The Portuguese town of Nazaré is particularly well known to surfers: about 120 km north of Lisbon, huge waves of two dozen metres or more can occur there. Only the best big wave surfers in the world take on this force. The reason for this natural spectacle is the Nazaré Canyon north of Nazaré on the sea floor. This deep-sea trench, which is up to around 5,000 metres deep, runs almost straight towards the shoreline. Due to the current that results from the difference in height between the continental shelf and the canyon, these waves approach the coast quickly, continuously increasing in height and decreasing in wavelength.
The giant waves build up particularly between October and March. The Nazaré Canyon is also worth mentioning independently of the waves – after all, at 230 km, it is the longest underwater canyon in Europe.
Photo: The giant waves of Nazaré are a natural phenomenon and surf spot. Credit: Luis Ascenso, CC-BY 2.0
