I went to Bocas Del Toro, Panama for a week-long surf fest with a bunch of my friends in January 2010. We surfed five hours a day at reef breaks, ate delicious breakfast and lunch meals cooked by our Azucar Surf host, and soaked up the warm temps and rays while it was freezing back in NY. Three of us were newbies and three of us had experience which divided us into two camps: The Bunny Rippers and Team Shred. As a member of the Bunny Ripper contingent, I went from basically having surfed one time (in Costa Rica at a beach break), to catching decent sized waves by myself in a matter of days. We named ourselves the bunny rippers because on day one, our entire group was brought to a sizable reef break and our guide was like, "ok, here's your boards, go surf". With half of us not knowing what to do, we got rolled over and over again as sets came in. I was so annoyed that we hadn't been given instruction and didnt feel safe in those waves. My newby friends were in alignment, and when we were brought back for lunch I told our host, "you know, you would never take someone skiing, put them on a chairlift and say 'ok, go'. You would put them on the bunny hill and instruct them there on technique, let them build confidence. I want the bunny slope. Take us to a bunny slope break." Since "bunny slope" does not conjure up images of fierceness, we quickly dubbed ourselves the 'bunny rippers'. That was day one, and I wasn't sure I would be up for a whole lot of surfing after that first scary session, but we were brought to a bunny hill, got the hang of it, and kept at it. Before long, we were back at that first "scary break" and it didnt feel so scary anymore. On the third day, I apparently caught a wave over my head and was told by our guide, who we nicknamed Peter Rabbit, that I caught the 'wave of the week'. Surfing made me feel a deeper connection to the environment and my body and after getting rolled for days in the waves I had a lot of respect for surfers and the sport. I can see why surfers feel the way they do, a need to be on the water. The water in Bocas was beautiful and clean. And because we were surfing at reef breaks we were on the boat every day where we got to see pelicans catching fish and magnificent frigate birds flying high over us. The town of Bocas Del Toro is pretty cool and there are lots of restaurants, bars and young people walking or biking around. We ate amazing food, no meal disappointed. The food at Guari Guari, a 10 minute cab ride out of town, was well worth the trip. It was a travel epic to get to this beautiful part of the world: many hour flight to panama city from NY, then 45 minute cab to another airport, then 1 hour hopper flight to Changuinola (since flight to Bocas was full), then cab ride to a boat, then boat ride to Bocas. Once you dock, everything is in close proximity, and unless your accommodations are on another island, you can totally walk it. Take a day and visit Bastimentos Island. We hiked around and saw tree frogs and birds. There is a beautiful family that lives in a house in the middle of the jungle and they have a company called Pure Tree Natural Body Products. You can pay them a visit, buy a smoothie and products and hang with their cool kids (2 young boys). From there we went to Playa Larga where a member of Team Shred lost her sandal in the mud. Do NOT wear flip flops on this hike. Its quite a distance and as you can see from the mud, the terrain is soggy. Before you go, make a reservation at "Island Time" a thai restaurant in the middle of the jungle. The food is amazing and there is a resident sloth that can be seen sleeping in the jungle trees. Bring a headlamp or other hand held torch with you if you are eating dinner here, getting back on that skinny dirt trail in the dark jungle was challenging (and totally fun). I luckily brought a flashlight and all 6 of us huddled together heading towards the dock, trying not to have a misstep. There are no streetlights on this path or signs, so make sure you have a good sense of how to get back. This was a trip of a lifetime for me. An adventure that is well worth the time, money and effort to get to. You will not regret it.

• published: 12 Mar 2011
• views: 797