Matanchén is the name of both the bay and one of the small towns located just south of San Blas

San Blas, Nayarit

San Blas is both a municipality and municipal seat located on the Pacific coast of Mexico in the state of Nayarit.-City:San Blas is a port and a popular tourist destination, located about 100 miles north of Puerto Vallarta, and 40 miles west of the state capital Tepic. The town has a population of...

, Nayarit

Nayarit

Nayarit officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Nayarit is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 20 municipalities and its capital city is Tepic.It is located in Western Mexico...

, on the Pacific coast of Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

. It is known for its exceptionally long surf break. Las Islitas, one of the villages and surfing spots on Matanchén Bay, is documented by the Guinness Book of World Records as having the 'World's Longest Surfable Wave" at 5700 feet. A local surfer familiar with the conditions was quoted as saying "one quarter to half mile waves are not uncommon."

Matanchén is also the site of one of the earliest settlements

Mesoamerican chronology

Mesoamerican chronology divides the history of pre-Columbian Mesoamerica into several periods: the Paleo-Indian , the Archaic , the Preclassic , the Classic , and the Postclassic...

in Western Mexico. The site dates to approximately 2000-2100 BCE.