SURF TRAVEL... MENTAWAI'S
BY STACIE GLASS
You’re a surfer girl with a dream to ride un-crowded, perfect waves in a faraway exotic country with family and close friends you can trust. So where do you go and what can you expect once you get there?

Stacie Glass shares her story of an unforgettable surf-boat trip through the breathtaking Mentawais with her father (who not only chartered the boat . . . he also surfed just as hard as everyone else), along with her supportive boyfriend Todd and a couple of his friends as they carved their way through endless swells and exotic fare. Stacie is living proof that if you have the desire and courage to achieve the ultimate surfer girl dream...you can do it!

A BOAT CHARTER IS BLISS
The charter company is called Waterways
Travel and our boat was called the Freedom II. The cost of the charter plus the travel was extremely high, but well worth every penny!

FAVORIITE BOAT FEATURE
Coincidentally, my favorite feature on the
boat was the one that I was most skeptical
about when we first got on the boat. After
traveling for so long, all I wanted to do when
we got on the boat was take a shower.
When I asked the captain where the shower
was, he pointed to this little hose thingy
hanging off the back of the boat.
I couldn't believe that I was going to spend the next 13 days aboard a boat with 11 guys taking a "shower" outside off the back of the boat! As it turned out, something about surfing all day out in the middle of the ocean and showering on the back of the boat as the air finally cooled off and the sun went down was... amazing!

TIME OF YEAR // WAVE CONDIITIIONS
Our trip was at the end of July which is supposed to be the time of the year with some of the best surf. The conditions definitely lived up to their expectations. Fortunately, the surf never got too huge (except for one scary day at a spot called Hideaways) and never got too small either.


MENTAWAII SURF BREAKS
Even though we traveled halfway across the
world and out into the middle of the Indian
Ocean, there were still some crowded surf
spots. Our captain was really good at taking
us to some of the not so popular spots
where we managed to get a ton of great
waves to ourselves. I think it's important to
have a good captain who really knows the
winds, tides, crowds, etc. Just like in Hawaii,
these factors can really change a spot quick.

HAWAIIAN WAVES .. .. ..
ESSENTIAL FOR PREPARATION
I’ve only been surfing for about 4 years so I was nervous about surfing “expert only” waves in the Mentawais. I think that surfing in Hawaii definitely prepared me for this trip. If anything, it over-prepared me. My experiences surfing
here on the North Shore in the winter have been way more treacherous and powerful than most of the waves in the
Mentawais.

In Hawaii I’m very aware of the crowd that I’m surfing with and I try to be respectful about not dropping in and having good wave etiquette. Often times on our trip, our boat was the only one at a surf spot so it was incredible to just surf alone with my friends and family (my dad chartered the trip - we call him “rad dad”!) and not have to worry about
anyone else.


MENTAWAI VERSUS HAWAIIAN WAVES
Before I left, someone best described the waves in Indonesia as “thin and fast”. I think this is a really good description. I found that it took me a few days to really get used to surfing
over there. I’m used to paddling into a wave, somewhat taking my time to pop
up, making a bottom turn and surfing the wave. When I did this on my first few waves over there, I got worked!

What I learned to do was angle my board
into the wave (my boyfriend Todd would
yell “Angle! Angle! Angle!”) while paddling
and very quickly pop up and surf down the line and then later make a bottom turn and surf as usual.
Most of the waves there have a ton of speed so you don’t ever really have to pump your way through a section. A lot
of the times you just hang on and get
barreled!! . . . . . . . . next page