Supertubes

It has been ordained by the ocean deities as a surf mecca, to the continued disenchantment of the locals. They struggle to find a balance between the need for tourism and the need for uncrowded waves. Over the years, it has become a circus during the surf season between May and August, especially the contest season June to July.

As a result, visitors often notice a weird mixture of warm South African hospitality and unbridled aggression. This can't be blamed, although nasty things have been known to happen.

J-Bay was originally a rustic hippie hangout surrounded by sand, shrubs and aloes. Surfers camped there in the late 60s and early 70s, trekking to the local farm for fresh water, often subsisting off the sea.

The early days of J-Bay ran parallel to those of Torquay, the town near Bells Beach, Australia. Out of both towns came surf dynasties founded from humble roots, such as Rip Curl, Billabong and Country Feeling.

But when you're in the water there, away from the brands, contests and commercial bluster of surfing, you can feel the magic. Sometimes, though, you have to try hard to keep cool, not to get spun out by the clash of clamouring crowds jostling for a slice of the pie.

Beneath you lies a slab of reef made from twisted volcanic rock. The beach is a shell collector's dream. The sea bustles with life; dolphins, shoals of fish, sea birds and whales, among a few. You're framed by vast beaches and distant mountains. The offshore gives a ruffled yet smooth texture to the ocean, and line upon line of grooved groundswells deliver cylinder after cylinder of perfect tubing walls.

It works best in a southwesterly swell that wraps into the bay. In terms of size, you can get perfect waves anywhere from 2' to 12', depending on swell direction. The swell can come up within hours from totally flat to 8' +. It's best in a southwesterly or westerly wind. The northwester, which is usually a good offshore wind for many east coast spots, is cross shore at J-Bay. It gives the sea a nasty bumpy texture, and locals call it the Devil's Wind.

In a solid 8+ swell, with the right conditions, you are more likely to ride all the way down the point to or even past Impossibles, even past the Point, if you pick up one of the bigger 'sidewinders' that wrap around the point more to the left. The meat of the wave is further down and somehow this prevents it closing out when it hits Impossibles. However, it also commits you to pulling into one of the most awesome barrels of your life. As Impossibles approaches, locals or seasoned visitors will raise both arms in the air and point down the point. It's a signal to whoever is interested that the person is going for broke all the way down. Then it's time to build up speed by drawing speed lines near the top of the feathering wall. As you begin to reach critical mass, short of taking off into the air, you drop into the bowl and hang in for an eternity. Deep in the pit, the sunlight recedes until it becomes what seems a speck in front of you, like the exit to a round blue cave where daylight is a distant glare. Oh no, this is it, too deep! But hey, suddenly the entrance draws back towards you. It hovers once or twice, flirting with you, before peeling back over your head. You're in the sunlight. It's good to be alive. Some dudes at Tubes are staring. You don't care. You're shaking with sheer ecstasy. You kick out, even though you could have carried on. What's the point in surfing through the Point? You've just had the wave of your life. Time to get out, and walk all the way back up to Supers along the beach, about a 300-metre walk.

The flip side of Jay Bay's magic aura is the crudeness of building developments mushrooming everywhere. Ugly houses have hurt the old Jay Bay. The Supers carpark has shrunk to a single line of about eight cars. The famous aloes that lined the pristine bush along the point have been herded into a plantation as part of a dune reclamation project. Same thing happened at Bells. Hordes of foreign surfers clutching strong currency descend on Jay Bay to enjoy cheap surf holidays. They often stay for months on end, getting into the stoke of surfing one of the best waves on our planet. Treat this wave, and the locals, with respect, otherwise you will come off second best.