I went to the North Shore weekend before last in hopes of catching the pipe masters and getting a few waves. Instead the North Shore was plagued by kona winds and I aggravated a knee injury so I caught an earlier flight home.
Anyway, regarding Waimea: the shorebreak has been a key place for me to get tons of barrels and escape the crowds between OTW and Rocky's on my past North Shore trips. However this year after they opened up the rivermouth a strange sandbar formed out in the middle of the bay. Conceivably it might have been pretty good with non-kona conditions and a bigger swell, but the dependably hollow waimea shorey body whompers were basically gone. It was literally about 30-40% surfers out there with only a dozen or so bodyboarders/bodysurfers at noon on a Saturday. Pretty unheard of.
Moral of the story - opening the rivermouth can ruin the shorebreak. Turns out that just like the OTW-Pipe stretch, sand flow is also a big factor at Waimea. Learn something new every time.
Luckily the swell had some north in it and the kona winds meant it was just beautiful hot and sunny at Pounders over in Laie. We duly got pounded with only a handful of kids in the water and had it to ourselves on Sunday. The Kahuku grilled shrimp never tasted so good.
I've started to plan my return surf trip to Northen Sumatra in May. I've already been there once. Why am I going back?
- I've seen how consistent the swell is on Surfline (even though it was sort of small last time)
- I know there are a lot of world class spots up there
- There still aren't very many boats operating up that way
- No effects from the recent Mentawai earthquakes
What's different about this trip?
- Boat leaving out of Padang, not Sibolga, Simeulue, or Nias
- A day longer on the boat
- More efficient flights meaning less time off work and more surf time
- Half the guys from last time have had kids and can't go back
Why May?
- Memorial day weekend gets me an additional day for free
- Historically a very consistent month for swell
- technically peak season but possibly a bit less busy than June/July/Aug
I don't know what took me so long to see it. The music is fantastic, 90% of the surfing is in great waves, typical ripping from Taj and the Hobgoods. The artsiness of it makes a statement. This aspect of the editing/music really took me by surprise given the schlocky-looking trailers with the Hobgoods wearing collanders on their heads. The gimmick kept me from this one for too long.
I'd rate the re-watchability right up there with September Sessions. Easily worth every cent.
Welcome!
What's going on here?
This blog has a few of my rants about surf travel but mostly around the topic of surf travel to Indonesia, one of my favorite topics of all. I started this blog because I needed to figure out what blogging was all about and picked this topic because I was unable to actually go to Indonesia in 2007 and wanted to live vicariously through others.
Why was it advertised?
Just for fun. I wanted to learn a little about search engine marketing and decided to put (very) little money on the line. As of this writing, this blog generates no revenue for me and I don't expect it to in the future. It's for information and entertainment purposes only. Feel free to post comments or contact me. Again, my goal is basically to share my experience and live vicariously through others until I once again get busy planning my next trip.
Where's all the info?
Not all posts are displayed on the first page. The blog has archives and unlike many news or current events blogs, the stuff I posted about surf travel six months ago is probably still quite useful information about this obscure little topic.
Since the great majority of surf videos are not sold or reviewed by mainstream media companies I thought after I bought a handful of them I'd post my thoughts. Here's what I care about in a surf movie, in the following order:
- great waves
- great music
- cinematography/photography/aesthetics
- great surfing with a healthy mix of maneuvers
Young Guns 3 disappointed after YG2 had set the bar so high ON MY CRITERIA. I acknowledge that the younger Quik guys are growing up and pushing the limits more and more. The aerial maneuvering is mind blowing. Having said that, probably 20-25% of the DVD is 1-2 maneuver waves at a wedgy closeout beachbreak left. A long long way from the 4-6 maneuver linkages at Maccas or Rifles in YG2, each shot from shot from 3 or 4 different angles and accompanied by a fantastic soundtrack. I liked the fact that G-Land had its own section in YG3 and it's about time someone went back there and shot the new school on that wave. It takes a lot of water photogs/boats/skis to get the shots at G-Land because of the huge playing field, tide changes, currents, etc, and they got the shots. As a surfer who likes going left and getting shacked G-Land is the end-all, be-all wave. As a photographer it's a pain in the ass. Front-lit morning G-Land is onshore, rarely glassy or offshore, and by the time the 10am offshores pick up the harsh midday light or sponsor-unfriendly back lighting is a factor. Never mind the other hassles of currents, distance from shore, and lineup size. Safe to say it ain't HT's.
Absolute Mexico looks great, the surfing is much more on the WCT guys at La Jolla with only a smattering of big-wave Puerto Escondido. It is a great companion to "A Fistful of Barrels", which I also recommend. The music is latin but lively, and thoughtfully selected. You also get a healthy sense for what's IMperfect about the wave at La Jolla when pros are complaining about the swift current and the heavy drops.
Aquatic Dreams looks low-budget but delivers a pretty high action quotient. It's not groundbreaking in any way. The WA barrelling right sequence gets repetitive (Gas Bay?) but the waves are sick and it's not the Box. Expectations were fairly modest for this one and in my opinion it over-delivered.
