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Written by Lottie Lewis
“Just as barnacles spend their lives clinging on to the hull of ships, surfers live theirs clinging on to their boards, gliding over the waves, they are Gliding Barnacles.”
Every year since 2014, a small coastal town in Portugal called Figueria da Foz welcomes surfers and beach-lovers from all over the world to celebrate waves, crafts, music, art, food and Portuguese wine. The festival was originally born from a motion called SOS Cabedelo, a movement to save the locals’ beloved wave from urban expansion. Upon winning their wave, the team behind the project decided it was important to share what they had saved. A surf festival called Gliding Barnacles was born.
The event now has sister-events worldwide and is endorsed by Vans. Each year the smoothest boardriders descend on the sleepy town, waking it up with spectacular surfing, cinema nights, eating and drinking into the evenings and celebrating the wonderful coastline of west Portugal. The Gliding Barnacles event is a week-long ode to classic surf culture.
This year Rebel ambassador Iker has been invited to take part in the longboard event, and our team riders Vasco and Joao will also be attending the festival in the hopes of scoring a place in the runnings via the trials. Enjoy boys!
Would you like to get involved? Head down to the beaches of Cabo do Mondego in Figueria da Foz in September. The event will last for nearly an entire week, and you’re sure to meet some incredible surfers, see beautiful art, learn about the history of surf culture in Portugal and sink a beer or two as the sun sets over the Atlantic Ocean. Have one for us!
