23RD AUGUST – 3RD SEPTEMBER THE SEASON THAT KEEPS ON GIVING!
Wave of the Trip
THE SEASON THAT KEEPS ON GIVING!
It’s hard to go wrong choosing a destination to go surfing in the Sumatran Islands with a riches of world class surfing breaks matched nowhere else on the planet. Chances are high you are going to score no matter where you point the bow, especially in peak swell season.
But it is always satisfying when you get it “extra” right with a little local knowledge and a bit of extra adventure spirit, and that is exactly what The Mango is all about.
Back-to-back solid swells on the long range forecasts in the weeks building up to the trip got the guys buzzing. Then as departure day got closer Dylan and the lads started bouncing phone messages around discussing local weather predictions like a team of meteorologists, and like their lives depended on it. South? North? South? North?
Come departure day NORTH got the nod, and we got that call “extra” right!
The weather pattern was reliable and predictable for most of the trip - glassy mornings followed by SE trades kicking in around lunchtime. It’s an El Ninó thing, and when this weather pattern kicks in for a month or two, being agile is key to variety and scoring a few empty not-so-obvious breaks along with the predictable world class groomed classics Sumatra is famous for.
“MY NEW FAVOURITE WAVE”
Seeing a wave from behind is always a hard sell for a first surf, and on one early morning Foxy run, that is exactly what we were faced with – “jeez it doesn’t look like much”. Fair enough, from behind it did not scream epic Indo perfection.
Once we got a better look at it and finally got out there, the true fun of this reef break was revealed – a perfect chip-in, consistent speed folding down the predictable reef break to smack over and over again….and the odd sneaky barrel section. What’s not to like about this!
In the end, the surfs at this little gem of a wave became some of the boys’ favourite surfs of the trip.
A NORTHERLY CHANGE
With El Ninó famously dominating the worldwide weather patterns in 2026, the northerly wind patterns in Sumatra, are few and far between at the moment, but when the wind actually swung, not just a momentary glass-off, but a genuine weather change, we knew exactly where we wanted to be.
The swell didn’t quite arrive with the size the forecasts had predicted but how good is a day of forehand right tubes for the regular footers when you are probably not expecting it on the trip.
LOW TIDE? NO WORRIES
This one is a quality wave, and the day was always going to attract a few other captains and surf guides in the know with such an obviously perfect swell and wind forecast for the break.
A morning of cooking waves with a couple of other surfers around was a great start to the day.
The midday heat brought the south east trade winds in harder, grooming It to perfection. It now looked incredible – classic Indo. But the low tide was now too dry for the picturesque wave and there was not many takers on hand for the dry reef drainers grinding down the break renowned for taking skin if you get it wrong.
A feed and rest for a couple of hours was the sensible option for all others, but these boys have a good crack, and the waves looked so dam perfect. After some reassurance that we do “sometimes” surf it at lowish tide, they were out there.
There was some justifiable initial hesitation once on the take-off, but once the lads got a few waves under their belts, they had it wired – which ones to turn and go on, and which ones were too dry and unrideable.
With every set they got more confident, the tide started filling in on the reef again, one hour became two. Two became three. Eventually, a six-hour session was logged that afternoon, on our own, in absolutely perfect waves.
To top it off, we scored it again the following day in same circumstances - another six hours of Indo perfection. Just the Mango lads.
At that point, anything else was simply a bonus.
BACK ON THE SCORING BOARD… FINALLY
It had been a minute since we’d put some serious fish on the deck of the Mango and Flynno had called before the trip with the important question: should he bring his personal casters? Absolutely!
Having keen fishermen onboard makes any boat trip that much better!
Consistency is key, and Flynno, Billy and Dyl put the hours in aboard the Foxy Lady, casting over every inch of reef that looked remotely capable of producing dinner.
The persistence paid off with a couple of Spangled Emperor that went straight onto Chef Situ’s BBQ, A few Blue Spot Trevally provided the sashimi, and a couple of massive GT did not go to waste either.
NEVER MISS A FOXY MISSION. YOU KNOW THE RULE
The lads were surfed out and broken, lunch was done, resting ….. then the wind shifted.
The offer to go check on a nearby right was put out but no one was keen, until Flynno and Young Bill got the froth going.
Sure enough the lads scored and epic session on their own, and that’s exactly why you never miss a Foxy Lady mission!
SAVED THE BEST FOR LAST
The inbound swell for the final days appeared to have all the ingredients for tube time right where we were - long period, just the right size and guaranteed offshore winds.
It turned into a memorable day of epic proportions. The kind of session where it almost didn’t matter whether you were the one getting barrelled or watching on from the Foxy. Everyone was on a surfing high and soaking it all in.
And then just like that, it was time to pack up and sail back to Padang. What a way to finish the trip!
“ARE WE GOING TO GET THE SHOT?”
Earlier in the trip we’d somehow managed to miss Andy’s best wave while the camera crew were off fishing.
Naturally, this could not happen again.
On that epic final morning, Andy wandered out onto the back deck, looked at the sets rolling through and asked the only question that mattered.
ANDY: “Are we going to get the shot?”
LIP: “Well, you’ve got three hours to do it before departure.”
Challenge accepted.
After a long warm up stretch Andy went out in force. His first wave was the wave of the morning and … we got the shot!
SPECIAL THANKS
As always, the hardest working crew in Sumatra & the fish gods, for finally opening the account again.
See you lads in 2028.
Cheers,
Uncle Lip