Banyak Islands

Located further north than well-known Nias, is a lesser-explored island chain called the Banyaks. It is possible to find a wide variety of surf breaks here, from mellow fun waves to barreling lefts and rights.  The most famous wave in the region is known as “Treasure Island”, a long fast right with multiple barrel sections.  Together with Similue, these islands provide the opportunity for real exploration and with numerous surf breaks, small swell options and far fewer operators than the Mentawai’s, there are plenty of waves to go around.

Nias

Nias Island needs no introduction: its epic right at Lagundri has been welcoming surfers into its arms for decades.  However, we will not be spending much time at this wave: surfing with a throng of local surfers and wave hungry tourists doesn’t fit with the Tradewinds experience.  Instead, our exploration will take us further north, perhaps visiting the Hinako’s, surfing the lesser-known spots on the coast or sniffing out a few secrets of our own. Make no mistake: Nias has a lot more to offer than Lagundri.

Mentawais & Telos

We are running several trips here this year and intend to score some epic days surfing. We are getting a lot of help from Chris and the crew at Sumatran Surfariis who are good friends of ours and will be assisting with delivering you the best possible trip.

There are a lot of waves outside the breaks we’ve all become accustomed to seeing in the pages of surf magazines and it is these that we will try to focus on instead of battling with the crowds at HT’s or Macca’s.

During peak season there is the option to head further afield by travelling up to the Telo islands, a chain which has received a lot of attention in recent years.  There are a wide variety of waves in this region and we’re pretty excited about running a number of trips here.

The consistency, quality and variety of waves in these areas should not be underestimated: we will be able to find something for everyone.