Uncrowded waves in remote locations with The Perfect Wave - Part 2

G'day friends,

Are getting sick of your local beach that’s becoming more crowded by the day? Wondering whether there still exist places with uncrowded waves that you can have just for yourself, without waiting in the lineup for too long? We did the homework for you and travelled around the world to discover new frontiers – places with absolutely nobody around, only yourself and your friends in the water.

There still are places where none of your friends went before so you will be the first. Spots with breaks being discovered as you read this blog and local people and culture still untouched by the western culture. Remote islands where you can surf, take awesome pictures, eat fresh local food and absolutely forget about your busy schedule for a week or two!

For this to happen, you will need to get off the beaten track and perhaps take on an extra flight or a boat trip to get there. In some other cases, there may be restrictions on the number of surfers to keep breaks uncrowded, but others may just be far enough away from the commercial areas and frequently travelled paths that only those with a sense of adventure bother going there. Many of these places also do not advertise heavily so they don’t get too crowded or just want to protect their local culture.

Whatever the reason of their remoteness is, these places are just slowly starting to appear on surfers’ maps and we at The Perfect Wave spent some time researching these new frontiers to offer you something new. We were definitely blown away!

In Part 1, we looked at uncrowded and remote places in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea.

Micronesia – talk about the last frontier!

Caroline Islands is a widely scattered group of islands in the western Pacific Ocean, north-east of Australia. The surfing season runs from October to April when the waves are powerful and barrels are frequent. This destination is perfect for an experienced surfer as the breaks are predominately fast, intense, pretty heavy right-handers. Caroline Islands Surf Tours provide eco-friendly cottage-style accommodation in stunning surroundings, experienced surf guide, meals, all transports and guided tours around the islands. Absolutely no surfers around besides yourself!

Surf breaks

• P1- series of right-hand reef sections ranging from rippable walls to barrels. Faces offshore/side-offshore in the trade winds. Handles swell from 2-8 foot.
• Sidedish - Intense and extremely hollow reef break, providing a 2-4 second righthand barrel. Faces straight offshore in the trade winds. Breaks from 2-6 foot.
• Snoop Dogg’s - Fast, hollow left-hand reef break. Faces offshore/side-offshore into the trade winds. Fun and rippable when wind affected. Flawless 4-second barrel when offshore (comparable to Pipeline in Hawaii, but more perfect!). Handles from 1-6 foot.
• WC’s - Extremely heavy right-hand slab reef break ala Teahupoo, Ours, or The Box. Sideshore in the trade winds. Surfable by those who dare whenever the wind is good. Handles from 2-10 foot.
• Airports - Right-hand reef/point break with multiple sections. Picks up wraparound wind swell when there is no N groundswell. Extremely fast, heavy right-hander when ground swell is running.  Sideshore in the trade winds. Handles from 1-8 foot

 

Solomon Islands have the identical surfing season as the Carolines, but not all the breaks are as challenging so even the beginners (but not only!) can surf here. Surf Solomon Tours will guide you around the Maliata Island, not only the best surf breaks, but also provide a cultural insight about the country and its people. They have own chef that will cook for you the whole time, transport around the island for different breaks, fishing trips, snorkeling, markets, waterfalls… The surf breaks are pretty consistent in the high season and there are both left- and right-handers of various difficulties to surf. Joel Coleman from saltmotion photography has joined us on this fantastic trip and you can see his LIVE daily updates here: Day 1, Day 2, Day 3, Day 4, Day 5, Day 6, Day 7...

Surf Breaks - Maliata Island

• Toi - This is considered the premier wave by many who come to Solomons. It’s an outer right-hand reef set up about 2km from the nearest land, so it’s very sensitive to wind. In the right conditions, it’s a fast & powerful. It has barreling sections and works well on N-W to N-E swells. Catches all available swell and is often bigger than other breaks in the area.
• Gnali nuts - This is a consistent left on most swell directions and sizes. It’s best with light off-shore or no wind but can handle cross-shore conditions. The break has two distinct peaks that sometimes connect making for a long, powerful, walling wave. On bigger swells, it comes into its own. It’s a great walling wave on most tides. This wave suits all types of surfing (short board, fish and mals).
• Eidu - Is a long-peaking left which at its best goes through 4 distinct bowling and then reforming sections. At mid- to high tide, this is an easy-walling wave that can handle large swells. On small swells, it can get a bit fat and higher tides can stop it breaking all together. On a low tide, it’s a completely different wave with ledging take offs, fast, hollow walls and a very shallow reef. Needs glassy conditions to surf on low tide. When it’s big, this is a serious wave.
• Tai - This reef passage is a real swell magnet and there is pretty much always a wave to be had on the incoming tide here, even if it’s flat everywhere else. It breaks more like a beach break with shifting left and right peaks - but it is a reef and can be shallow on the inside. On a good day, there can be some fun, peaky and fast waves. It’s surfable up to 4 foot - bigger than that and it becomes too unpredictable as you have to be prepared to get caught inside on this wave. Best on small days at 2-4 foot. On the inside is a magic hollow left called Beacons that breaks when the swell is up and is offshore in conditions when many other waves are blown out.
• Charlie's right - A very consistent right-hander that breaks on incoming tides almost every day. It’s a short, fast wave with a number of walling sections and an easy barrel. Very fun when it’s small and even when the swells up it does not get as heavy here as some other nearby breaks.
• Ngali nuts rights - Across the passage from the main left hand break at Ngali Nuts is a right. It’s a bit fickle and hard to catch in the right conditions. But when it’s clean, this can be a fast wave that is fun on smaller days. Generally the left is looking better on bigger swells but there is a lot of potential to explore this wave further and get it at its best.
• Kwanala - Swell direction and wind have to be just right and when they are this right is one of the best waves in the area (N to N-E swells with glassy conditions). On lower tides, it can be a very hollow wave with the wall of the wave increasing as it runs down the reef. On smaller swells and at higher tide, it breaks wider on the reef and is a very fun, punchy wave. There is a lot of sea life around this break.
• Billy's - A magic left surfed for the first time in the 2008/09 season. Named after Billy Bain who went with his father Rob on a trip at the end of the season.
• Piccininies - A consistent right-hander, breaking close to a very scenic village. Expect the whole village to come out and join in! A fun wave.

For more information on our product in remote locations without crowds, where you might be the only tourists around, please check out this section of our website. For more questions, you can contact us on 1300 00WAVE or send us an e-mail! We have been there and done that, so we are able to give you personalized information on surf breaks and different operators in the area - we only sell the best!