3 flights. 2 layovers. A 13 hour boat crossing. 9 surfers. Multiple reef cuts. Unlimited humidity. It’s pretty amazing what surfers will endure to reach good waves. When the place is as beautiful as the Mentawais, it all makes sense.
As a self-proclaimed average female surfer that’s spent most of her time surfing mellow San Diego waves, I had always thought of the Mentawais as this gnarly place that only the pros could surf. I honestly thought that I was going to be going up against large,cavernous, waves all coming from the Indian Ocean to eat me and spit me out (not in the cool-coming-out-the-barrel-type of spit, more like getting-dragged-across-the-reef-spit.)
The reality is and this statement can probably be applied to my entire life, it was not as bad as I thought. I won’t lie, there were still moments that had me scared straight. From getting steam-rolled by a large outside set at HT’s to taking a shitty wave at Roxy’s and then getting washed up on dry reef, this 11 day boat trip did more for my surfing than 6 months back in my bubble in San Diego.
Similar to almost everyone else that ventures to the Ments, I was in search of getting barreled. I know in some journal around my house, there’s an entry; 2024 Goals: Get barreled. Admittedly, I was nervous about even approaching this goal as I had never really seen content of women learning how to get barreled, it was usually the pros
getting perfectly tubed.
Now what surprised me was that all the other surfers on the boat were more advanced than me, which usually would have intimidated me and given me serious imposter syndrome. This actually turned out to be a great observational learning opportunity. I’m very much a “If I see my friends do it, I’ll do it” type of person so witnessing first hand my friends pulling into barrels ended up being the push I needed to really progress my surfing.
While I didn’t make it out of any of the waves I pulled into, I can confirm that 1) yes the vision inside the wave is amazing 2) and no, the wipeouts were not that bad. I must be the luckiest girl in the world because my wipeouts consisted of me getting swallowed by the wave, tousled a little bit, and then just popped right out the back unscathed.
While learning about getting barrelled is great, I discovered on the trip that there’s an area I really need to work on; my surf confidence. Despite newfound confidence and a supportive group of friends on the boat, I still struggled with asserting myself in the lineups. The Mentawais is full of dudes, tubes, and no boobs (according to the grom on our boat), which was code word for there were many advanced male surfers. All the talent in the water left me feeling overshadowed and doubtful of my own abilities, to the point where I truthfully did not catch as many waves as I would have liked on the trip.
And I get it now, especially watching the other four gals that were on the boat with me (three of which have all competed in professional surf competitions), if you want the wave you have to paddle and commit to it like it is 100% yours. As I watched, learned, and went on waves the gals hooted me into, I felt the mousy, scared, little girl within me start to fade away. It reminded me how even though surfing may seem like a solitary sport, it’s 100x better when you have a solid group of friends to support you.
Now normally the waves and the surf should be the best part of the trip right? I’m going to say that the actual surfing wasn’t even the best part of the trip. It was in between moments shared with 9 strangers-turned-friends. From joking around all night in our 8 bunk room like we were in 6th grade summer camp to jumping off the boat at night and trying to evade venomous sea snakes, the boat trip really felt like I experienced what surfing is really all about; having a good time with friends.
In a world where we are so “connected” superficially, disconnecting (we literally had no service 90% of the time) created the most authentic experience for me. While life often seems like it’s racing by, this trip could not have been better at reminding me to enjoy the present moment, embrace the natural beauty around me, and be grateful for everything that surfing has provided.
So if you’re like me and enjoy waking up at sunrise to perfect breaking waves, walking on the most beautiful white sand beaches, and drinking bintangs at sunset with friends, then I highly recommend booking your next trip to the beautiful Mentawais.