ARUGAM BAY

31st May - 10th June 2015

We left Ella round one PM in a beaten up six seater van. A powerful BO fragrance filled the air mixed with the more subtle aromas of sweat and old socks. All windows open we hit the squiggly highway and headed east past a massive waterfall, stopping briefly at a road side cafe to get some water and escape the vans exquisite aroma. Just round the side hidden out of sight was a giant concrete teapot, which was a nice change from all the Buddhas.

About half an hour before we reached the bay we drove through a nature reserve and were greeted by a massive wild elephant standing on the side of the road. We think he was trying to hitch a lift to Peanut Point just south of Arugam Bay. There were many more bathing in the calm backwaters in the distance. It was all very picturesque but unfortunately not one of the six of us had a camera to hand. 

We arrived at the Arugam Bay Surf Camp around four. It was basic yet clean and close to Arugam Bay's famous point break that has been listed as one of the top ten surf spots in the world. This was exciting as well as daunting. On a good day rides of 400m or more break over head high on shallow rock. We took a leisurely stroll up the beach to witness one of surfings little gems and sure enough slightly over head waves were tripping over the shallow rocky slab and rolling down the point. The locals were showing everyone how it was done with unbelievable speed, style and consistency. We had a drink and got the lowdown on where to paddle in, where the bigger rocks were and which way the rip went. Suitably worried I hired a board ready for the following morning. It was 6"4 fairly fishy in shape (similar yet a tad bigger than my board in the UK) and had obviously had a pretty hard life judging from the amount of dings and repairs covering the deck and rails. This did not make me feel very confident and I started to worry about how many dings I was going to get, let alone the board. I was still repairing my wounds from India with a mixture of iodine and antibiotic powder and the thought of anymore wasn't appealing. 

On our way back to town we bumped into Joe and Mima from our shared van ride. They tipped us off about a much nicer and fairly cheap room in a hotel called Gecko which backed onto the beach. We checked it out and booked a room for the next day. It was a much nicer room, the restaurant / chill out area was amazing with a sea view between two wonky beach huts, plus the food looked good. 

As we were back by the ocean, seafood was our only desire for dinner. Luckily most of the restaurants that lined the road parallel to the bay had fresh fish on ice out the front, all caught earlier in the day and cooked on big halved oil drum BBQs alight with drift wood. A meal of mixed fish noodles and two massive crabs later and our desire was fulfilled as were our bellies

Next morning round six I crept out and walked round to the point. There was a fair number of people already in the water and competition for waves was fierce. I managed to bag a handful over the session but nothing compared to the locals and Aussies who were out in force. My last wave of the session was by far the best rolling for a couple of hundred meters along the point. As I picked my way out of the rocky shallows I saw Helen on the beach. We ate breakfast overlooking the break then headed back into town to check in to our new room that would be home for the next week or two. 

In the afternoon I surfed with Joe on the point again. It was a little quieter and we both grabbed a fair few waves. Whilst sitting out back, dark storm clouds gathered over the mountains to the west just as the sun began to set below. It gave the mountains in the middle of the island a Mordor look. The orange red and pink tones broke out past the clouds until they met the blue sky above us. It was like all the seasons in one sky.

A full moon had coincided with a Sinhalese public holiday filling the small town with locals from all over the island. Rickety buses and tractors pulling trailers full of people enroute to spend a day on the beach. There was almost a festival atmosphere on the sands with people swimming dancing and  playing cricket with driftwood bats. In the evening we ate homemade wood fired pizza at Gecko with Joe and Mima, we even splashed out on a couple of beers. A ragtag looking parade slowly made its way up the main road with people dressed up as daemons or in traditional dress with drummers and fire dancers as part of the day's celebration. It was good, but not as good as our pizzas that were politely waiting for us. Just as the night was drawing to a close Andy who I surfed with a couple of times in Kerala wondered in. He was staying for a few days next door. Small world. 

The following morning we were up at the crack of dawn, slapped on our sun cream war paint and tuk tuked our way to a mellow sandy point break called Whiskey Point. The wave breaks away from a cluster of rocks at the end of the beach. The take off is a bit sketchy as you paddle head first into a big rock and at the last second manoeuvre past it. The waves were a little overhead on the drop (a little smaller than at the main point in Arugam Bay) however it was much less crowded and great for Helen. She was able to walk up to the big rock at the point that gave some protection from the swell. Then step out and paddle like mad, catch a wave into the shore, then walk back along the sand to do it all again. After the first few waves she managed to plant both feet on the deck stood up, riding the white horses all the way to the sand. After lots of whooping and fist pumping she did it again and again! Grant, Isabella and Sydney who we met in Ella joined us in the water, which made for a really fun session. With a boat load of waves between us all and super "stoked" we headed back into town for breakfast and a doze. 

