Activity: Surf Guiding

From the empty lineup at Uluwatu this morning, our intermediate group were treated to the spectacular sight of the sun rising behind the cliffs of the Bukit Peninsula. The waves were almost as good, mostly in the head high range with a couple of bigger sets. An early bump on the waves soon disappeared and they were treated to over an hour of glassy and almost empty Uluwatu with an offshore breeze.

It’s not often you get a solo session at any break in Bali, but that was the case today for the intermediate group after they drove to Greenball for an early morning surf.  The waves were about shoulder high with bigger head high plus sets coming at regular intervals. There was a light onshore wind but it didn’t deter anyone as they were able to pick and choose the best waves of the day as they rolled through – before heading back to the camp for breakfast and a second session at Uluwatu.

It was a grey start to the day as our advanced group made the short trip to Uluwatu, but it didn’t dampen the mood as they were met by glassy conditions and a rapidly building swell. Sets were well overhead and our surfers were able to push their limits in the bigger waves safe in the knowledge that our local guide was there to help them pick the best rides. The crowd was moderate for “Covid times” but it didn’t deter anyone and our surfers came back in after a couple of hours thoroughly surfed out.

The intermediate group set off to Balangan this morning in search of waves as a new swell had arrived overnight which made conditions at their favourite spot of Uluwatu a little too big. The swell was big enough to provide Balangan with some overhead sets so they could keep pushing their limits in a safe manner with our experienced guide. There was a light offshore breeze and clear, blue, sunny skies so our surfers could top up their sun tan while in the water. Conditions were relatively glassy for the most part and everyone had fun in the water.

Our intermediate group were back at Uluwatu today after yesterday’s (undocumented) trip across the Bukit Peninsula to Nusa Dua. The waves were small but it was sunny and they had a peak to themselves for most of the session, and there was enough power in the set waves to have some fun and practice turns in more forgiving conditions than those that Uluwatu normally provides. The waves weren’t super clean, but they had enough fun to choose to paddle back out for a second session at Uluwatu instead of taking a rest back at the camp.

The old adage goes “the early bird catches the worm“ – and that was certainly the case for our intermediate surfers this morning who were paddling out at Uluwatu as soon as the first chinks of daylight pierced the horizon. The waves had cleaned up a little since yesterday but still retained some of their size on the sets, which were mixed with smaller runners in between. Luckily, when you have the lineup to yourself and your friends you can pick and choose which waves to paddle for and everyone found plenty of what they were looking for, whether that was a long wall to practice their backside pumping or pushing their limits on progressively bigger waves.

We headed back to Uluwatu today where yesterday’s swell remained but the wind had switched to offshore and the skies had turned blue – grooming the waves into overhead peaks and perfect long walls to race along and practice our turns. The crowd was light compared to a normal pre-pandemic April as the dry season finally kicked into gear and Bali’s premium left hander delivered the goods for all present. The swell is due to stick around for a couple of days, so we’ll be back to Uluwatu tomorrow for some more fun waves and sunshine!

Today our advanced group made the short trip to Uluwatu where they were greeted by less than perfect conditions – however, this is Bali and there was enough swell to make up for the onshore winds. Hopefully this is the final hurrah of the wet season and we’re expecting nothing but offshore winds for the next 7+ months! The sets were head high plus and there was enough quality in the waves that everyone had fun. The lineup was quiet and there were plenty of waves to go round and for our advanced surfers to practice their maneuvers.