Surfers chase ‘the most difficult big wave in the world’ at Dungeons

Sometimes the stars align. Last Thursday, Dungeons broke. Cape Town’s very own big wave. And with it came some brave souls from all parts of the country to descend nature’s steep spine. Veterans who have ridden these walls for years, and newcomers who had never seen Dungeons break before.

To get a closer glimpse, I boarded the Animal Ocean motorboat with crew Sam and skipper Dani, and shot away with a 300mm fixed lens.

“On the way out, I was pretty nervous, but I tried not to think too much about it until I could actually see the wave breaking. You can’t really see Dungeons until you get around the Sentinel peak. When we saw the first set from the boat, my adrenaline started pumping,” says Grant Hewitt, who was surfing Dungeons for the first time.

The swell had arrived on Wednesday, with some surfers already testing the waters. Wednesday turned out to be the better day – bigger, cleaner waves, an incredible session by all accounts. By Thursday, the wind had picked up, making conditions lumpy and tricky. But Dungeons was still firing, and the crew was still out there.

Jet skis were already on the scene, ready to rescue surfers from the washing machine. On the boat, the tension was palpable. The crushing thunder of Dungeons sent a shiver down our spines. Yet we were on the boat, somewhat warm, dry, with snacks in our pockets. A different game for the surfers out there.

It takes years of practice and the overcoming of fear to get to such a place. Except that out there, the enemy is something you cannot fight. You have to flow with the wave. There will only be a handful of opportunities to surf these big waves in a lifetime, so when the swell arrives, it is inevitable that you go out and do it.

“Such a special place under the Sentinel mountain, the tip of Africa, one of the best big waves in the world. So grateful to have grown up in this place,” said surfer Frank Solomon.

Matt Bromley has been charging Dungeons for years. He calls it the most difficult big wave in the world. The reason is not just the size. The area where you can catch a wave is the size of two rugby fields. Two rocks way out at sea refract the energy in a way that makes every wave different. You do not know whether you are paddling into something very steep or, if it hits a different part of the reef, something that goes completely flat, but on the right day it is capable of delivering the wave of a lifetime.

It was a good day, says Solomon. Challenging and hard to get good waves, in what he describes as not the cleanest conditions, with a bit of chop and swell from multiple directions. His advice for first-timers is direct: “Let people know you’re going out. Make sure you have some kind of safety plan, water safety, and experience. You definitely don’t want to go out there as a complete novice. It’s not very beginner friendly.”

He and the team at Sentinel Ocean Alliance had also organised a safety summit to address all the risks associated with big-wave surfing. Just the right time for it.

Surfer Grant Hewitt said: “It took me a long time to get a wave. At a big wave spot, everything has to align. I got my first wave, rode it to the channel, and just felt incredibly euphoric. There was also a lot of relief to have taken that first drop. Seeing some of South Africa’s best wave riders take down some serious giants, and sharing that experience with two good mates who also had their first session out there – it was a session I’ll never forget.” DM