Western Australia and Indonesia were treated to some of the biggest waves in recent years on the last weekend of June, an XXL Indian Ocean swell that gave surfers plenty of notice to be in the right place at the right time. A fierce storm close to Antarctica churned up 50 to 60 foot seas, and concentrated the power remarkably well into the enormous swell that thundered across the Indian Ocean uninterrupted. That was until it hit the coastline of places like Margaret River, Bali and the Mentawais. It hit like a bullet train, raising the seas incredibly quickly and dissipating just as fast. Now videos have emerged of the surfers who paddled out to take on some huge waves, and here are our pick of the best.
Cow Bombie Breaks a Leg
At a spot called Cow Bombie big wave chargers flocked to take on what some commentators are saying were the biggest waves ever surfed in Australia. A surfer called Justin Holland flew across the continent from the Gold Coast to take on some of the beastly waves breaking here. He snagged his fair share of bombs, before taking a brutal beating when he wiped out. In fact, when he emerged from the white wash he had a snapped femur, and later had two titanium rods inserted into his leg to hold the bone together. Check out this next video, and the leg breaking wave starts at 1:57.
https://youtu.be/ZfJwVDtCJj0
Pits at Padang Padang
The day after the swell hit Australia it began lighting up reef breaks all over Indonesia, and there were plenty of people on Bali to visually document the amazing waves. This next video is a sick edit of locals getting completely shacked at Padang Padang. It was barrel after barrel after barrel, and everyone with the balls to pull into a Padang Padang pit that day could come away proud.
Endless Lines at Impossibles
Just around the headland from Padang Padang was Impossibles, where the size ramped up even more and the lines stretched further than could be surfed. Drone footage seems to be getting more and more popular these days, and this next video is packed with it. It’s great to see this type of perspective, and it really shows how impossibly long the waves are at Impossibles!
Ultimate Rides at Uluwatu
Perhaps it was nowhere bigger on Bali than at Uluwatu, where dedicated expats, visiting pros and experienced locals dusted off their guns and paddled out into triple overhead waves. The sight was awe inspiring, the surfing was phenomenal, and the inevitably wipeouts must have been devastating. Pioneering Aussie expat Murray ‘Muzza’ Close was taken by cancer on June 24th, and even before these big waves started breaking the swell was named the Muzza Swell.
Magic on the Mentawais
Around 2000 kilometres to the west of Bali are the Mentawais, the tiny Indonesian islands that offer some of the best waves on the planet. At the Kandui Resort surfers from across the world gathered and somehow the elements conspired together to create as close to perfect waves as you can possibly get. Light offshore winds, just 1 foot difference in low to high tide, and a swell direction that ran along the reef just right. Here is Kandui Left in all its glory. The only gripe with this video? They cut Craig Anderson’s section very short!
If that wasn’t quite enough for you, here is part two of the video! Chances are you won’t see Kandui looking this good for a quite some time, so fill your boots while you can…