Saturday, June 4, 2011

LAKEY PEAK SURFING HISTORY PART 3.

" The start of the overland trail."
As i spoke of in the last entry , The early overland exploration of indo surf spots outside of Bali began way back in the 1970's with small groups of guys making missions into various locations but only staying for a short period of time "usually as long as a swell lasted" but in the days of no internet to help predict swells , limited knowledge of the required conditions and zero facilities available it was fairly hard going and a real hit and miss afair.
Eventually a few of the guys hooked up local families so they could stay in relative comfort and sit it out to wait for swells. Naturally they wanted to score the waves as good as it gets; as is the goal of any travelling surfer.
At lakey that meant staying in the village , which was 7 klm away along a bad road/Buffalo track or, staying at the Beach with one of the 2 families that lived and farmed the area directly in front of the lakey Beach . Some guys elected to bring tents and camp out on the beach.
One of the original guys to frequent lakey peak area in the early 1980's " Dave Wiley" actually leased some land from the locals in front of the right hander now known as "Periscopes" and set up a simple "A frame house" there. The guys would fly Bali to Bima on a swell and surf for a few days and then go back to Bali vowing to keep it quiet.
And so the waves at Lakey Peak remained a true surfing secret throughout the early 1980's ; easy to access ; and only a short flight from Bali ......Life was very good for underground surfing in Indo in the 1980's.
Who can say the actual "First" surfer to surf at lakey? But for sure Dick Lewis & Tim Watts & friends who regularly sailed these waters on their yachts certainly frequented the breaks there during the early 80's and where probably the guys that surfed the place the most during that period.
The mid to late 80's saw the first overland guys coming in small groups , these surfers had a different attitude and style to the surf travellers of today..no internet or forecasting of any kind was available bar maybe a scratchy wireless Radio Australia weather report.
Surfing was a sit and wait game if you wanted to get the best conditions...Alot of surfers just couldn't handle hanging out in the Kampung waiting for surf to get good...and so without any type of packaged tour available most just stayed away..This was Great for the surfers who could make the most of the sometimes primitive conditions and wait it out.
Strong bonds of friendship where formed and still are present between those surfers that regularly travelled outside of Bali's comfort zone during this period..It was respect and the surfer brotherhood at it highest expression.
During this time at lakey a group of surfers were pushing the limits of surfable Lakey Peak and getting to know the numerous spots in the area.
Under the radar of the surf media and almost everyone surfers like Paul Macklin , Phil Overend , Mark Clift , Brad Matthews , Brook Palmateer and friends were waiting for those days when Lakeys is handling at 8 to 10 ft + and charging it. Most soon learned that lakey peak is a formidable wave at that size , expensive on boards and bodies.
These guys and the other surf travellers that visited Lakey during this early to mid 80's arguably had the place at its best. Reasonable village accommodation on the beach, they had tuned the food into being quite good and some had even bought generators for the Indo family they stayed with so keeping food and having a cold beer became a possibility...and most importantly the surf was still uncrowded and just enough people to share it with, 3 or 4 in the line up is a perfect number ....


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