Last week we teased an epic early season swell at HTs.
Now, for the main course.
“The early days of an Indo surf season are always exciting,” writes Surfline, who produced this dreamy clip from a perfect April day at HTs. “You know over the next few months there will be solid swell, and your surfing might grow in ways you’re yet to foresee. But the first swell of any season is often daunting and can even make us wonder: ‘Why am I out here?’
“On the evening of April 1, that first swell began to show its face. Next morning, it was on. ‘The thumping sound on the reef is always a good sign, but it’s been a while since a solid swell has hit our shores,’ says Guy Morgan. Guy is a South African born expat who has been a regular fixture in the Mentawai island chain for the last 13 years. He and his young family call the little island in front of the Hollow Trees reef home.
‘The vibe is high in the water among those that want to have a dig. I got power driven into the reef with a head injury,’ says Guy, showing us photographic evidence. Two symmetrical punctures above a tattoo that says ‘Sink or Swim.’ ‘The ship clearly sank,’ says Guy.
“Lucky for him there’s a whole season ahead and his front yard looks like a great place to enjoy the show.”
Click play to watch Morgan and a handful of brave friends rush perfect (but also very dangerous) early season HTs.
In the case of HTs, the early season bird definitely gets the worm. Come July? There’ll be 10x as many surfers out there giving it a crack.
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