There is always some mythos when it comes to the sea and danger. For generations, sailors have cursed waters after multiple wrecks along the same passages, which only adds to the folklore surrounding certain stretches of water.
For surfers, dangerous seas can mean a whole range of different things. Are there dominant rip tides, pulling you away from the surf zone? Does the bathymetry help turn playful swells into powerful, piledrivers, more likely to drill you to the sand than anything else—and what is happening out at sea that creates these sorts of conditions?
There is also just pure curiosity among us sea-going folk, an idea of knowing what was unknown—which sea is the most dangerous, and how far is it from home? Some ocean enthusiasts love to take an internal risk assessment before delving into anything, or some just throw caution to the wind and breeze it anyway. Either way, here is a list of the most dangerous seas on our bright blue earth.
The Bering Sea
The Bering Sea is a stretch of water that divides Alaska from Russia. It also serves as an inlet to the Bering Strait. This sea was named after Danish explorer Vitus Bering, who once served as part of the Russian military and discovered these bodies of water.
Back then, we’re not sure if Bering knew quite what he had uncovered. Because this sea became quickly notorious for its danger factor. Big waves form up in this zone, with strong wind and insanely cold water temperatures, ranging from 34 degrees F to 41 degrees F in the south, and it is susceptible to adverse weather patterns.
A lot of that danger element can be put down to the fact that the Bering Sea is very shallow. This means that any incoming swell will change from deep water to shallow water quickly and create some rough, open sea conditions. It’s also a relatively small sea, at only around 2.3 million square kilometers, so the number of accidents can be amplified over such an area.
In winter, large portions of the sea can freeze over, and when these start to melt, it creates huge chunks of floating ice, which are a huge pain to navigate. There are also strong, volatile currents that can influence the paths of these gigantic ice boulders. Orcas have also been spotted along the Bering Strait, given the rich diversity of marine life living there.
It’s the shipping lane near St Lawrence Island, almost in the middle of the Bering Sea, that has become extremely hazardous due to currents and melting ice.
But how do these dangerous elements translate to passing ships? Various vessels have sunk in the Bering Sea due to challenging conditions, including the Vestfjord, an Alaskan fishing vessel that was lost in 1989 with six crewmen. A year later, the Aleutian Enterprise was lost with nine crewmen, and in 2001, the 92-foot trawler Arctic Rose was lost with all 15 crew members.
The Alaska Ranger sank in 2008, losing five crewmen, and later the same year, the Katmai sank, losing seven of the 11 crewmen.
The Aleutian Islands thrust out into the Bering Sea—a volcanic archipelago that is rife for surf exploration, if you can deal with the cold. And even that has its own danger about it, being so remote and unlike any other surf zone in the world.
North Sea
The North Sea forms the backbone of the United Kingdom and on its other side, borders the Scandinavian countries of Norway and Denmark. It then forms the coastline for Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium to the south—over an area of 575,000 kilometers squared. And yes, all those countries get waves, courtesy of powerful North Sea storms.
For the most part, these storms are actually formed out in the Atlantic Ocean. They move from west to east, and pinch underneath Iceland and above Scotland. A large part of that energy will continue to move eastwards, towards northern Norway—but more often than not, a huge chunk of those ferocious storms will hug the UK coastline and into the North Sea, flushing big waves and powerful swells southwards.
What that means for surfing is some good times. This is when some of the better frozen waves in the area, and maybe in northern Europe, start to come to life.
But that also presents its own sense of dangers. In fact, statistically, the North Sea is one of the most dangerous seas in the world, so much so that social media platforms have gone out of their way to demonize this stretch of the world, laying hyperbole haymakers all over your feed, if you let them.
Like the Bering Sea, some of the problems with the North Sea stem from the fact it is shallow, about 100 feet deep in places. As we know, swells moving from deep open oceans to shallow water can create all sorts of havoc. This can generate strong currents in large waves that can pull a boat or swimmer all over the place and out to sea.
One particular spot off the coast of Jutland in Denmark is infamous for having so many ships smash against it. Because it’s a relatively narrow sea, waves do not have enough space to move and fan out and can often be piled on top of each other, making for some incredibly choppy conditions.
The North Sea is also home to many oil and gas platforms. The sea in this storm path can be so rough that it can tear these gigantic platforms from anchor.
In 2023, two people were killed in the North Sea as a result of maritime accidents.
South China Sea
The South China Sea is hemmed in by China, Vietnam, Taiwan and the Philippines. With an area of around 3.5 million square kilometers, it is larger than the Bering Sea and the North Sea combined. Given its location amongst various countries, the South China Sea is an important area for trade, making up almost a quarter of the world’s $16 trillion maritime shipping industry. Crazy.
What you might not know is that this body of water is so dangerous that it has its own zone that’s literally called “Dangerous Ground.” This is a large area in the southeast of the South China Sea, off the Spratly Islands. The zone is characterised by reef outcrops sticking out of the water, creating hazards for passing ships. It doesn’t help that this area has not been properly chartered—which makes it extremely difficult to navigate.
Last year, reports of “aggressive and dangerous” conduct by Chinese-flagged ships surged over a 17-month period. This area has been hotly contested for years, so much so that back in 2015, a case went to a tribunal that overwhelmingly rejected China’s claims over the South China Sea, backing the Philippines instead—and tensions have been on the brink ever since.
For surfers, the South China Sea can be fabulous. Hainan Island, off the southern coast of mainland China, has become the epicentre of surfing for the country. There are quality, left-hand pointbreaks, warm and tropical weather, and barely any localism. The downside is that it’s more of a longboard wave and can be expensive. But you’re relatively safe off the immediate China coastline. It’s further out to sea when things get very dicey. Just watch out for passing typhoons, rare in these parts, but can be a problem nonetheless.
