With just a few days left of the trip, we were loving life and didn’t want it to end. The group really got on so well, and even with sad goodbyes to Anna after Lombok and Sasha just before the big swell arrived, we remained a strong unit. Each day seemed to get better than the one before, and will forecasts of swell, and the tide moving off neaps towards better days, we were stoked to wake up to great waves on the last two days of our stay in Nusa Lembongan.
It turned out that the afternoon sessions were best, and we found a gap with some cooking waves on the second last day, Luke calling it his best surf of the trip, and Mike, Julius and Kaitlin frothing in the clean conditions. After so much surfing Aldo’s ribs were starting to take strain, and he only caught one or two before coming in. Mike even stayed out so late that the boat had to come in and he did the paddle in across the reef.
The final day we awoke to similar swell, even a bit smaller. The tides dictate the waves in Nusa Lembongan, and we made sure not to surf ourselves out before the dropping tide in the afternoon. Just as we got out there and ready to paddle out, the sets started coming in, often ten waves at a time with no one on them. We knew it was the biggest and most powerful we’d surfed (Outsides in Lombok was maybe bigger but we didn’t really catch any), so readied ourselves to take it on. Laura paddled over to Razors to take on her preferred lefts, while the natural footers and myself went over to Shipwrecks. Laura’s surfing, paddling, water knowledge and confidence improved so much on this trip it was a real pleasure to watch.
Out at Shipwrecks, Julius, Mike and myself all got some great waves, but it was Kaitlin who really stole the show. Having told me on the first day in Nusa Lembongan that she wanted to really push her surfing, this was her opportunity and she took it. She sat in the right place, and when the sets came she went, smiling all the way. At shipwrecks there is no shortage of beatings, and all of us got caught on the inside by the big sets. But it didn’t stop her and eventually we had to drag her out the water. Mike did the paddle again, surfing through the sunset into the dark. What an insane way to end off our stay in Nusa Lembongan. We all had dinner together and few drinks to celebrate a truly spectacular end to an amazing trip.
Heading back to Bali the next day, we still had in our minds the waves from the day before. We had a great meal all together in Kuta mixed with a good few drinks, sharing memories of the weeks past. Goodbyes are always sad, and after even a few weeks, the experiences shared with this new group of friends makes it special. I’d like to thank all of you for coming on the trip and making it what it was. Each persons character added to the group, and there were no lack of smiles and laughter throughout the trip. Until next time, terima kasih.
Chris and Luke