One thing you can never completely prepare for in Bali is the crowds in the surf. I've always taught my kids to be respectful in the water when travelling to new waves at new locations, but I have to admit that serves them very poorly in the dog-eat-dog lineups of Bali.
My theory is that you earn the trust and respect of the local enforcers over time in the water – it has always worked well for me. But, the reality is the lineups here are revolving doors of travellers out to up their wave counts without any acknowledgement of anyone else ... even the locals. It's a testosterone-fueled battle with swarms of new fighters arriving constantly. They'll snake you, drop-in and block without even raising an eyebrow. They seem to thrive on burning younger kids, too. It's a weird state of surf lawlessness that doesn't really fit with the happy, cool vibe of life in Bali. Or the spirit of surfing.
We spent a lot of time chasing dawn and dusk surfs and spots with less people. The bigger the waves the better behaved the crowds were: 5-6 foot seemed to be the threshold. Keo and I poked our noses in at Padang Padang on a big day and liked what we saw: emerald barrels as wide as they were tall. But there was very little room for error. The surgical sharp reef blindly operating on anyone not up to the task.
Mostly, the super-fast, super-large playing field of Impossibles held our attention. Take off and race, race, race. No turns. Some waves just locked you in for 100s of metres travelling at warp speed – as fast as I could ever go. They're the ones we will remember. Most raced off without us.
I should also mention that we are here in peak season of Australian and New Zealand holidays – so the crowds and attitudes will be at their worst for sure. But even with the crowds, this place has a charm that captures you completely. From the smells you pass through on your scooter, to the friendly locals you make friends with along the way, Bali has a certain magic about it that is addictive.
We'll certainly be coming back for more.
See you at the beach ... Derek
PS The Box of Light gallery will be back up and running again at the end of this week. You can order online right here, or browse some of our super-limited edition (only 10 ever made) prints here.
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