Batu Bolong
Surf
14 Oct 2023
Indonesia is the world’s largest archipelago, with over 250 million people spread across more than 18,000 islands. Characterised by pristine beaches, extensive reef, and lush green jungles, with plenty of volcanoes and earthquakes to constantly change the landscape. With thousands of kilometres of coastline that face consistent, unimpeded swell from the Indian Ocean, Indonesia is the most wave-rich region in the world, and is considered by many the holy grail of surfing. Surfing began here in the 60s and has since formed the basis of the country’s tourism, becoming synonymous with clean lines, perfect reef breaks, big swells, glassy waves and warm waters.
Bali is central to this surf travel and culture, and it is where the surfing potential of Indonesia was first discovered. Bali offers world-class waves across the west and east coast of the island, meaning you can find offshore winds and pumping waves pretty much year-round. While Indonesia is the largest Muslim country in the world, Bali is actually a Hindu majority island. This culture is blended with a heavy mix of Australian influence, with an added international cohort of long-term settlers, creating a heady blend of surf culture, traditional religion and Aussie food and cafe culture.
Canggu, pronounced Chahng-goo, is an area comprising of four villages on the west coast of southern Bali. It’s quieter than the more commercial areas south of the town, which are closer to the airport and more established. Initially, Canggu was predominantly visited by the surf community, but in the last five or so years the area has boomed into a vibrant area with a growing population of affluent ex-pats, long term travellers and remote workers. There is now a wide variety of modern villas, smart coffee shops and quality restaurants, and is well-known for it’s nightlife. Due to this ideal mix in and out of the water, surfers continue to return here, most of who are from Western Australia, just a few hours away.
Batu Bolong beach in Canggu is a popular surf beach, with a welcoming vibe and mellow waves (by Indonesian standards). Its accessibility means it does get crowded, but other than people it’s a safe place to surf, with no sharp reef or sharks. There are some rocks but they’re big and flat and mostly covered in weeds. There’s a channel of sand in between the rock to get in and out of the water through, marked nicely by the huge Temple that was an easily identifiable reference point wherever you are in the sea. There’s a wide variety of surfers in the water, with a lot of beginners through to skilled locals plus many longboarders cruising the long walls that can peel for over 100 metres. Batu Bolong also offers both right and left peaks so suits both stances, and the wide beach and wave spreads the crowd out quite well, but you do need to keep an eye out for boards flying around.
Leaving Heathrow for Singapore, I was excited to get going, this trip as a whole had been in the works for many months, but also in the back of my head for years. The final stages of planning and packing had been dragging and I needed to get the show on the road!
I’m ultimately heading for New Zealand, where I will be living for a number of years, and as I have to change flights somewhere halfway, I figured I could add in a few extra stop-offs along the way. This is one of the few times I’ve travelled without a deadline of a work holiday allowance or similar, so I can be flexible.
The first stop was Singapore, where I recovered from jet lag, my body began to acclimatise to the heat and my mouth to the spicy food, repeatedly repacked my bags, and walked the streets of Little India and Chinatown. I left my suitcases in the city for a month and flew out with just a backpack, my first longer-term stop being Bali. I’m predominantly here to surf some waves, whilst also exploring a part of the world that’s totally new to me. Surf culture is a big deal in New Zealand and I’m keen to get involved, so I need to up my game. I figured progressing from a beginner is easier and more fun in the warm 27 degree Indian Ocean with 35 degree sunshine as opposed to 15 degrees in a 5mm wetsuit in the Pacific. Here’s how I got on.
After touching down in Denpasar airport and exchanging a couple of hundred quid for a wedge of more notes than I’d ever had in my hand before, then fending off literally hundreds of taxi drivers, I jumped on the back of a moped, my backpack between the driver’s legs. The ride took almost an hour and was a hot and fairly hectic journey in amongst the organised chaos, but surprisingly there’s no aggression or road rage, just friendly horn tooting to give notice, so I relaxed into it.
I got to travel across some of the island and see some cool places straight away, so it turned out to be a good introduction. I arrived at the homestay I’d booked soaked through, but with a big grin on my face and excited that I was here. That ‘taxi’ only cost £1.50, and that set the tone for the following weeks, everything being impossibly cheap.
