Surfing
in Indonesia
Indonesia is
a wonderful place to surf and tour. The water is warm and clean at
most breaks. If you surf near a river mouth, however, it can be dirty.
Most of Indonesia's breaks are coral reefs. During the dry season
(March- September) the waves are the best. The Waves tend to be fast
and hollow.
Bali is the
main Island for surf and tourism. Many surfers and tourists start
their trip there. More good surf spots are being discovered every
year. Sumatra has many great spots, the most famous being Nias Island.
Ratih
with a watch dealer
The Indonesian
people are generally polite friendly people, but it is easy to understand
that life has been very tough this past year. I still think it is
a safe place to travel if you know a bit about the people and their culture.
I suggest the book on indonesia by Lonely Planet, as it explains the people's
history, government, and religions. It is also very important to
dress modestly and try your best to communicate with the people.
Be generous when you bargain and don't get angry (I usually bargain hard
and the kick them a little extra). Don't ever buy anything from a
beach vender except a massage.
Ratih
with a coke dealer
Surfing
The Sunda Sea
The first place
I surfed in Indonesia was Bali, but the first time I felt at home was when
I became friends with Ratih's brother's classmate, Ara. He took me
to his local surf break, which happened to be on the Sunda sea (the straits
between Sumatra and Java). The waves do not get that big there, but
the place is not crowded like other Indonesian surf spots. Ara and
his friends welcomed me into there group and took me to all the places
they liked to surf. Their favorite place was the sandy beach at Carita
Bay. during the last few years we have discovered some ne places to surf,
including a reef and a river mouth.
Ara chasing Ahen
Ara,
my local friend, at Carita Bay
Carita Bay (Charita)
Pasauran (a river
mouth break)
Pasauran on a good
day
Ara at Pasauran
Surfing
in Bali
Bali is a great
place to start an Indonesian adventure. Kuta Beach can be a good
place to get your sea legs back and warm up for some bigger and better
surf. The art of bargaining is very important in Bali, because it
is very much a part of there culture. It can also save you some money
too. Bali is a good place to start to learn the Indonesian language,
since many of the locals know some english too.
Kuta
Beach can be fun
From Kuta you
will likely travel one of the many reef breaks. I have visited a
number of the breaks, but since I like to ride a longboard, I have sought
out the beach breaks and point breaks. The southwest coast of the
island is the best place to surf during dry season, while the southeast
coast is favorable during the rain season.
Bali
has a point break
Surfing
Java
There are places
to surf on the south coast of Java, the most famous being Grajagen.
Other areas are controlled by local superstition and are some times off
limits to surfers. In a place called Prangtritis on the south coast,
a group off Aussie surfers riding some great waves were called in via bull
horn by the local authorities because of a local superstition in which
the beautiful Queen of the sea lures young virgin men to the deep
where they soon learn they are to deep to retreat to the surface.
It turns out that she especially likes men with green surf trunks, so to
avoid any concern don't bring any green clothes on your surf trips.
My good
friends in West Java
It turns out
that most of the local guys obey the rules, and never where green trunks.
No use tempting fate, right.
Dirty
tube
Rain season
can carry allot of sediment into the surf, including some nasty stuff (keep
your mouth shut). The dirty water tends to thin the crowds out, and
in some places it is mostly sediment.
Dirty
rain season surf
Dry season paints
a completely different picture. The winds are generally off shore,
and the water is blue. My last trip provided some great surf, on
which i traded between a fun board and my longboard.
Some
nice tubes on my fune board
Glassy
High
speed log ride
Clean
Fun-boarding
On the
tip
Well
ok it's head high if I squat!
Waiting
for it to throw
Even though
these may not be the best photos, I can assure you that this is probably
some of the most fun I have ever had on a surf board.
Some
Indonesian Surf Links
Some
Weather Links
Plehrmann@hotmail.com