After a Roti lunch me and Joe headed out to the main point to try and take a few waves off the locals. Due to the mid day sun and onshore wind it wasn't very crowded and we both managed to pick off a few. After catching a couple of pretty big and long waves that rolled most of the length of the point I paddled in thinking best to quit while you're ahead. Very smiley I trotted back up the beach to find Helen and dinner. Fresh fish was once again on the cards and after a massive BBQed red snapper and some tiger prawns we were all spent.

Riding the wave of excitement from the previous morning we decided to book a tuk tuk for sunrise and head back to Whisky Point. Within a couple of attempts Helen was back up and due to the point being a tad quieter from the day before I grabbed a heap of waves all the way to the sand at one point hopping off the board, running up the beach and tripping over my leash in front of two Sinhalese guys having a morning stroll. 

We quickly decided we needed to spend longer here. A-bay is a really special place and the morning surfs mixed with the lazy afternoon beers made quite a delightful lifestyle. After a very short talk it was decided we would push our flight back a week. This was definitely a good idea. 

Most days followed the same pattern; surf then eat in one of the roadside restaurants. We learnt that the surf was most crowded at first and last light so we opted to drink beers in the evening, sleep in and rock up to the beach late morning just as the dawn crowds finished their sunrise surfs. 

Isabella and Kat tipped us off about a tailor at the top of the town that makes custom board shorts! This was a revelation to me as most of the shorts in town were pretty horrid flowery aloha, and I stupidly only packed one pair of shorts for the whole trip. Inside there was a wall of different fabrics all different colours and patterns.The opposite wall was full of short styles and inspiration. I got a bit carried away and ended up ordering three pairs that turned into four by the end of the week! Helen ordered two pairs. As we have pretty similar tastes when it comes to colours and simplicity we ended up ordering pretty much the same. His & Hers if you will. The guys that ran the shop were brilliantly accommodating, even when we asked for extra stripes!

One evening we found this little treetop restaurants called the Tandoori Hut, up a small lane at the end of town. The food was fantastic and we instantly decided we would have to return! A little like Brixton village, the menu was small and everything we ordered was cooked to perfection with really tasty sides that complimented the mains. I had tandoori calamari, Helen & Joe tandoori prawns and Mima, chicken tikka masala.

The following evening we discovered a little East Asian restaurant called Hiro. Again the menu was just a few dishes written on a board, however they too were some of the best dishes we ate on the island. The sushi rolls were amazing and the Pad Thai was the best I have eaten, however I think Bangkok will have something to say about that. We liked the food so much me and H decided to go for lunch the next day. One of the staff was playing with the traditional Japanese toy Ball-In-A-Cup. After watching a few YouTube videos on how the pros do it, I was hooked and spent the following afternoon on the beach practicing which ended up in me making two new Japanese friends. 

Midway through the week we discovered happy hour at a place called Hideaway. It was a beautiful little bar with massive palm roof and little bamboo huts set in a little tropical garden. The cocktails were the best we had tasted on the island and this soon became a staple part of our evenings. One night after cocktails we were inspired to go in search of a beach party. We could hear one a few places down the beach from our guest house, so we grabbed a few beers and wondered over. The place was full of holiday makers and locals gyrating on the dance floor. We opted to stand by the bar slowly getting more slurry.

Near the main point was quite a fancy beach bar called Mambos. We spent a few afternoons drinking beers tucked below a shady palm watching the world go by. One evening ended up there with Joe, Mima, Isabella, Grant and Sydney. We had had quite a few beers and cocktails earlier which put us all in the party mood. Joe quoted me saying just before we left "I'm too sober to dance, too drunk to slack line, which is my new passion." This explained my sore feet and shins the next morning.

On our last day we decided to get some custom tshirts made. We thought as we had matching shorts why not get matching tops! It was all a bit of fun and when Joe and Mima saw us they burst out laughing. We changed before going out for dinner.

Our final surf was at Whisky Point again. We both had one of the best surfs of the ten days catching loads of waves. There was a great atmosphere in the water and everyone was having a good time. Joe had rented a 9 foot longboard for the session and was "attempting" to ride it tandem with Mima. Four hours later we walked back up the beach super drained but super happy. 

After a final farewell beer in a scruffy beach bar overlooking the point we sped off with our tuk tuk man back to town, luckily managing to catch the sunset over the lagoon on our way back. This seemed like a prefect natural close to our time here. We arranged to get a tuk tuk to the bus station in time to catch the 5:30am bus up the east coast then returned to the Japanese restaurant for our final meal.

Arugam Bay we love you x