I´ve finally been able to upload a couple of videos. Go easy on me. I´m still too lame to figure out how to show video directly on the blog so you´ll have to click on the link provided to see me nearly get my head taken off last year. Hedda, help.....After four days of rain, onshores and not much surf the swell came up this morning. I went out and caught a few early but it was still pretty bumpy from the outer water winds. It was looking better later in the afternoon when the wind switched to a stronger offshore and started to smooth the swell out into some straighter lines. My first wave in the afternoon was about 8' on the face. Started with a nice clean drop to a mid-face cutback before pulling into a nice long tube. Actually came out clean with a little puff of spit. Stoked! What a way to start a session! I actually considered going in after that one wave it was sooooo good. I then caught a couple of pretty average waves and then the crowd started to fill in. After watching a couple of sets roll through and not being in position for any of the waves I made a classic mistake.... Paddled for the first wave of the set. I was a little too deep so I held up and didn't drop in. Before turning around I could sense something monstrous approaching from the outside. The swell was building and a solid 12'+ wave was heaving onto the reef just in front of me. I didn't even consider duckdiving. I pushed my board away from me thankful for the long leash I'd decided to use, and dove for the bottom. The lip of the wave broke about 10 feet in front of me so I took the full impact right on the head. The initial impact drove me straight to the reef in the prayer position, (ironic huh) scratching the tops of my feet. Down for awhile I started scratching for the surface only to be hit from a second explosion and sent back to the bottom for some more prayer time. Eventually I found my leash, orientated myself and made it to the surface, only to take a quick 1/2 breath before the next wave mowed me down. Fortunately, by this time I had been washed through pretty far to the inside, so the impact wasn't too bad. Nearly a two wave hold down though. That's never fun! Once safely in the channel I checked out my wounds and found them to be pretty minor, then I thought,'No way I'm going in like that. Gotta catch one in.' By now the crowd was pretty well filled in. I kept looking for my wave but just couldn't find the right one at the right time. People paddling too deep, pulling back and trying to jockey for position. The swell was on the rise still and I was determined to redeem myself for the earlier destruction. A good sized set was approaching and Aussie Glen whose been visiting since the mid-eighties was stroking for it from waaay outside. I turned for it thinking I was in a better position for it and started paddling hard. Just before getting to my feet I looked back to see Glen still there. I slowed up so I wouldn't crumble the lip on him and at just that moment he pulled back and yelled for me to go. Well as you all know, if someone calls you into a wave you can't hold back. I put my head down and took a couple of hard stokes but it was too little too late. Didn't even try to get to my feet. Pushed the board aside and got launched standing straight up with the lip on a solid 10' low tide dredger. After the wash cycle I paddled to the beach with my tail between my legs. Mother nature showed me who was boss today.
I met up with Aaron, Dennis and their friends Evan and Tony on Nias. I've been wanting to check out the Banyaks and Simeulue for ages and was hoping to pull together a crew in Nias to share the costs of a boat with. After some initial hesitation the boys were convinced and I started to organize it. I spoke with Uni, the guy I stayed with here in 1999, and he called up his friend Harefa who owns a fishing boat. I took a bemo in to Teluk Dalam and checked out the boat. One of the guys was not impressed and wanted out. Back at Sorake his friends said they were going with or without him. So, he was in, reluctantly. After three more days of bargaining we settled on a price and itinerary with Harefa. Seven days at 1.2 million Rupiah per day. That works out to about $25 per person per day. The next day I was back on the bemo to Teluk Dalam to do the shopping. Teluk Dalam gets a pretty bad rap from most surfers that pass through there but to be fair it's not that bad. The smell of durian permeates the markets and the open sewage on the streets is pretty nasty but, the locals are friendly. I loved cruising through the market, bargaining with the ladies and loading everything onto the bike to take back to Harefa's place. We were up early the next morning and once again on a bemo to Teluk Dalam. The boys and I ran around doing some last minute shopping and loaded up the boat. We had to carry everything along a sketchy, broken, rotted wood plank dock, then cross a boat loaded with squealing pigs to get to Harefa's boat. Evan helped carry some live bacon on a stick off the pig boat that was docked next to ours. The locals loved it. The pigs kept screaming. The pigs just wouldn't quiet down. I swear you could see in their eye's that they knew where they were headed. I called into Mom and Dad to let them know where I was headed then finished loading the boat. The 35 foot Indonesian fishing boat with 20 surfboards, gear and food for five hungry boys and three crew seemed to look fine. Everbody was stoked to be starting out on this adventure. Once we got underway heading out to sea the boys started settling in and finding their own comfortable piece of the boat. Tony was on the bow of the boat downing beers and planning how to best use his daily ration of Vodka. Evan and Aaron laying down in the center of the boat next to the banana's cuddling. Aaron actually was hugging his surfboard ready to abandon ship at the first sign of trouble. Dennis and I were sitting central in the middle of it all keeping in the shade. We'd been motoring a couple of hours and everybody seemed pretty happy, even with a bit of rain and wind hitting us. We stayed pretty dry under the tarps and stretched out. Then Harefa called me over. One of the pistons had cracked and our seven day trip was over after only two hours. We limped slowly back to Lagundri which luckily was nearby. After talking to the boys we decided not to wait for another part or to get another boat. The good news is that I'm writing this four days later and it's been raining non stop since I got off the boat. I was pretty happy with Captain Harefa and would definitely head out with him another time. He knew the storm was coming and didn't want to take any chances. Good man. Next time I'll try to get a better weather forecast before getting on the boat....
The surf at Lagundri the past week has been flawless. Overhead everyday and up to 2X overhead during the peak of the swell with excellent wind conditions. It's raining and onshore today and for once, I actually don't mind. A day of rest.
Garido from Guam, Anna, Maya and Sonia from the Czech Republic and I took a day trip up to Bawomataluo, a traditional Niassan village perched atop a mountain overlooking the bay at Lagundri. A steep stone staircase leads you from the road to the village. From the base of the stairs you see only blue sky and puffy white clouds above. This is meant to give the impression of a stairway to the Gods. There are more than 300 traditional houses arranged along a cross section of wide cobblestone avenues. No motorbikes. The design is distinctly nautical. Some scholars say the concept arose from villagers watching the Dutch ships pass by on their way to the Spice Islands in the east. The homes are supported by massive teak wood beams and throughout the house, no nails or bindings are used. All the pieces are either slotted together or are joined by hand hewn wooden plugs. Many homes have carved wooden crests to express the families status within the village. The tall roofs in imitation of sails are traditionally thatched or as is more common today, made of corrugated steel. It's amazing to have the sensation of standing in a harbour surrounded by ships when you're actually at an elavation of 1,200 feet in the hills, miles from the ocean. We were lucky enough to be invited into a home by a guy named Wilson. He was incredibly hospitable and really excited to share his home with us. Tea was brought out while we asked each other the usual questions in halting Bahasa. (I gotta learn more of this language.) Everyone was gathered in the main room when Anna and one of WIlson's sister's found out that they had both recently completed their thesis' on very similiar subjects about Nias island ancient artforms. They were both so excited they chatted for ages and swapped emails to keep in touch. What a coincidence??? The one house we were invited into....The 60' King's residence with the stone sacrifice tables was impressive as well. With the massive teak wood supports, the building looked solid. Wilson told me none of the traditional wooded structures were affected by any of the recent devastating earthquakes.
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I'm off to Medan (Sumatra) today, and then onto Nias and the surrounding islands. I'm not sure how long I'll spend there, but I am sure that I'll not have any internet access!
Check back in a couple of weeks, or maybe a month, or maybe 2 months..
