Off the shred, onto the surf, in China now

[spreadtheshred]

Hi hi hi! Super excited to be on the forum finally. It took me a while to properly troll all the content on the website!

I'm not good at brief but I'll give it a whirl. I love snowboarding, its such a big part of my life, I'm as at home on the slopes on my board as I am cozying up to a cold one or taking a shower.

About 10 years ago I lived on the west coast of USA and I got a surf bug, practiced paddling all summer in the river then went to the coast and got WRECKED. I gave it another go for a week in Portugal and got WRECKED again. Turns out waves of any size were more than I could handle. Oh and no experience and a shortboard probably didn't help haha. I did get up on a wave (or whitewater at least) more than once and I know I need more!

I've been ready for round 3 for a while but wanted to have a while to dedicate to it so I could build my way up, physically and skill wise. My snowboard legs don't equal paddling arms. I wanted a few months. Found out I could save up money quicker in China than the USA so I'm here now and hit the road in September.

I've been reading loads on this website, I feel way more prepared than my other attempts. I'll be doing a bunch of strength training this summer so hopefully I will be getting out past the waves and wrecking them instead of the other way around!

The reason I'm here now is because I know just enough to know I don't know enough. Hoping to pick up some more smarts from all of you. Plus I have some ideas that I want vetted, because I don't really know what the hell I'm doing!



This should probably go on to the travel forum for in depth banter but I'll just go on about my plan for a moment here:
Philippines - September to October
Indonesia - October to November
Thailand - November to December

My theory is that I'll be going around the islands in the opposite direction of surf season but close to it. Hoping this will result in consistent (I don't mind small) waves, less crowds and cheaper everything. Not learning on super crowded waves sounds really helpful because dodging other knuckleheaded newbs like myself sounds like it could complicate my learning experience.

My understanding is that Indonesia surf season ends in October but I'm hoping to get there later in the month, when, hopefully, the frenzy has died down a little bit. That and try to get a little away from Bali madness.

What do you guys think? Am I onto something or have I gotten things twisted? Any tips? Any questions? Any questions I should be asking?

[Big H]

Indonesia is massive....have any specific region in mind?

[spreadtheshred]

Not really. I'm just now trying to crack Philippines.

My gut tells me that Bali is more popular, crowded, expensive and big than I want. I had a friend tell me that nearby Lombok is much quieter but still has good surf to learn on.

Any tips for Indonesia? I literally know nothing about it yet except that Bali is surf legend and a friend mentioning Lombok to me

[Big H]

One thing about the off season means rainy season which means trash in the water and means you shouldn't surf during or right after due to scary bacteria and nasty runoff....but the waves are smaller and it is less crowded. There are forum members (one in particular) who are familiar with Lombok. Coming up on 5 years here and I've never been. Sumatra is an option as well....surfcamps dominate up there from what I hear; never gone there to surf. Sumbawa has some epic waves as well, but I don't think you need to worry too much if small waves are what you want; they have that in a lot of areas. Maybe think about other things in Indo that you'd like to see or do.....Yogajakarta is a special place and there is some surfing around there as well as mountains and one of the 7 wonders of the world - Borobudur temple.

[oldmansurfer]

China has some great surf. Along with strength training I recommend you swim or paddle for endurance.

[spreadtheshred]

Did not know that, thanks for the tip. I'm a big fan of avoiding scary bacteria!

One thing about the off season means rainy season which means trash in the water and means you shouldn't surf during or right after due to scary bacteria and nasty runoff....but the waves are smaller and it is less crowded.

I didn't even think about Sumatra, probably because all the surf hubub in Indonesia is for the Bali area. Sounds like Sumatra could be a good spot to ditch some surf crowds and catch some practice waves. Hopefully I'm not giving myself the short end of a stick by planning on smaller waves. I think I will get the hang of things pretty quickly once I can build up some basic skills, muscles and endurance (keyword being think).

Sumatra is an option as well....surfcamps dominate up there from what I hear; never gone there to surf. Sumbawa has some epic waves as well, but I don't think you need to worry too much if small waves are what you want; they have that in a lot of areas.

Do you mention this specifically because of surf downtime during the off season? I totally agree, I'm not planning on exclusively doing beaches on my trip, I'm here to see lots of things but I do want a lot of surf time

Maybe think about other things in Indo that you'd like to see or do.....Yogajakarta is a special place and there is some surfing around there as well as mountains and one of the 7 wonders of the world - Borobudur temple.

[spreadtheshred]

Where abouts?

I know the island of Hainan is supposed to have some good surf. I originally tried getting a job there but that didn't pan out. I'm in Fuzhou right now, maybe 50k from the coast, just on the west side of Taiwan. Transportation is a bit of a pain though. In the city you are only allowed to own electric scooters or cars, the scooters can't make it to the coast and I don't want a car so I haven't been able to go scope things out.

There are buses that go that way, but only to the airport. No one around here goes to the actual ocean. Probably because they don't know how to swim.

I've heard of a Fuzhou Typhoon surfing club but haven't been able to make any contacts. Fuzhou doesn't have much english

We're still in winter a bit but the local pool should open in a month or so and I will be a regular in there working on my crawl stroke (I figure that has the most muscles in common with paddling) and holding my breath underwater.

China has some great surf. Along with strength training I recommend you swim or paddle for endurance.

