Sumatra Surfing, Surf Charter Sumatra- Waterways Travel

You read the magazines, do your research online and know a fair bit about the surfing world, so you are probably a little surprised you haven’t heard much about the Telo Islands, the Banyaks, the Hinakos.

The search for surf in the Indonesian archipelago began on the island of Bali, then went west by northwest: Grajagan, then Nias, then to the islands of the Mentawai. Almost 40 years of surf discovery in an island chain that seems to have an unending supply of new spots, secret spots, new thrills.

The surf charters and feral surfers who began to explore the Mentawai in the 1990s put dozens of pins in their charts and then began wondering what else was up there, even farther north, beyond Siberut Island in those island chains with cool names – the Banyaks, the Telo and the Hinakos - and along the exposed northern coast of Sumatra.

The search began by boat, and continued with arduous overland exploration. But all the fuel and sweat and time and money invested paid off, as this region north of the Mentawai is as blessed with swell-laced reefbreaks as the islands below: world-class surf, with world-class conditions and sometimes empty lineups.

There are two ways to experience the Telo, Banyaks and Hinakos Islands and northern Sumatra. One is by land, and one is by sea. WaterWays Travel is affiliated with the Yacht Bohemian, which sales from Sibolga in North Sumatra and favors the Banyaks but covers a region that includes the Hinakos, Nias and occasionally the mainland of North Sumatra. 

If the space and comfort of a land based facility is more your speed WaterWays Travel recently added the Telo Island Lodge. Perfectly situated in remote corner of the Telo group, which are themselves perfectly situated north of the Mentawai and south of Nias, the Telo Island Lodge has first in, last out access to a dozen spots that are out of the range of most surf charters operating out of Padang much further south. If you’ve ever dreamed of perfect surf with just your friends, Telo Island Lodge is the place to surf that fantasy.