East Java

East Java surf travel guide

The 600km south-facing stretch of Javanese shores between Batu Karas and Grajagan Bay represents the lightest surfed coastline in Indo’s southern hemisphere wave zone. The reasons why this stretch is unappealing include a year-round side to onshore wind exposure, plunging volcanic cliffs, islets and skerries, separated by long, current-scoured, black sand beaches, which all conspire to keep the crowds away.

Dangerous, thumping close-outs drum the sand in the swell season, but the potential for smaller, peaky, SE-SW swells to create piping beachbreaks in the shoulder and off-season is always there. Luck plays a big part in identifying where rideable sandbars may be and finding other surfers to tackle lonely breaks is rare.

Yogyakarta surfers are close to unruly Parangtritis Beach, but will head east to Pacitan where the deep protection of Teleng Ria Beach offers a sliding scale size of beachbreak plus a cultured left rivermouth that's protected from the trades. The big drawcard here is Watukarung, a slabby righthander and a cylindrical left that break off the small islands that characterise this area.

Region Summary

The crazed coastline of pocket bays and ragged rocky islets continues east, to Sudimoro, which has an E-wind-protected, left reef, but construction of a power plant and jetty has brought pollution. Round the corner the Banjar rivermouth and beachbreak has similar exposure and water quality problems. More scalloped bays of volcanic sand face into the SW swell and some have defined lefthanders in the eastern corners, nestling out of the sideshore winds.

Tambakrejo has rights and lefts over a dead coral shelf, but needs N quadrant winds. The limestone reef at Balekambang is fairly straight and exposed, but it's a popular tourist spot to see the island temple a la Tanah Lot.

The islands of Sempu and Barung are way too cliffy and the big bay of beachbreaks between them can have some heavy barrels, but it's usually unappealing and windblown. This trend of cliff and close-out continues right through the mountainous Meru Betiri National Park, until the deep bay at Pulau Merah (Red Island) where a laid-back surf scene has sprung up thanks to easy rolling beachbreaks with a beautiful backdrop, plus it is only a 40km boat ride out to the majestic lefts of G-Land.