java kneelos road trip

[tomway]

It's always a risk looking for new spots when the swell of the year is on and sadly we got skunked over the last 5 days.

Still, a great road trip through some beautiful terrain checking pretty much every bay over a 300km stretch of coastline. Final consensus, too much swell

A few photos:

Trippers stevea, tom, paul (honarary semi-permanent club member!)



You know you're high in Indon when you are surrounded by coniferous trees Mountain pass.



First few days we searched around an entirely new bit of coastline and found a few spots with potential. Eventually we went in at one of the most picturesque spots I've ever surfed here. Dense rainforest running straight down a mountain side to a glistening boulder pointbreak with little lefts that ran into a sandy bay and crystal clear water. The wave itself wasn't what you come to indo for but surfing alone - really alone - with the backdrop made up for it. Sady no photos as the outrigger fishing boat we rented was not very water tight.

Then back for breakfast in the nearest village:


The breakfast gave paul the squirts
so next morning stevea and I stopped off at my local for some rights and lefts. The big swell was forecast to build through the day.

The rights had a bit of a wobble:



...but the lefts looked like the were going to treat us to a super fun session as the tide filled in and covered the dry end section:



But once agan, it wasn't to be... the swell suddenly built, and just as the tide came good the wind swung cross shore. By the time we got out there the wave looked more like a side walk with attached tower block. 5ft high, 5ft wide, and about 10ft thick draining the reef below sea level.

It was going to be okay though as i had one more sheltered spot up my sleeve. Hours of research had turned up a reef that looked like it could be a new g-land. A long, horseshoe reef running from way out into a sandy bay. We'd watched this reef from behind the year before with 20 second + waves peeling along its length. All it needed was swell...



... the Indonesian government had however - in their wisdom - decided that this would be the perfect spot for a new electrical power plant. The beach was gone and two enormous jetties stretched out to sea into the swell. Skunked again.

More driving and checking of potential...

Paul at what could be a right?



My car was in the garage but a kind mate had lent me his little town car 'to drop the wife at work in the morning' Sorry Andy, but you might need a new exhaust pipe



We were starting to get tired of being cooped up in a car. Final stop, and as we drove up to a beach it looked like we might have scored... an overhead left with claws!!



... but then a set came and closed the whole bay out with a series of 10ft doubleups. What we'd been looking at were the little ones

Guardian of the left... 'I've seen the likes of you before. I didn't like what I saw then, and I don't like it now!'



Great to spend some time with you guys again - sorry we didn't deliver this time! Thankfully the swell is forecast to keep on pumping into next week so I'm sure the sheltered lefts of bali will be doing their thing. May join you on monday!

[ross]

nice work Tom, got a little recon mission of my own this year, a mate of mine was given a handrawn map of a certain area in 1983 and I now have a copy. Its stayed quiet all this time. Loose lips sink ships hey?
Gonna spend a few weeks where I know I'll get waves incase I get skunked and then off I go....

[Paul]

What Tom as too modest to say is that he did ALL the driving on this 5 day road trip, anywhere between 5 and 8 hours each day, every day. Image doing that on Java roads in Java traffic! Those mountain roads made Big Sur look like the Autobahn! He also served as our guide, logistics and local contact manager, partner in crime, and our especially our interpreter! Tom speaks better Bahasa Indonesian than many of the Java locals do! Thanks again, Tom, for taking the lions share of the stress out of this trip. Hurry over to Bali and let's get some waves!

[surfhorn]

Nice commentary and fotoz. Thanx for posting.

[steve burpo]

Very cool story and pics Tom.Keep them comming.

[frankfqr]

Good waves would have been the icing on the cake. That road trip alone would be a real treat. Thanks for the story and pics.!!!!!

[Doc Turbo]

Tom, you still got a few weeks of holiday, and I know the spot to de-skunk you. I am out until 26th June, then back in action.

Nice photo documentation of the trip....

[tomway]

Ross, I sent you a PM but drop us a line if you are passing through my neck of the woods at all. Good luck with your trip - there's still a lot of spots out there...

