The spot of La Vaca was discovered in 2006 by two Cantabrian surfers, Óscar Gómez and Luis García, who one sunny Sunday morning decided to explore the coast from El Sardinero (Santander) to Liendres (Piélagos) in search of waves. They hadn't even covered three kilometres of coastal road when, close to El Bocal beach and opposite the range of steep cliffs known as Las Canteras in Cueto (Santander), they made out a breaker that seemed to present a swell much bigger than that of the adjacent beaches.

Neither the complicated access to the water, nor the proximity of the cliffs, nor the dangerous rocky bottom daunted the Cantabrian adventurers who, after spending days observing the wave's movement, decided to get in and try it out.