The article below came out on 9/28. I've been getting married, getting away, and getting sick so have been kind out out of it.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/02/sports/othersports/02surf.html
This article quotes Scuzz (Chris Scurrah) and Christina of Sumatran Surfaris. Sumatran Surfaris is currently doing a company trip/relief mission combo and probably invited some media along to cover the trip. The article quotes respected CalTech scientist Kerry Sieh as saying that the southen Mentawais have been lifted roughly 3 feet according to GPS. The article notes that Rags Right is gone and Macca's is shorter, shallower, and more dangerous. As far as other spots go, if Rags Right is affected that much then Thunders is probably pretty different with lots of exposed reef on the inside. It was pretty shallow/hollow but rideable from 3-5 ft faces, hard to know how it will be affected. The Hole may also be gone since it was shallow/heavy to begin with and pretty far south. Green bush was named by Surfing Magazine, has been featured in videos, looks shallow, and I believe it's near macaroni's so it could be gone also.
First of all I don't have any information now, but will post any I receive as I hear back from friends or contacts with first or second hand experience. The only people who know the real scoop are out on boats now or will be going out over the next month or so.
I realize it is a bit crass to be discussing surf spot changes when there has been loss of life and much loss of property in the area, but if you can take a longer term view the world class spots offshore from Sumatra are some of the most consistent in the world and are one of the best chances to bringing low-impact, high-dollar tourism and development to this area. Ask yourself, would Dr. Dave Jenkins have started Surf Aid to prevent malaria in a group of rural, undeveloped islands on the _eastern_ side of Sumatra? Surf spot changes (which are bound to be mostly negative) will impact the long-term growth prospects of this region. I hope there were no negative effects on spots and that the word gets out that Macca's is still working while people are still thinking about where to go for next season.
Generally speaking it usually takes an 8+ earthquake to materially deform the earth's surface, and the 8.6 that hit North of Nias in March of 2005 has had a big effect on spots in Nias, the Hinakos, Simeulue, and the Banyaks. I did some imprecise Google Earth measurements and Lagundri Bay on Nias is about the same distance from the 8.6 Northern Sumatra quake as the southern end of South Pagai in the Mentawais is from the recent 8.4 quake. I realize the most recent quake may or may not have created much uplift but just on distance alone it still could affect Thunders, The Hole, and other secret spots in the southern Ments. Waves on Enggano or mainland Sumatra could be more significantly affected. Finally, Northern Sipora (the telescopes area) suffered a direct hit from a 7.2 aftershock. That's almost as big as the Loma Prieta earthquake that hit the Bay Area in 1989. Even if there was no effect on local surf spots it might be a bit harder to find a family to stay with if you want to go feral in Tua Pajet.
Taiwan-based China Airlines has one of the most convenient sets of flight schedules to and from the US west coast to Bali and Jakarta. They are consistently one of the lowest-cost options. The reason they have to charge less is that until about 5 years ago they had one of the worst safety records of any significant international carrier. I read an article (subscription required) in today's WSJ that indicates perhaps positive safety changes have been afoot at this airline, and it's probably still safe to fly despite the recent fiery (but not deadly) incident on Okinawa. Here's an excerpt from the article:
I like what I'm reading in the article below re: process and dedication to safety. I felt a little wary flying them last time around but would be more comfortable flying them to Indo again for my next boat trip. Of course they still have board bag charges and not-quite-Singapore-air service levels, but what do you want here, fast, cheap, AND good?
From Wall Street Journal:
"Analysts say China Airlines has posted a marked improvement in safety and operational performance since 2002, when a China Airlines Boeing 747 crashed while flying from Taipei to Hong Kong, killing 225 people. That crash became a catalyst for an overhaul in its approach to safety, analysts and company officials say.
China Airlines now has one of the youngest fleets in Asia, with an average age of six years for its aircraft. It has hired former executives from Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific Airways, two of the world's best-run airlines, to advise it on engineering and maintenance. Derek Cridland, Cathay Pacific's former director of engineering, now works there as a consultant.
"I have actually been quite impressed at the turnaround at China Airlines over the last five years," says Damien Horth, an analyst in Hong Kong with investment bank UBS. "I do get the impression when I talk with the company that there has been a big change in the culture."
Indeed, China Airlines' efforts to improve its safety record echo the earlier success of Korean Air Lines Co. in salvaging its reputation after a series of crashes in the 1990s. Like China Airlines, Korean Air broke with tradition, seeking advice from foreign experts and revamping its training procedures.
In addition, China Airlines passed a rigorous operational safety audit conducted by the International Air Transport Association in 2005, and it was recertified this February."
This is better news than you'll be reading about any Indonesian carriers and I'll have to fly them on my next indo boat trip no matter what.
I check surfline's long-range swell forecasts for the Mentawais every day. Since roughly early June (2 straigh months, there has been at least 2-3 days of double-overhead range swell for each week. That is crazy consistent. Meanwhile Fiji and Tahiti have had a few decent swells but for the last month or so it's been pretty weak for what should be peak season, only a few days of overhead swell per week. I know the jetstream/storm track blows this way and sometimes it blows that way, and because I'm an indo-phile I'm more likely to point out when indo is consistent and these other places are not.
http://www.surfline.com/video/video_player/video_player.cfm?id=10200
All I can say is that cloudbreak is a very interesting surf spot. Not at all a machine. Look at the first wave, straight into the tube, pumping and driving. The second one is a slow foamballer with huge sunset-style gouges.
My favorite turn is probably the hyperspeed cutback he does halfway through the third wave.
sick.