Great to have you over paul... better I drive than stamping on the invisible brake pedal in the passenger seat every 10 seconds As soon as stevea has finished the Earthrise board I requested 5 years ago (you think pavel takes his time!) then I'll be over to bali to pick it up

Frank, you're right. It was a good trip either way. One afternoon, in desperation we all decided to go in at a 2ft semi-onshore right hand sandbar 'to get wet for a few minutes'. 3 hours later, after the sun had set, we were still out there scratching for close out wedges. We all had a bit of a chuckle when we realised how stoked we get irrespective of the conditions! Hope you're getting some waves and continuing with your board/space-craft building!

[griz]

Hey ross I'll show you mine if you show me yours

[ross]

hey Griz,
Wouldn't like to be the one spilling the beans now would i
I've got family way down south over your way, so I'm privy to plenty of "out of the way spots" over there .

Tom, ta for the PM I'll get back to you soon.

And Paul, how stoked are you to have a driver? The first day I drove a car on the right hand side of the road I (ignorantly) took on Big Sur. It got dark halfway through the trip I near shat myself. and thats nothing compared to those mountain passes in Indo. Respect Tom

[halbs]

Well done on a great summary on a roadie many of us would have loved to have part of! The inclusions of the photo top it off, love ya work!

Tom how is the job situation in your workplace do they offer one year contracts? Also if you teach there do your children get free tuition? I have handed in my resignation for my co-ordinators position so I have the next couple of years free

Ross I promise I won't even look if I can jump in with you!!!!!

[tomway]

Halbs, they've just filled all the positions for next year Contracts are generally two years. Teacher's kids get a 40% discount but that may be negotiable. They love teaching couples as it means the only have to provide one house rather than two. Nice houses too... unfortunately they don't give me one because they consider that I've gone native and don't need the incentive of a house to stay in indonesia (locally recruited)

With coordinators experience they'd snap you up.

Sorry OT!

On topic... and I'd have someone to do missions with

[stevea]

Great post Tom and elaboration Paul it was fun all the way ,so we got skunked but were never dissapointed the scenery,people and food a cold bintang at the end of the day made it all worth it coz the one thing apart from Toms abysmal memory is that he s a great motivator after a walk into jungle searching for an ellusive point break and another short drive we take a local boat around to another bay where Tom has a feeling there may be waves a 1ft left is dribbling over a boulder bottom "fancy a paddle chaps' the setting was magnificent white sandy beach rocky point and surrouded by jungle we are welcomed by a few 2-3ft sets and end up with 3or4 waves under our belt an area of great potential just cant remember where it was
Great trip Tom and Paul and that board is done with 5 more days in Bali come on down and lets get it wet

[Tony Wales]

Great report guys. Shocked at the development at "B'w'r". What the... ?? Has the breakwall affected the reef or is it just wide enough? None the less that breakwall will change the flow of fresh water which is instrumental in shaping the reef. Can you still gain access to the reef or is it "off limits"?

During my Indo years I was asked by the tourist people in East Jawa to go on a surf scouting mission as they saw surfing as a big source for tourist dollars (the G-Land affect). This was around the same time they were talking (Indo talk ) about building an airport in the jungle at G-Land so that planes could arrive directly and bring the surfers straight in!! We did a lot of "NO! NO! NO!" on that suggestion. I couldn't make the trip but my old Indo stomping mate and future ASP head honch Peter Whittaker did the trip. He was away for a week and when he arrived back in Bali he described it as a nightmare ... long straight beaches just closing out and giant cliffs just plunging into the sea, and all of this being open and exposed to big southern ocean swells - add the fact that most potental breaks weren't protected from the trade winds and Pete reported low surf potential compared to the rest of the country. Pete told stories of driving for hours along less than goat track roads followed by long trecks through jungles and sand hills just to get to the beach and find nothing but close outs or cliffs. Keep in mind that Indo officials have no idea what constitutes a good surf break or a beach with potential ... most of the places Pete would have visited would have been a location where some of the officials could see the benefits of Indo style "social tax" kickbacks

Most of my own Jawa time was spent around Cimaja and G-Land. During the wet season we did a few "fast boat" trips over to the P'kung rights and they were nearly always good - some good potential there.

[tomway]

That's right Tony, there's no surf here

I've sent you a PM!