G-Land was once again great fun today. Surf was 8-12 foot faces and still maintaining a decent amount of West in it...about 218 degrees. Fan Palms through Upper Money Trees were the focal sections and plenty of very hollow waves running down the reef setting up some long tubes. I'd think that everyone out there today got at least one quality barrel. Wind was good today, but better during the second half of it! Still raining though so were not out of the wet season yet, even with good winds since the 1st of the month.
About 5 days ago, these massive barge's began showing up transporting coal from Kalimantan (Borneo) to Cilacap, Central Java. At first, no one knew what they were so you can imagine that everyone was being real creative in their guesses. The best one I heard was that it was aggregate for the new road!!!
Well, one of the barge's snapped loose from the tugboat and washed up on the reef around tip of Blambangan Point. I went up there early this morning to try and help out by hooking up the new tow line since the crew's swimming skills were "not so good." I couldn't get it hooked up after 2 tries and what the captain then decided to do was GNARLY.
The barge's nose was right on the peak where you'd take off if you were surfing. He motored the tug's bow right up to the barge and had 2 crew jump across onto the barge hanging on to a tag line to the tow line. I told him I would spot for waves and sure enough, the "power that may be" sent us a nice set at just the right time to make it all the more exciting, but just right enough to not smash anything or anyone. BUT IT WAS CLOSE!!! If the surf was 8-12 out front, it's always bigger on the south coast. The 2 crew had to run across to the other side of the retaining wall, otherwise they would have probably died, either from being smashed or smashed then drowning.
I had a camera in my pocket, but was so immersed in the spectacle that I completely forgot to take a sequence of the action.
--MICHAEL
