-
Matthew Burke lighting up the night. Photo: John Barton
-
Hanging out in the ceiling of a hefty one at Bank Vaults while Drew Meredith sets up for the run through the end bowl. Photo: John Barton
-
Taj Burrow feeling right at home in West Oz. Photo: John Barton
-
No shortage of breathtaking beaches in Tasmania. Just need a good guide to get you into all the nooks and crannies. Photo: John Barton
-
Pitstops. Not a bad way to go to work when the walk down your driveway looks like this. Photo: John Barton
-
Local shredder Andi putting it up there in front of a tropical wallpaper. Photo: John Barton
-
Water trails in the afternoon light at Burger World. Photo: John Barton
-
Hard to get and very fickle, but when it's on, this little bit of reef will leave you speechless. Photo: John Barton
-
First day in the Islands and Francisco Alves was already scoring some unique Mentawai perspectives. Photo: John Barton
-
Off the beaten track, in the middle of nowhere, on the right tide and in front of that particular coconut tree. If you can find it, then you deserve to have it all to yourself. Photo: John Barton
-
Dave Matthew, on one of just a handful out at this empty early season Bank Vaults session. Photo: John Barton
-
Matthew Burke in Indonesian heaven. Complete with halo and all. Photo: John Barton
-
Taj Burrow sitting pretty in a Yallingup vortex. Photo: John Barton
-
Paul Clark and a unique angle of a floater. Photo: John Barton
-
What 'folio would be complete without an obligatory sunset shot? Photo: John Barton
-
Clouds and coral. Photo: John Barton
-
Dave Matthew surrounded by perfection. Photo: John Barton
-
Burger World showing off its tasty layers. Photo: John Barton
-
South West speed blurs. Photo: John Barton
-
Local lad Basi cutting through some Mentawai glass. Photo: John Barton
-
Difficult to stay focused on paddling for the horizon when the clean-up sets are this damn pretty. Photo: John Barton
-
Pitstop Hill owner Paul Clark sliding on a single fin through his front yard. Photo: John Barton
-
He spends more time in this situation than just about anyone out here. Paul Clarke putting his local knowledge to use...again. Photo: John Barton
-
Trying to resist the cheesy 'greenroom' jokes, but damn, look at the color of that water. Francisco Alves at E-Bay. Photo: John Barton
-
Matthew Burke shining at a Pitstop sunset session. Photo: John Barton
-
Surf guide Matthew Burke working hard but making it look easy. Photo: John Barton
-
Evening lines at Pitstops. Photo: John Barton
-
Smoke haze from illegal forest fires that raged in Sumatra for weeks in the early season left the place feeling very apocalyptic. Photo: John Barton
-
Western Australia during an epic run of summer swells. Photo: John Barton
-
Paul Clark behind a lump and under the lip at Bank Vaults. Photo: John Barton
-
Always great to head home to Australia's South West for holidays where even the shutter speeds are relaxed. Photo: John Barton
-
Tasmania is every bit as cold as it looks. And when shot from just in front of your tent, maybe even a little bit colder. Photo: John Barton
-
Local surfer Andi and air number 37... for the afternoon. Photo: John Barton
-
Matthew Burke getting flashed by the speed camera. Photo: John Barton
-
Australia's South West. Big landscapes, big swells and big local lads doing big airs. Jay Davies ticking all the boxes here. Photo: John Barton
-
Black and white bait. Photo: John Barton
-
Burger World. No description necessary. Photo: John Barton
-
On a little corner of an outer reef, there lies a spot filled with small, shallow swell drainers. A savior for keeping both surf and photography stoke levels high. Photo: John Barton
-
Matthew Burke in the glass house. Photo: John Barton
-
A night under the stars and amongst the penguins at the bottom of Shipstern Bluff, Tasmania. Photo: John Barton
For those of us born and bred in the Southern Hemisphere, the words “summer” and “waves” are very rarely used in the same sentence. Unless of course you’re cussing in a fit of surf-starved frustration and inserting “never has any bloody” between them.
Luckily for this Southern Hemispherian, I’m blessed with the opportunity to live in a place that always has summer waves. Even when it’s flat, it’s head high somewhere in the Mentawai Islands. So when people talk about the Early Season out here, my ears prick up and I salivate at the thought of super fun, empty waves with little to no crowds.
Even more fortunately, after feasting on late season treats out here in 2013, my return home to an Australian summer was blessed with a seemingly endless run of swells.
Normally, the holiday period back home is a time for me to put down the camera gear, put the boards in the shed, lick my wounds and rest a battered and bruised body from a long Indo season. This time though, I couldn’t look the proverbial gift horse in the mouth. So I reloaded the boards, charged the cameras, packed the car, slammed the trunk and made sure I was there when the swells slammed into Australian coastlines.
The good run didn’t end there either. Now back on deck here at Pitstop Hill in the Mentawai Islands for the 2014 season, I’m feeling just as lucky. Four months in and I think I must’ve been a good lad somewhere down the track because with the waves we’ve had so far this season, I feel like I’ve been cashing in some karmic chips. So here’s some of the highs from this year so far. And if this has been my “low season,” I can’t wait to see what’s still to come.
See more of John’s work at johnbarton.net.au on Instagram: @johnnyjungle.