I’ve always been keen on surfing, since my early teens visiting Croyde Bay in Devon on family holidays, and so have done a handful of days surfing before, but also had equally as many days of making a trip to the beach to surf and there not being any waves. This meant I haven’t put any consistent learning together to be able to make solid progress. I was hoping this was all about to change! At Batu Bolong beach, the surf was within walking distance from where I was staying. There are plenty of surf schools and board rental places lining the beach with no booking needed. There were also plenty of local photographers with huge lenses, sitting on the beach, under umbrellas or perching on rocks, snapping surfers and eagerly handing out business cards when they emerged from the water. Thankfully this happened to me and I obliged.
Other than when the water is at its busiest, it was pretty ideal for my circumstances. Bali is also a pretty gentle introduction to SE Asia for me, as I haven’t travelled here before. I did have to swallow my pride and be a beginner again, something I’m not such a fan of. But by day two/three I’d embraced it and enjoyed being a novice and asking everyone lots of questions. Except when taking multiple waves on the head repeatedly, that was exhausting. My surfing in these photos, early doors on warm, hazy mornings, isn’t great but does show progress.
By day three I’d experienced most of the classic travelling telltales - sunburn (scalp), food poisoning (burger) plus some serious surf rash (ribs). I had a few good sessions in the water but then collectively the ailments knocked me off my feet and set me back a bit. It took me a good few days to recover and get my energy back, the first day bed-bound, before getting out the following day to stretch my legs.
I equated the surf rash to be similar to torn skin on my hands from climbing, blistered feet from skiing, saddle sores when cycling, etcetera etcetera, all of which I’m used to and now take in my stride, albeit still not particularly welcome. I picked up a surf cap and 1.5mm top to help with the sunburn and rash, and was now much more cautious with where and what I ate. Still, I was at a bit of a loss with what to focus my days around whilst I couldn’t surf, although this gave me an opportunity to branch out to other areas of the island.
I took a trip down to Kuta to check out the beach and surf there. The beach was pretty empty and lacked the vibe or buzz of Canggu, plus the shopping areas were commercial malls or run down streets, so I soon heading north back up the coast to the more modern Canggu.
I then took a day trip to Ubud in Central Bali, looking for something different and a change in scenery, and Ubud was just that. Heading northeast for an hour or so from Canggu, the roads got wider and less hectic, the rice fields greener and the tourists more varied.
It was also hotter though, without the coastal breeze. More like 35/36 degrees, although having been here over a week I was more acclimatised now. This is also where all the English were, so I didn’t hang around too long. I headed off for the Campuhan Ridge and then walked the loop up and around the village of Kajeng and its surrounding rice fields to walk in some more rural scenery. It was pretty spectacular. The path ran through the jungle and is later lined with smart bars and spa resorts left and right. Seniman Coffee in Ubud was also a highlight, Bali’s cafe culture was continually impressive.
The following day I took a trip over to the Blue Lagoon on the east coast for some snorkeling where I swam with a few turtles, which was a cool experience. I had now spent a while out of the water not surfing so felt good to be back in the ocean. I was just about ready to surf again but looking at the forecast it had other ideas.
Waiting for some waves to come, I went down to the south peninsula for two days to check out Uluwatu, the focal point of surfing on the island. There’s a stronger and more serious surf culture here, focussed on bigger, more consequential wave riding with shallow reef breaks that looked pretty gnarly!
The surf shops were incredible in Uluwatu. More spacious and elaborate buildings, wider roads, and generally more comfortable, I could relax here. There was a more mature crowd, too - middle-aged surfers who are experienced and here to rip serious waves. No foamies to be seen around here! There were family-orientated areas too, they hung out on the more traditional beaches with white sand - Bingin and Padang Pandang.
Canggu hands you everything you could want on a plate. There are a few roads lined with everything you need, it’s all packed in and you can walk around to find anything, plus beaches at the end of most roads. Uluwatu is more of an adventure, you need to walk down steep stairs to find the beaches and tucked away coves, paddle out far over reef to get to the waves, ride down small lanes to grand restaurants and cliff-top bars at dead ends. Everything is more spread out, there’s green space between buildings and it’s much more relaxed, so you need to go exploring to find the good stuff.
