RealSurf Surfers' Forum

Nice one Steve, that was cool... not just your writing but the relationship, the person and the life lived.

Similar words over on swellnet with a clip from MOTE

https://www.swellnet.com/news/swellnet- ... dy-treloar

...

I’m thinking of going to Vanimo resort in png.
Anyone been? Waves look alright and culture looks interesting. And they claim not crowded

https://www.vanimosurflodge.com/gallery ... UJGMUlsWDA

The Mighty Sunbird wrote: ↑

Thu Apr 11, 2019 11:23 am

I’m thinking of going to Vanimo resort in png.
Anyone been? Waves look alright and culture looks interesting. And they claim not crowded

https://www.vanimosurflodge.com/gallery ... UJGMUlsWDA

I’ve been. Wouldn’t recommend. Better spots in PNG according to a mate that’s been to other places. Will elaborate later if you want more detail on Vanimo. Will find out the name of the better spot he went to a few moths ago too.

Yes please duck!

Cmon duck, spill the fucken beans. Some mates are already booked at Vanimo so it’s there or nowhere

The Mighty Sunbird wrote: ↑

Thu Apr 11, 2019 8:15 pm

Cmon duck, spill the fuschia beans. Some mates are already booked at Vanimo so it’s there or nowhere

Jesus Lats, let me finish my dinner.
I'm going to flick over to just stuff with the Vanimo review. See you there.

Sweet!
I gots a date with the duck!

You've been waiting to use that.

The Mighty Sunbird wrote: ↑

Thu Apr 11, 2019 11:23 am

I’m thinking of going to Vanimo resort in png.
Anyone been? Waves look alright and culture looks interesting. And they claim not crowded

https://www.vanimosurflodge.com/gallery ... UJGMUlsWDA

Yup, I went there Feb last year. Disclaimer, I know a couple of the owners, I haven't been to any other surf camp (the Cenny coast has all I really need) and I ride a longboard

I had a great time, food is very basic but tasty as, accommodation has all you need and nothing more, getting there can be a challenge. There's island time, and then there's PNG time - seems to apply to domestic flights too.

We only surfed 2 spots, the rights just out front, and the lefts on the other side of the point. The lefts were more critical and punchier, but held a nice shape. The rights were my favourite. Got them at about 5foot (overhead and a half ??) down to 2-3 foot. Clean, you got a great ride, and not many out.
Some of the locals surf too, some of them rip. The guy that runs the camp is a very competent shortboarder and he makes that wave look good as opposed to the wave making me look good.

There are a few other options available which you need to travel to. There's a truck in the camp which will take you up the road to a slabby, sharp bottom left, or there are boats which can be hired to take you out to some of the islands.

I had mates who have just come back, and they had double overhead the whole time.

It's no Indo, and it's more fun than it is critical, which is exactly why I chose to go there. It's an insight into a unique culture, and for that alone I'm glad I went.

what sort of insight did you get into the local culture Morgs?

Well, we had an interesting meeting at the airport with one of the Free West Papua guys. He travelled around, raising awareness and had spent some time in Byron. He flew into Vanimo, met up with a colleague and they were about to drive a few hours north and he was then going to walk 5 days through the jungle to get to his destination. A happy go lucky, but very serious guy (and by serious I don't mean intense). I can only imagine what he was walking into.

We also chatted to one of the PNG ministers who were stationed at Manus Island, and another salesman whose job was to sell merch across the country. This was all in Port Moresby - a fascinating place. It felt pretty lawless.

Out at Vanimo, the logging industry is in the process of stripping the area. When you're in the water it's all jungle, but I wonder for how long? I imagine if I went back in 5 years time the whole view onshore would be very different. And then there's the change that's happening in Vanimo. The change that plastics are making to the area, and there's no infrastructure to deal with it. A community, that I imagine not too long ago, got their foodstuff wrapped in bio-degradable banana leaves, are having a local supermarket, run by the Indonesians, selling to the workers at the wood mills and ports, with convenience goods wrapped in plastic, and it's being thrown away as if it's biodegradable.

But the kids are the stars of the show. They're so welcoming, such natural water people and have a real gift for community singing. Having a Welsh background it really resonated. As I paddled out for the first time we passed a large group of kids on the shorey on their splinters who had the voices of angels. GTSQ might understand. I hadn't heard anything like that since my Grandmother's funeral back in the Valleys.

So I guess, it was seeing this remote place in a state of flux. Hoping that the officials that ran the township had an eye on preserving the environment, but seeing the draw of a capitalist system. And seeing those kids that are SO happy I honestly don't think that being drawn into a Western way of living would make them any happier. And yet, that's what's playing out right now. As everywhere, adults are making choices that will have a huge impact on that community, and those carefree kids in the very near future. I was really aware of my privilege, going on an overseas holiday with my water toys.

Just about every long-timer I met in Roti had been to Vanimo at some time or other. In general, they liked it, but none of them went back. Which doesn't mean its bad, just not as good as Roti (which, now that I don't go there any more, I can say is pretty awesome)

Its an easy journey from Kupang, an hour in a plane and you land at Jayapura, then its 30k to Vanimo.

A friend in Bali has been surfing somewhere west of Jayapura, no other surfers, says its pretty good.

Cranked wrote: ↑

Fri Apr 12, 2019 5:11 pm

Its an easy journey from Kupang, an hour in a plane and you land at Jayapura, then its 30k to Vanimo.

If the plane shows up

There's far worse places than Kupang to hang out waiting for a plane though.

So the welsh are always singing!

......and eating pasties.