The Little Island Paradise That Could

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I had an aunt and an uncle who went to South West Rocks 36 years in a row for their January holidays. Why? “South West Rocks has everything you could possibly need. A beach and a bowling club with a top Chinese Restaurant” they said. Uncle Sid and Aunty Jean living on the edge.



What is it that draws people back to the same holiday distination on a regular basis? Perhaps that particular locale ticked all the boxes required for their hit and run vacation time and there’s a sense of comfort in the familiarity. I suppose that’s pragmatism defined but, “Where’s the adventure”?



Having said that, there are quite a few dots on this earth we’ve retraced and would do so again given the chance. Offer me a ticket to Paris tomorrow and I’ll go pack the bags. Melbourne, what, 10 times now for the tennis and will probably back up again next year. Then there’s Indonesian surf, in particular those island groups south of Nias off Sumatra’s west coast. When it comes to waves, nobody does it better, except maybe Kelly Slater’s Wave Pool (where is that by the way, how much does it cost and sign me up).



Six times now to the Mentawais and Telo Islands and I’ll more than likely repeat the dose 2017. Last year it was Resort Latitude Zero in the Telos and we followed suit again January/February 2016. This place is so isolated it looks to have been dropped in from outer space yet it hums with German engineering precision. For a surfer, it is Utopian.



Hit sand on morning 1 and I fell into a routine that is precisely that, a routine but a darn fetching one:



Rise at first bird tweet. Breakfast of whatever you want. Kiss the bride goodbye and jump the high speed boat to head out into the wild blue yonder. Surf, snack, hydrate. Surf, lunch, hydrate. Surf, hydrate, collapse. Back to resort and fall into pool. Shower. Cocktail by the lagoon. Dinner. Slide from equatorial heat to the Euro cool of air con and read about 1 page of book before dropping into a coma for 8 hours. Do it all again next day, 14 times in a row.



Actually I did break the groove one day. An article appeared earlier last year on surfers “of a more mature age bracket” on similar Indonesian surfing pilgrimages, pushing too hard and returning home in a pine box. 60 may be the new 50 but it’s not the new 30. So at the end of week 1, I self-prescribed a half day sabbatical – massage, a lengthy stretch and the book (managed to get through 2 pages before nodding off).



But what, pray tell, does Penny do whilst I’m out surfing all day? Take a sneak peek at her timetable:



Rolls her head out of the sheet and opens an eye as I bid her goodbye. Tells me not to come back too soon as she has a busy day planned doing nothing – “I love you too darling”. Gym workout. Breakfast. Internet/news from home. Paddle kayak around the island, usually with Larry the pooch on board. Rinse off in pool and read book. Lunch by pool. Back in the pool. Paddle stand up paddle board up and down the island. Afternoon snorkel with resident turtles in the lagoon. Back in pool. Book. Welcome home hubby. Cocktail by the lagoon before dinner.



Throw in the occasional outer island excursion courtesy of the resort and I wonder why she didn’t want me back on the island too soon.



All this goes down in a region that is a tropical paradise brochure darling.



The Telo/Mentawai Islands have been on the surfer radar for more than a couple of decades now. The irony is that these surfers and their entourages are still the only tourists in town. While Thailand’s islands and Bali are elbow to elbow with generic travellers, Sumatra’s islands remain a land incognito outside the surfing market. Yet it's the Little Island Paradise that Could.



That’s fine and dandy by me. The isolation is an integral part of the attraction but you get the feeling that one stragetically placed Euro beat bar could open Pandora’s Box. The group think of the locals is that they hope it heads that way, translating the influx of western currency as a road to an improvement in living standards. They’re right but selfishly I hope it doesn’t pass in my time.



That ‘s one of the reasons I’m a little down on Bali, having seen it morph from rice paddies of the early 80s to ribald Hard Rock Cafe central. With filthy Kuta beach working double shifts at trying to lure coin from Westerners, it can leave me looking for reasons not to want to slash my wrists. The hope is that other Indonesian islands don't head down the same path. “Hey, Penny, give me back my walking stick, I’ve got some more whining to do”.



For the time being, however, I’ll try and milk this little area whilst the status quo remains. The Telo Islands may not have all the goodies of South West Rocks Uncle Sid, but it will do for the time being.

More images at:

www.colvinyeates.zenfolio.com

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Photos

Pinnacles
One of the more ambient surfing locations anywhere

12 year old Lennox Chell
Wold champ 2026

Comments

[Home and Away]

Your secret is out...
I've got to add this to my bucket list. I'm not a surfer...will I be considered an interloper?

[colvinyeates]

Never
I'm sure the owners of the resort won't consider you guys interlopers.