Nihiwatu, Gilles Calvet

Summary

+ Consistent groundswells	- Wild & windy sometimes
+ Many empty top-class spots	- Isolated, unpredictable spots
+ Some quality resorts	- Lack of beach lodging choices
+ Tribal culture	- Expensive Nihiwatu and travel costs

East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) is, in many ways, different from the rest of Indonesia. NTT includes 566 islands, of which only 42 are inhabited, and the bulk of the population live on the three main islands of Timor, Flores and Sumba. It is geographically, ethnically and culturally a border area where the transition from Asia to Australia and Micronesia takes places. Deep offshore trenches and inter-island channels allow plenty of swell to hit the southwest-facing coast of Sumba, where waves of consequence get thrown onto the reefs of dead coral, volcanic rock and boulders. Sumba is not for everyone; the food and accommodation are basic and the mixed ethnic population speak 3 different languages. Huge megalithic tombs and thatched, peaked huts dot the landscape, while in the line-up, intrepid travellers are now sampling the oceanic power of this ancient island.

When to Go

Dry season (March-October) is the main surf producer, when generous Indian Ocean swells can sometimes reach 12-15ft (4-5m) in June-August from a SSW- WSW direction. The main trend is the SE trades, which blow-out many exposed spots, especially from June-Sept. Unlike Bali, the trades don’t blow consistently during the day, instead there are on and off windy periods. Obviously, trades gets stronger as the day progress, but sometimes thunderstorms can change wind patterns, so early and late glass-offs are common. Expect many 6-12ft (2-4m) days with windy line-ups, better suited for experienced surfers. Because of the deep ocean trench and direct SW swell exposure, Sumba gets big, with less nooks and crannies than western Nusa Tengarra islands. That’s why the wet season (Nov -April) is also a good time to consider for friendlier conditions at the rights of Tarimbang, Wainukaka or Mangkudu with NW winds being offshore. The Sumba coastline is typically steep rather than cliffs and often has a fringing coral reef. Nusa Tenggara has more extreme tidal range than the rest of Indonesia, making many spots very tide sensitive. There is a big tide and small tide everyday and tidal range can reach 8ft. Finding tide charts is difficult, trust your tide watch. Some spots are best on the bigger spring tides occurring 3 or 4 days before and after new and full moons.

Surf Spots

Pero Rights are tricky and unforgiving with a sketchy cliff dead-end section, requiring NW-N winds, which only happen in the wet season. It also needs to be well overhead before it even starts breaking, making it a low consistency, experts only wave. The western tip of the island is generally better during the dry season when E-SE winds blow cross/offshore for the lefts. Across the channel formed by the rivermouth, Pero Lefts can be excellent as swell is refracted heavily into big bowl sections with ample tube-time. Highly consistent, this wave holds as big as it gets and there is decent accommodation in Pero at Homestay Story. The extensive fringing reef at Wainjapu consistently holds long makeable lefts providing there’s not too much W in the swell. Potentially good rights on the other side of the bay and the village is home to some impressive megaliths. The area to the east is well worth some exploration for a few quality reefs that are hard to find! Pantai Marosi is actually a big, shifty, deepwater right with power and long hold-downs in chunky SW swells. The scenic bay is sensitive to wind plus there are some other peaks and an outside left, but in a small swell, there’s a fun, hazard-free beachbreak. The often debated case of Nihiwatu is quite unique in Indonesia, since the deluxe resort claims exclusive use of “Occy’s Lefts” for the happy-few who can afford $236/454 per day staying in beautiful cottages with 8 surfers max. As founder Claude Graves puts it, it’s a way to avoid the usual surf-slum scenario and generate more benefits for the local communities with the help of the Sumba Foundation. The famous lefts work on any size, the bigger the better and get really fast and hollow at low tide. There are fat righthanders across the bay from Nihiwatu and there are Sunset style rights and lefts on the next point that can be accessed by boat or car in about 1 hour. There is also a righthand reef wave at the end of the beach that breaks on small days and is a half hour walk away. The rivermouth at Wainukaka is better in the wet season and almost only rideable at high tide with quality rights and lefts over a constantly changing sandy bottom. Stay at Homestay Ahong in Rua or Aloha Hotel in Waikabukak. Only 3h drive from Waingapu, Miller’s Rights in Tarimbang are probably Sumba’s most ridden wave and the line-up is sometimes crowded from May to Sept. Fortunately, the wave is so long it could soak up a big crowd, and fast, hollow sections split the pack into clusters between the softer shoulders that are quite accessible to improver/intermediates. Waves can be a bit funky with SE trades, but they break year-round and are usually clean early morning and during the wet season. It takes a bit of effort to get to the beautiful horseshoe bay and a further 15min walk or 20min paddle from the beach accommodation at Marthens Homestay. Big wave chargers may look at the offshore location known as Mangkudu Island, where the challenging lefts can reach 15ft (5m) plus there is a mellower right on the other side, only offshore during the wet season. Mangkudu made headline news when the army came to occupy the island, supposedly taken over by surfers! There is a surf camp but access is an issue while the army remain. East Sumba is actually the name of the first surf lodge located in Kallala next to 3 fairly consistent lefts working on different swells and tides. The Office is an all-round wave suited to most surfers offering fun, lazy walls, the odd cover-up and a forgiving nature, plus there’s empty beachbreak for beginners on the inside. Racetrack is more challenging with a steep drop into a barrel section and fast walls, best tackled at mid tide. Five-O hits a bend in the reef and throws some serious lips, attracting the skilled surfers willing to take a chance on the highest tides in exchange for some big shacks.

Statistics

J

F

M

A

M

J

J

A

S

O

N

D

dominant swell

SW -W

SW -W

SW -W

SW -W

SW -W

SW -W

swell size (ft)

3

4

5

5-6

4-5

3

consistency (%)

60

80

85

90

85

60

dominant wind

SW -NW

W -E

E -SE

E -SE

E -SW

S -W

average force

F3-F4

F2-F3

F3-F4

F3-F4

F3

F2-F3

consistency (%)

72

71

74

74

79

56

water temp (C)

29

29

28

26

27

29

wetsuit

boardshorts

boardshorts

boardshorts

boardshorts

boardshorts

boardshorts

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