Anyway, back to the surfing. I got in the water again after six days off and it felt so good. The waves were still much smaller than the first few days I was out last week, but in a way that worked out OK as the crowds were also much reduced. I got out for a few fun early 6am sessions - albeit pretty flat. The best waves last week were around 2-3 metres but now most were around 1.5 metres. I soon realised I really needed to practice my patience - mainly for picking the right wave, and reassuring myself it’s OK to hang around out there for a while and let multiple of waves go before picking one to surf. Getting to understand the waves and how/where they break was what I needed to focus on learning, rather than the actual surfing. But also for waiting to stand up once you’re in/on the wave and not too early, keep paddling!
As Batu Bolong has a lot of beginner surfers mixed in with experienced locals and skilled longboarders, it’s a bit of a free-for-all. So instead of taking turns on catching waves and following a strict queue, lots of people all surf the same wave. For me, this worked out quite well as I could do as I pleased and if I didn’t catch a wave I could just try the next one, rather than joining the back of the queue. It was a relaxed place to surf which I was thankful for.
I spent a good few hours out surfing with Dennis. A local Balinese surf instructor, and just 19 years old. He was an impressive surfer and teacher, with solid English, and I enjoyed being able to chat to him, finding common ground through chatting about surfing and surf culture in Indonesia in between sets. I caught some fun waves with his help and definitely made progress, so mission accomplished.
Additional thoughts
I found the island of Bali a super interesting place. It’s a fusion of contrasting cultures, fortunes and religions. Despite the upmarket surf shops alongside basic local restaurants, the smart new Aussie coffee shops next to very basic homes of locals, it all gels together surprisingly well. It created a unique vibe, which I was surprised I enjoyed so much. I think it helps that the locals are clearly super passionate about surfing, so welcome the tourists who come here to share an experience in the water.
From my experience, there was also pretty much zero homeless people, begging or crime and I always felt safe. After initial concern, I didn’t worry about leaving my phone, camera and wallet on the beach whilst surfing. Yes, the roads are mental and pollution is an issue, but having lived in London for the last five years I didn’t really see the difference to when cycling through Central during rush hour, or travelling on the tube for a few hours.
The cafe culture in Indonesia is super impressive. Coffee from Bali itself isn’t to my taste, but the level of service, attention to detail and quality of the food and drink served is incredible. Thanks to the exchange rate it’s also super cheap, so I ate in cafes for most of my three meals a day, for two weeks!
Leaving Canggu I felt eager for more surf travel and wanting to explore other islands and surf spots of Indonesia. Neighbouring Lombok is an obvious choice and as my surfing and wave knowledge progresses I’ll be able to access more waves on different islands. A dream trip would be to fly out with a backpack, buy a surfboard and a motorbike with a board rack, and tour the islands and beaches for a month or two.
Solo travel here was fun as I felt like I could go and do whatever I wanted, as everything was so affordable and accessible. However, although the island is heaving with people, my time here was in relative solitude as people were constantly coming and going. Other than the local Indonesians, the younger people who live here are rarely in one place for that long. Surfers are moving around the islands to chase waves and the remote workers move around to different accomodation and chase new experiences.
I met plenty of friendly and like-minded people and had good conversations when sat watching the sunset, when out surfing and waiting for waves, or when eating at a bar, watching the Rugby World Cup or having a coffee. They were short-lived chats though, and connections were fleeting, as I rarely saw the same person twice. This was about to change though, as I left Indonesia and headed for Thailand.
Further info
See more at: indonesiansurfguide.com, indosurf.com.au.
Useful links: Surfline’s Batu Bolong surf guide.
Short films: Riding Waves That Never Break, Tropical Float.
Related reading:
- Indo Surf & Lingo, Peter Neely
- Surf Odyssey - The Culture of Wave Riding, Gestalten
- Barbarian Days - A Surfing Life, William Finnegan
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