Are you aware that the use of social media could make you a target of burglars. There are few feelings more violating than coming home from holiday to discover you’ve been burgled. But even worse is knowing that you’re partially responsible for it.
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I stumbled across this video on YouTube. It's about a couple of Brazilians tucking into some secret left handers somewhere in Indonesia. It's only short and has sub-titles but the waves and quality are high. So if you like adventurous stuff with some nice tubes, it's a great watch.
Have you ever thought of checking out North Sumatra for waves - specifically Aceh? Apparently there are lots of waves and not many takers. It definitely seems to be worth a look, although as can be seen from the above video there has already been an international surfing comp there. That means that the most easily accessed breaks more than likely would have a descent crowd.
One thing to keep in mind, Aceh is very conservative and the only place in Indonesia where sharia law operates. That means no alcohol, parties, canings etc. Read more at Magic Seaweed. Most serious surfers have heard of Desert Point. The mesmerizing barrel located on the island of Lombok which is famous for being one of the best lefthanders in the world. However, most people know nothing about how it was discovered. In an article on the Indo Surf Life website you can read about the discovery of this Point from the makers of a movie titled Secrets of Desert Point. The trailer is accompanied with the following description: 'In the early eighties, while sailing in crude, leaky boats off remote Lombok Island in Indonesia, young California surfer Bill Heick and his friends stumbled across the perfect wave…. Join us for a journey on one of the last great dirtbag adventures of the 20th Century…one passed through three generations. And learning that if you want to keep paradise, you need to stand up for it.' Heick also posted the video below showing footage from the early days of their discovery of Desert Point. I have many fond memories of Nusa Lembongan. My first trip was in the 1980's. There was no one there when we first visited except for the 3 of us. One shabby looking government run hotel stood on the shoreline. It seemed that no one stayed in it. Most people stayed in a local's house that had been converted to take in tourists when they arrived. We stayed with a guy called Made Teacher.
The tides there blew us away. Dead flat on low tide. Then as the tide rises each set gets bigger and bigger. Shipwrecks was great fun but lacerations was where it happened. Those late drops and tubes that bent around the reef. It wasn't all good times though. Lacerations wasn't given its name for fun. A lot of blood was spilt out there. I must admit that I get pretty sad when I see the place now in magazines. Cruise boats, pontoons, villas everywhere etc. Such is life sometimes. If you want to look at some more pics and words about the good old days in Nusa Lembongan just follow this link - Nusa Lembongan 1970s style. Have you ever wondered exactly how tides affect waves? I know I have. Although an older video, this is nicely presented and helps you to work out what is going on using clear plain language.
It still comes up in my mind from time to time as one of life’s big regrets. I don’t lose sleep over it by any means, but it was a lost opportunity nevertheless.
It was 1984 and my second trip to Bali. As with my first trip to Bali I was there during the rainy season. I went to Bali by myself this time but had met a guy from Vic. He had been staying at the same losmen as myself so we ended up surfing a lot together. The rainy season is the off season for Ulu and the waves along the Bukit. However, my new found friend and I decided one particular day to go for ride out there to scout around for unknown breaks. The conditions this day seemed like they might be right for a look. We were getting heaps of waves in various spots around the island but we had heard little wiffs of possible secret waves north of Padang. For a surfer the lure of a secret wave is pretty enticing. I remember pulling off the main road that goes to Ulu, which was a bit of a shocker in its own right, and driving down a rough as guts track wide enough for a car to pass. We weren’t really sure it would lead us to the coast but it was pointing in the right direction. It was nice and hard for the rainy season. This didn’t last for long however. After a short distance we were confronted with mud and lots of it. There was no way around but through it. We could not skirt the sides as there were trees and other things running along the edge of the track. We quickly realised we could not ride safely in the mud anymore unless we wanted to end up in it. So we got off and walked our gutless little 125s through the quagmire with the engines still on, driving the back wheels to help us through. We had muck up to our knees if I remember correctly. The muddy track seemed to last for what seemed to be forever. A couple of times we nearly gave up. If it wasn’t for the fact that we were still heading towards the coast we might have turned back. Finally! We broke through into an open field and the sight of the ocean. What lay before us was one of the most beautiful beaches I had ever seen. We had stumbled upon Balangan. At first we thought we had found another Uluwatu but after checking it for a good half an hour we realised it was just breaking too fast to actually make (which is often the case for this spot). I wanted to hang out longer because it was such a nice spot but being the dumb explorers that we were we hadn’t brought enough water and we had no food. But before leaving we decided to walk up the Bukit a bit and see if we could spot any waves further up the peninsula. To my surprise there were guys surfing further up. I could just make out people surfing, but it was a bit far. I couldn’t guage if the quality was worth the effort of walking further. Being a smaller swell and a big high tide made the wave seem only average (I should have forked out some cash for binoculars.) We were now pretty exhausted and in need of food and water. So we decided to mark it down and definitely come back later. Thankfully we found an alternate track back to the main road that by-passed all the mud. On the way we stopped by a warung to buy some bottled petrol. I noticed that there were some other surfers also near the warung munching away on some of the local quisine. I asked them how the surf was but stupidly added that it was my first time to check this part of the coast and explained that the wave I saw from Balangan was a bit far away to see how the wave actually broke. Their response was something like, “Yer it’s ok but nothing special.’ We said goodbye then headed home. Fast forward to my next trip the following year. The first few days back on the island and the surf community was buzzing about a hot ‘new wave’ out on the bukit. My first thoughts were, could it be that wave? My heart sank as I rode out towards Uluwatu to be confronted by young Balinese guys literally jumping onto the road. It was the same intersection my friend and I had come out of after checking Balangan the year before. They were waving their arms and shouting, ‘Bingin! Bingin!’ They had obviously realised that they had a first class wave in their backyard and were going to make some money out of it. I was so ticked off at myself and the Balinese for exposing that wave the way they did. Years down the track I can see why they did it as they had a cash cow on their hands. Life would have been pretty grim employment wise out on the bukit in those days. At the time though, I was so angry that I refused to surf the place. In fact, I have never surfed it to this day. I went out to film it once but that was about it. I probably wasn’t as ticked off as the guys who had been surfing it by themselves all those years though. As an after thought things weren’t all bad though. On the same trip I missed out on Bingan, me and my mate ended up surfing Nusa Lembongan all to ourselves with only one other surfer on the island. Heat stroke is a major concern in the tropics. If you are getting headaches, fatigue and nausea, its probably because you are not drinking enough water. You are basically sweating and urinating it out of your system faster than you can retain the liquid going in. If your symptoms include not sweating, and very dark urine, then you need to start drinking more fluids immediately.
Start with water based fluids (especially water), and try drinks like Gatorade to replenish salts and electrolytes (if you can get your hands on them). Obviously buying Gatorade would be a problem off the beaten track. If you get a high fever, then you should seek out medical help immediately. Don't take heat stoke lightly. People die from these kind of symptoms. It sounds a bit basic, but the best way to know if you are drinking enough water is if you need to urinate more frequently and when you urinate, the color should be a light yellow to clear color. If you are sick don't drink too much too fast, and make sure that it is (preferably) not ice cold as this can be a shock to your system. The warm liquids are easier to absorb into your body. Make sure to stay in a cool, shady area and wear loose fitting clothing that will let the air pass through easily. Avoid drinking alcohol at all. This increases your chances of heat injuries as it dehydrates your body. |
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