Postby surfer9joe » Thu Aug 03, 2006 8:15 am
another email from my friend in indo:
I am back in Bali. My last udate was from South Sumatra and ended with a travel back to Bali including food poisoning, 5 hours of driving, 3 hours in lampoon airport and 2 flights. I survived, and was glad that it was only food poisoning, can't remember the last time I didn't eat for 24 hours. Once back in bali, the three surfers I was traveling with and I met up with all of our friends that were in Bali for a night on the town. It was a lot of fun and include some breakdancing and the most entertaing impromptu dance by our friend cooki and a bar stool. It was only a matter of minutes befor the crowd on the dancefloor formed a circle around him as they watch what looked like a choregraphed dance between unwound traveler and a most unlikely partner. We all payed the next day for the fun we had.
I was now ready to plan my next mission and was introduced to a guy going to panaiton island who needed someone to share a charter boat. I had heard about this place and was excited to go with someone who new this place. It consists of a large bay that contains four world class waves that could all be rated double black diamond. It wasn't until i had commited to go and was telling people, that I found this out. The first question i was hearing was, "do you have a helmet and a wetsuit?" I seached for a wettie in bali and was having a hard time finding one my size. I was getting nervous because I couldn't find one. I ended up buying one that was very tight but it would do. As it turned out, I was one of the few that did not make use of the extra protection. To get there we flew to jakarta, indo capital of 12 million people.
Then we drove 2 hours to arrive on the boat, a 24 ft fishing cabin cruizer, to arrive at 3 am. Despite the tragic death of the indonesian captain possibley due to appendicitus, we were under way with a deckhand named Hindi and the boat owner. While being very nowledgable about his boat, and where we were going, the captain turned out to be somewhat of an alcoholic, which we realized after leaving. We were stoked to realize that the deck hand, despite having never worked on this boat, had it wired and were relieved to know that someone had our safety in mind. We arrived at one palm point around 1100am the next day and were stoked to see our swell prediction was accurate. This is an incredible point break that draws very large swells, bending them about 100 degrees around a point onto some crazy reef, hence helmets and wet suits.
The wave breaks only 50 or so feet off the beech with about 40 of it being reef, and marches down the point for about four hundred meters, with a ususally unmakable girgley section after the first 100. Upon arrival we see solid 12-15 foot faces, some with mechanical barrels winding down just of the reef and then hitting this section. Within the first hour, 3, of the 10-15 crew of regulars here, paddle by our boat with torn wetsuits and broken boards. I am still trying to prepare my mind and get a handle on what I am doing or going to do here.
Everyone had a hekmet on, and i started to wish I did also. Finally, my friend and i paddle out to gety some. I get a standup barrel on my second wave and am trying to settle in this place. My next one looks makealbe through the girgle section which turns the face indo a flat surge of water until you make it past. I think I am through and I see a little barrel seeting up....oops. The face double over and knocks me off with out warning...Thoughs of no helmet are racing through my head but i escape with a few minor cuts around my hands. I get my board and paddle of the reef just in time to see a six footer grind down the same section with no water under it. Glad to be out of its way. Evening session is Higher tide so i get about 6 solid waves just carving the face as fast and hard as I can, love my 7'2' bushman.
This place is so heavy that no one hassles for waves, plus the only people surfing here have been comming here regulalry for a while, so communication is pretty good on who is going. The next morning I break my board on a small wave, first one of the day...I am bummed. We head out to the other side of the bay to check Apocolypse, a brreling right that doesn't let you out. I decline a surf because I don't want to break another board, knowing the chances are high with a backside barrel that doesn't let you out. My friends wait it out as swell here tends to be sporadic in size and score a few 6-8 foot hawain size barrels, they are stoked because in the many trips they have done here, they havn't scored this wave.
Next stop illusions, another right that ususally isn't ridealble this time of year due to wind, and it looks really fun. It doesn't really barrel, but just peels down the reef for a hundred yards before getting too shallow to ride. Afternoon sesion is fun but most of the crew is on it and light winds make it a little challenging but still fun. Every wave allows about 5 off the lips. Evening session is a score, celebrations on the other boats, involving lots of beer and vodka, keep many out of the water. The captain, 2 others and I trade waves for almost 2 hours. I have never covered so much water or done that many off the lips in that amount of time. Opting not use wetsuit or booties, I get lucky after taking one to far and unsuccessfully punching through. No new scrapes. After a few more waves, I take a smaller one thinking it was the last in the set, hitting a chop onthe drop cuses me to fall only to see one of the biggers sets of the day. I duckdive for my skin and starting to regret my decision to go without booties.
While not as close to the reef as one palm, the reef is just as narly... I manage to sve my skin and survive to catch a few more. Day 3 we surf the 4th wave in this place, a left hander called napalm. This is a short wave that allows a pretty easy drop that sets up a havey barrel. It is aliitle windy, but still very rideable and tubing. The guys from my boat get some seriose shacks and I get some good waves, stoked to get waves at 3/4 spots here, pretty sure I will be back. I am now back in bali, shopping for gifts and trying to decide where to go for the upcoming swell as my trip is comming to an end. Staytuned for the wrap update... ocean=home aloha christian
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