Los Cabos

One of the best waves in the Cabo San Lucas region, Zippers is sufficient enough in quality that just a few good ones can make your session. A river mouth-created right, Zippers peaks up gently outside of some exposed rocks, allowing for a smooth, easy takeoff. It then quickly whizzes almost laterally along the cobblestone reef, picking up speed as it heads towards its inside section, where tubes and air sections are commonplace. The wave maintains its size all the way down the line; it's one of those waves where you can incrementally improve your turns. This all sounds dreamy except for the fact that Zippers is Cabo's most crowded wave.

Shipwreck picks up more swell than Costa Azul near San Jose del Cabo, as it faces south, not southeast, which makes it fairly consistent, especially in the summer. And while the star wave is a zippy right point/reef at the west end of the bay, which can connect all the way through to the beach in a series of different sections, there's also a little reef in the middle of the bay that can produce short-but-sweet lefts. Both waves are steeper and faster than Nine Palms.

The entire lineup from beginning to end is strewn with rocks, big ones. At low tide, especially, you will be dodging boils, burps and weird, sharp sections that love eating fiberglass. The wave itself is extremely fun, though not as good as neighboring Zippers. It is a right reef break that can be infected with a few difficult sections to negotiate, and it is also often a little mushy in certain parts. That said, on a strong S swell and a mid-high tide, you won't find anyone complaining out there (imagine a poor man's version of Upper Trestles and you're almost there). The proper takeoff area is pretty small -- right next to the rock -- so crowds become a factor pretty quick, making catching a decent wave infinitely more difficult.

Inside the Hemingway Marina, a righthander breaks along the rock wall that forms part of the marina's separation from open water. It's a rolling wave that acts like a small reef pass, taking the prevailing wind side-offshore and throwing an occasional lip over a shallow section.

The Estuary - or La Bocana (rivermouth) - is San Jose Del Cabo's city break. Because of this, it is quite polluted. Not to worry though, The Estuary is one of the Cabo area's most fickle waves. When it is at its best - once every few years after a big storm washes the coastal berm away - it is a perfect A-frame that tubes in both directions. This rare perfection, of course, is a double-edged sword - the heavy rains bring sewage, animal cadavers, trees, and pretty much anything else that floats, directly out to the line-up. It's not exactly an ideal surfing situation when you're sharing waves with swaths of feces and the occasional dead dog.If the health hazard isn't enough, the local contingent have The Estuary wired and are on it every time it is good. When the surf is just average, however, there are a few scattered peaks around and you can often catch a few empty ones for yourself. Also, the mediocre waves may be less polluted.If you're still interested, The Estuary is located on the east side of San Jose Del Cabo's beachline in Estero San Jose, a peaceful park that is supposed to be a protected wildlife sanctuary.

This Baja Sur pointbreak has been a high-ranking hotspot on surfers' Cabo itineraries for decades - and it's definitely one of the most popular waves on the East Cape, despite the fact that it's not world-class by any means. Under head-high, Nine Palms is a bit mushy and slow. However, when an overhead summer S swell drains in, Nine Palms ignites into a reeling wall with plenty of perfectly crackable sections. And if your timing is especially impeccable, you might even get a sneaky barrel.

A super-fun left point break, Monuments is a must-do spot for any surfer exploring the southern tip of Baja. There is a deepwater canyon just offshore -- the same one that made Cabo San Lucas a natural, deepwater harbor, in fact -- which funnels long-interval W and SW swells into steep, spinning lefts that reel along the headland and into a small, rocky bay. On a 17-second swell, for example, Monuments can be double-overhead while Costa Azul just down the road is barely pushing head-high. The Monuments takeoff zone is pretty tight, unfortunately. And if the crowd doesn't bite, then the robust urchin colony on the shallow rocks on the inside will. Afternoon W winds often blow the spot out, as well.

Santa Lucia de Los Cerritos, simply known as Cerritos to most surfers, is about 45 minutes north of Cabo San Lucas on the Pacific side of the Baja Peninsula, near the village of Todos Santos.Perhaps not quite as good as neighboring Pedrito, Cerritos is nevertheless a great option when it comes to variety and beach appeal. There are a couple different waves to choose from, depending on the swell. During a big wintertime west or northwest there is a right that breaks off the headland at the north end of the beach. It's not an amazingly hollow or world-class right point break, but it can get really fun and rippable, especially when it connects with the sandbar section farther inside.South swells make for good A-frames in the lee of the headland; the lefts dumping into the channel are perhaps a bit better. Combo swells and wind swells tend to light up the whole beach in a series of fun peaks, spreading the crowd out quite nicely.

The last stop on the peninsula's west coast before plowing headlong into the glitz of Cabo San Lucas is the dusty village of Todos Santos. Not to be confused with the little island with the big wave named Killers up north, Southern Baja's Todos Santos holds in its quaint jurisdiction three incredibly fun waves to choose from: Los Cerritos, La Pastora and San Pedrito.It's important to note that up this way -- about 45 minutes north of Cabo on the west coast -- the water can sometimes be five to eight degrees (Fahrenheit) colder, the winds stronger, and the days foggier. While all of these adverse conditions can make things slightly less comfortable than the sunnier, glassier points south, they also mean that the surf will always be bigger -- oftentimes a whole lot bigger. This also means that you're unlikely to score empty waves in the area's most prime spots, especially San Pedrito.San Pedrito's main attraction is its righthander, which can become highly rippable and point-like between October and March, when NW swells are most prevalent. However, in the summer months, San Pedrito becomes a little peakier, making for a more breathable, stretched-out lineup. Most of the year, the water temperature is warm enough for boardshorts, though January through June can see some chilly temps due to upwelling.