Let us introduce you to Aileen’s Wave, which scientists at the National University of Ireland Galway, have decreed is the nearest thing to the “perfect wave”. Local surfer John McCarthy is credited with naming it after the nearby headland Aill na Searrach (the cliff of foals). Filmmaker Peter Clyne, whose video above captured it in all its majesty, explains: "Aileen's is the most spectacular place to spend time capturing film. Everything about the place is of giant proportions. The mammoth waves that Aileen produces are dwarfed by the majestic, unspoilt Cliffs of Moher."
Surf stars
Recent years have seen pretty much all of the rising stars of the surf world challenging their skills at Aileen’s, including five-time National Champion and first lady of Irish surf, Easkey Britton. Even they have to time their journey right, though, as it’s rare enough.
It needs a precise combination of stormy conditions and easterly winds to create it, so if you don’t manage to catch a glimpse while in the area, don’t worry. Head inside into the warmer and less windy Cliffs of Moher Visitor Centre, and there’s a photographic exhibition of surfers riding the wave.
Peter Clyne is always eager to share another unique vantage point; “sitting in the channel at the foot of the cliffs pointing your lens in at the giant waves is an experience like none other.”
Time it right, and you won't just have to take his word for it.