Shipstern Bluff is just one of Australia’s many horrifyingly heavy slab waves. Located on the southeastern coast of Tasmania, Shippies can only be accessed by either a 19-mile boat ride, or a two-hour hike through the Tasman National Park. The wave is notable not only for its massive size and weight, but also its sheer unpredictability. Often a wave-within-a-wave will form, stymying even the most capable of riders.
In this video from Mantisalive Surfing, the fearsome magnificence of the so-called “mutant slab” is on full display. A bevy of chargers scream down turbulent wave faces, right in front of a maw of rocks waiting on the inside. For years, the wave was relatively unknown, a myth known to locals, but never surfed. However, watching Shippies bear down on the men and women brave enough to face it transforms the former legend into a terrifying reality.