn also starts bringing the conditions for some of our more powerful reef breaks, like the Calada wave in front of the Aethos hotel; for beginners Foz do Lizandro is usually a great option. The biggest thing about Ericeira is respecting the ocean and reefs — tides, swell direction and wind can completely change a spot, so local knowledge makes a huge difference. 

Out of the water, I love the simplicity of sitting somewhere overlooking the ocean after surfing and eating really fresh local fish, or going to Uni Sushi. Then wandering around the old village, popping into boutiques such as Harvest Moon, and feeling this beautiful Portuguese fishing-village soul that’s still underneath everything. The coastline around Ericeira is also incredible and sometimes simply walking along it, catching sunset is the best thing you can do.”
_{@joana_andrade_surf @progress.surfschool}

The ocean conservationist: João Macedo

Big-wave surfer João is as interested in protecting the ocean as riding it. He co-founded the World Surfing Reserves movement, helping see Ericeira designated as a protected surf habitat. Now also president and co-founder of Hope Zones Foundation, he is creating a blueprint for ocean regeneration near big wave spots, starting with Nazaré.

“This time of year really makes the beautiful breaks of the World Surfing Reserve shine. Personally, Pedra Branca is one of my favourites, but the most unforgettable is the Cave. My friend Antonio Silva, who I surfed with in Nazaré, is an absolute aficionado, one of the best pros up there. About two years ago he put me into a couple of absolute bombs at the Cave. I think the real beauty of the World Surfing Reserve though is the range, from expert spots like Coxos and the Cave to intermediate and beginner waves like Ribeira d'Ilhas, where the EDP Ericeira Pro also takes place in early October, so it’s an extremely high-performance wave too.

It’s such a luxury to be able to travel with just your wetsuits and have a little budget to rent some boards from somewhere like 58 Surf, where you can also stop for a beer after a session. For a post-surf fuel up, Brah Burgers does delicious smash burgers and is run by a local surfer from Praia Grande, my home beach. Inland, there’s an amazing local winery called Quinta de Sant'Ana, while the area around the Aethos hotel just north of Ericeira is an absolutely magical coastline with its dramatic cliffs and beach — great for hiking as well as surfing.” 
_{@hopezones.foundation @officialjoaomacedo @savethewavescoalition}