[Big H]

Sumatra gets big waves....I'm sure that there is a range there...again, it's a big area. Contact some surf camps to see what the conditions will be like that time of year there and if there are suitable spots for your level.

Surfing is great, but if you are traveling you're doing yourself a dis-service if you don't have a look around as well and get some feeling for the culture.....what else are you going to talk about when you get old!?
Besides, not being a daily surfer now, you might find that you are going to need some downtime off the water regardless of the surf conditions....it takes alot out of you to be out in the sun paddling to what will amount to a couple few thousand meters a day; if you aren't used to the sun or the work rate (which you aren't) you are going to savour those side tour days not just for the immersion into the local culture.... The sun alone will make you tired if you aren't accustomed to it, and even if you are it wears on you.

[spreadtheshred]

Ahhh, there you go mentioning surf camps again and I think I understand now. Earlier I almost mentioned not wanting to do surf camps because I'm on a budget and I'm not a total newb and macho macho lol but I think I understand why you mentioned it now.

Great idea, I'm going to be contacting some surf camps in all the countries/regions on my hit list to see what their thoughts are on the swells and the areas nearby. I'm sure they will up sell it somewhat but it should give me a good idea of what will be happening around that time.

Sumatra gets big waves....I'm sure that there is a range there...again, it's a big area. Contact some surf camps to see what the conditions will be like that time of year there and if there are suitable spots for your level.

Agreeing 100%! I know with snowboarding I have friends who can barely walk after a couple hours of riding powder so I bet I'll be like that after surfing. The waves were a big motivation to come to this part of the world but I'm also here to experience more than the beach. After the islands I'm headed inland to Laos, Cambodia, Mynmar, Nepal and India.

Surfing is great, but if you are traveling you're doing yourself a dis-service if you don't have a look around as well and get some feeling for the culture.....what else are you going to talk about when you get old!?
Besides, not being a daily surfer now, you might find that you are going to need some downtime off the water regardless of the surf conditions....it takes alot out of you to be out in the sun paddling to what will amount to a couple few thousand meters a day; if you aren't used to the sun or the work rate (which you aren't) you are going to savour those side tour days not just for the immersion into the local culture.... The sun alone will make you tired if you aren't accustomed to it, and even if you are it wears on you.

[Big H]

It sounds epic!

[oldmansurfer]

Where abouts?

I am not sure but I have seen some awesome photos of surf in China. There are a whole bunch of different waves there and a huge coastline. If you google it you will find a lot of info (not to mention a fantastic tidal bore). I think travel restrictions hamper surf tourism there.

[spreadtheshred]

I'm betting a lot of that is Hainan Island near Vietnam. There is a filthy large coastline so I'm sure there are a bunch of other spots but surfing isn't really a thing here so I'm sure that those spots are largely undiscovered.

It might be the travel restrictions but I don't think they are very bad anymore. It could be the whole communist country/pollution/peoples perception of china that are hampering surf tourism. Any maybe all the other awesome places near by

Where abouts?

I am not sure but I have seen some awesome photos of surf in China. There are a whole bunch of different waves there and a huge coastline. If you google it you will find a lot of info (not to mention a fantastic tidal bore). I think travel restrictions hamper surf tourism there.

What do you guys think of the surf map on this website? I feel like its missing a lot...

[dtc]

China doesn't have much surf despite the length of coastline - it has a v large continental shelf and the wind is from the wrong direction. There just aren't many waves. Also, it's pretty polluted! The islands, like hainan, are the best.

To be honest you are better off going to Taiwan or Japan (both have surf) or just skipping the area altogether if surf is your priority. As places to visit, however, the whole region is fascinating.

[oldmansurfer]

Chinese culture and customs don't lend to a developing surf culture. Magicseaweed has more spots labeled for surfing than this site. Also Surfline has a bunch of China surf spots. A while back I saw an article about surfing in China and they had 6 to 8 foot tubing waves with no one on them.

[jaffa1949]

China is building an amazing amount of surf resorts on reefs all over the South China Sea, there is likely to be some localism as Vietnam , the Philippines and Indonesia reckon they are their local spots.
The US Airforce and Navy have Fly byes there as well.
Could the site for the first thermonuclear tow in competition.
Glow in the dark memorial rashies will be provided after the event!

[spreadtheshred]

I'm not in China for the surf, I'm here teaching English saving money so I can get to Philippeans/Indonesia/Thailand to get my surf on.

That being said, I might have just found a motorcycle which could result in me taking weekend trips to the ocean! I know there is a Typhoon Surfing Club around here, so maybe in August/September when those start happening I might find some action. Who knows!

Actually it might be harder to find a surfboard around here than a wave. I've been asking around a lot since I arrived and no one has any idea of anything relating to surfing around here.

[jaffa1949]

Become the first SW forumite to ride the silver dragon!

[Big H]

Become the first SW forumite to ride the silver dragon!

That can't taste good on a wipeout.....

[BaNZ]

China doesn't get much swell as most of their coastline is blocked by Taiwan, Japan and Philippine.

You're better off going somewhere else.

[spreadtheshred]

Haha - that video made me laugh at how dirty the water was. I think every river I've seen in this country looks like that.

Yea BaNZ, I'm planning on going elsewhere but I'm in China right now so who knows. I'm in Fuzhou which is super blocked by Taiwan ><