We sound pretty much the same actually. I drive a 98 tacoma, never made a car payment, carry no debt, probably buy 3 clothes items a year....cook almost all meals, buy used boards, etc. I do spend money on eating out, dirt bike trips, music etc. but those are the things I love. I'm a teacher so I still don't have money in no time but save enough to spend 3 months a year traveling and putting away for retirement. I also agree that if you have more money/less time, spending 6 grand to take an epic trip to Indo could be VERY worth it. Like you said different strokes.....sounds cool as hell to me wish I could do it
Yes that sounds VERY epic. I would be very stoked to do a trip like that one day. I think an Indo boat trip is one of the classic trips that every surfer should do in a lifetime. One day I'll get there. Like I said I have the time, but not the money....cheers
nice pics! bawa looks mellow for indo. i just got back from there in June. had to spend 4 days in bali but got good waves there albeight very crowded in bali. nias looks epic too. ill head back there some day
spend a few days in bali with her. yes bali is crowded but good restaurants, nice hotels for her, and a pool. then you can explore the better places after you have spoiled her a bit in bali.
Spent a day (literally) in Jakarta on what was sort of a business trip in September. Really wanted to surf, but just couldn't find the time. It was a trip across Asia and I was hopping through a few different cities in a 5 day span. I'd love to go to Indo for a real surf trip, though.
So is a boat trip the way to go as far as doing Indo right? If this is my only time in Indo, don't want to cut any corners.
Yeah it sounded like it from your post. how did you book it? Thru someone like Wavehunuters or Waterway or found a specific boat online?
Or you could go all feral, land in Jakarta to get your feet wet then start making connections and branching out from there. You know, like the OG surfers did back in the day. Me, I'd look for a bitchin low key camp with rides to secluded reefs. Don't know if I could do a week or more on a boat, no matter how luxe jmho
This is sort of the concept of the place i was looking in to. I don't know if "low key" is the term but it's a small island so only so many people fit, and travel is limited. Boats to near by reefs daily but still get to come home to dry land at the end of the day. I might of mentioned this when i first posted this thread but i personally would enjoy a boat trip. But would definitely prefer a hotel room. Especially if I'm getting boats to the spots everyday (which is the biggest factor i think in choosing a boat trip). Best of both worlds
No Indo experience here, but I figured it to be more like Nica, no real hotels but more like beach camps of differing qualities. My experience with Waterways and another of those boutique surfer outlets is that they are travel brokers acting as the middle man between you and the actual travel company (usually Australian in that part of the world). Seems like you might be paying more for these guys to make the transaction smoother, not sure. But for the serious Indo newbie, it might be worth the extra time to see what exactly is available out there, and how many middlemen could be eliminated.
Precisely why I am asking. The boat seems the most low key to me, love the thought of my bed sitting out the back or just outside a sweet set up and just paddling back to the boat to chill with a beer and watch the peelers until my shoulders are ready for more. Would prefer not to go thru Waterways or Wavehunters, so if Jay or anyone has had awesome experiences on a certain vessel that I could reach out to directly, it would be much appreciated.
Roque brings up a good point. An 11day excursion on a boat is not for everyone. Being able to kayak fish and land on a beach and walk around helped. Being able to jump off and go and all the other pluses for me made a trip of a lifetime. We went to North Sumatra to the Banyak Islands. treasure island was an absolute dream wave. The other 3 waves where great. The second best wave (Bay of Plenty) was real good too. We bounced between islands based on conditions. Kyle, go to www.surfbanyak.com. Explore that set up to see if it fits. The vessel itself is awesome. Good luck.
So this might be a silly question. But how do boats work as far as skill/preference go? Im a weirdo as far as surfers are concerned. Barrels are great. But i actually prefer a more open face wave. That's not to say i avoid barrels. And from what i gather that part of the world is barrel central. But my barrel riding is definitely lacking. Lots has to do with where i live. Really only barrels on big swells. This is why i dig the idea of the hotel with boat access to diffrent spots. So i can choose. Id hate to be on a boat with guys frothing over shallow sketchy barrels where id feel a bit uncomfortable. Curious as to how that works
I can only give you my experience. It really came down to the Captain (who had it dialed in), to take us to “the best” spot. He always got our input (should we stay? Could be better...etc, he would explain why and we probably took his advice every time lol). It was a consensus on the boat to surf the best wave with the best conditions. Really, there was not one instance where it was an issue on where to anchor. There was a land camp at bay of plenty with a boat that motored you to the break...limited to BOP and two lesser waves. BOP was a fun wave where you had open face and a barrel section, then the inside that was shallow and could barrel again. Treasure islands has 3-4 barrel sections on the good days and is fast and hollow. I guess, I would say my experience was plenty of barrels, less open faces but, plenty of critical turn sections. Stormrider surf guide has an Indo version. I read it cover to cover 20 times. It has pretty much every break...skill level, type of wave etc. it actually covers all of the Indian Ocean. I would recommend that, it would help you get a feel for the surf...there are plenty of waves in that ocean that offer up the type of wave you desire IMO. crafting a trip to the waves you desire to surf is part of the fun....
