Surfing Waves

Hey guys,

I am doing an internship over the summer in Padang, Indonesia/Sumatra (its in the north and is not Padang in Bali) I was just wondering if there is any surf here, and if so where some of the spots are (for beginner / intermediate). I am sure there will be surf here as indo is very well known (well Bali area anyway), surely but on the map i can see a island right in front of Padang and am hoping this will not affect or prevent surf in this area.

Any information would be very helpful and much appreciated

Cheers, SF

Yes, there's some surf spots there in Sumatra, but I've never been there. I heard Nias (North Sumatra province) is great and east coast of Sumatra has wonderful swells. Getting there on the other hand is rather difficult. Approachable, but not easily. From Padang you can get to it's East coast by bus, but the interstate road is super bad. And carrying surfboards on a bus will be a challenge too (I think). You can try to rent a van (with or without driver, preferably with, since Sumatrans drive like maniacs!!). And accommodations around surfing spots aren't so nice. Very minimal, but of course cheap too, so you can't really expect much. Please know that Padang is Moslem dominant places, so getting beers maybe tough, unlike North Sumatra where most are Christians, so getting beer or local alcohol beverages will be easier. Good luck!

Yeah you can surf in Padang, but I've never done it. The couple of times I've driven past the beach there were tiny waves, at the same time the islands I was heading for were pumping. The Mentawais and the Batu archipelago are in the way and that's one reason they get all the world class swell and Padang doesn't! You'll also be heading in the off season. The Season is from April - October give or take a month.

Nevertheless I've heard there are a few spots in Padang but the water is very very dirty. Local boats out to the Ments and Batu will take you 16 hours or so to get there. All travelers to the Ments and Batu go via Padang so there are a lot of surfers going through the area.

Wicked cheers guys for your input, yea i dont think i will head out to the ments (little over my level :p) hopefully Padang gets some waves while im there but otherwise i hope i can get some time off and book a flight down to Bali

Hey SF and all those Padang surfers, I hope you all are all right and well after the massive earthquake there . Do post and say how it is over there.

Hey bro cheers for the concern, but im all good i dont head over there till end of Nov, hopefully all the people are all good over there. Although it does look very serious. But yea my heart goes out to them and hope the majority are ok

Awe man, it looks totally horrible there. I've been watching the local news and reports from some friends over in Sumatra (not in Padang), and it is bad. I hope things get better and they get all the help they need soon. It rains a lot too there these days, doesn't help at all.

Hey guys. The quake hit Padang really bad. I'm in Padang at the moment and was in Padang when the quake happened. Many people died and bad smells in some areas now. Still no power and water in some places. Even some damaged places hasn't even been touched yet. All kind of supports will be very helpful!!!!

Cheers
Citra x

People keep flying in and bring logistic aids.. I reckon main problem is that the evacuation proccess is very slow coz lack of heavy stuff. But really, I have been living here in mywhole life and it is really bad..

I also saw the news about the quake in Padang...I was hoping to help out but all I could do was give some monetary donations. Indonesia is a beautiful country, and the people were really nice when I visited there a couple of months ago (I wasn't able to surf though because of work)

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