Praia do Norte, Nazaré is a solid wave at just about any size, but the purple blob swells that race across the Atlantic and send thousands of people onto the cliff to see XXL tow sessions are mostly all we see. Blame us for not highlighting the smaller sessions enough, with a decent population of surfers who make the place a regular stop on overhead days and even the mini-tow sessions that go down in what’s considered “small” at Nazaré.
Tomás Ataíde is a surfer and videographer in the area who makes a point to document the Praia do Norte scene at all different sizes, and some of the smaller days actually turn out some of the most unique footage. The common view from the cliff doesn’t really do the place justice when it’s at full strength. But the shorebreak is also so heavy and the largest waves break far enough out that standing on the beach during an XXL swell is like having a wall of seven-foot-tall dudes in front of you with floor seats at a concert. And that gives us some magic on the smaller days, when you actually can see the waves from the beach — an entirely fresh perspective of a spot that breaks its fair share of boards at every size.
A recent swell offered a perfect example of this when Ataíde showed up with a group of friends planning to document the build-up of an incoming swell.
“The ocean’s calmness belied its potential; it was a sleeping giant,” Ataíde says. A long morning session called for a break in the action and a chance to recharge. By the time he turned the camera on again, he could really see some progression.
“The swell grew, a visible pulse under the water’s surface. Returning to the beach, we were greeted by a different scene. The waves had transformed, now powerful and imposing. The calmness of the morning felt like a distant memory.”
Ahhh, yes. Nazaré in your IG feed’s “coupla fun ones”zone…
With some of the crew now back in the water, Ataíde points out that paddling into waves was becoming less and less plausible. A handful of friends even returned to the beach after a few attempts. And by the time the day was winding down and the sunset crowd had taken over, tow crews were the only ones operating the lineup
