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One of the best known surfing waves on Siargao and the Philippines, with a worldwide reputation for thick, hollow tubes is “Cloud 9″. It is located near the Philippine trench, one of the deepest on this planet, and consequently can generate some knarly swell via earth movement, windswell and typhoons during the wet season. This right-breaking reef wave is the site of the annual Siargao Cup, a domestic and international surfing competition sponsored by the provincial government of Surigao del Norte.
Late in the 1980’s, the wave “Cloud 9″ (and various others) were discovered by travelling surfers, whom I’ll elobrate upon later. It was subsequently named and made famous by American photographer John S. Callahan, who published the first major feature on Siargao Island in the United States- based Surfer magazine in March 1993, and hundreds of his photos in many other books and magazines since his first visit in 1992. Callahan has put the island on the international map and has drawn thousands of surfers and tourists to the island of Siargao. The reef break Cloud 9 also has a reputation for being a relatively cheap destination for surfers, with many cheap inexpensive beach “Nipa-Hut” resort style accommodation on offer, and more lavish options up to a few hundred USD per night. There’s also a selection of restaurants/bars to choose from at various locations on the island, (including a Jungle Dicso called “Tattoos”, if you’re in the mood to rock out).
There are many other quality, let me re-enforce that adjective, “QUALITY” waves on Siargao and nearby islands, but “Cloud 9″ has received more publicity than any other, make that the Philippines as a whole. It is the most known/publicised wave, and easily accessible without a boat, leading to overcrowding and the nickname of “Crowd 9″ among surfers worldwide. You have to earn the respect of the locals too, they don’t seem to care if you’re inside…. they’ll go it, (young groms that rip), they’ve got it wired as it’s such a mechanical barrel, that just throws when it’s workin’.
Our concept of “Pecking Order” ..or.. “Inside gets the wave” goes completely out the window when the whole crew’s out. You earn the respect, you get the wave. Until then, you cop the close out bombs, or the guaranteed shut-down lefts (how I earn’t my kudos, and nice waves). There’s actually heaps of other breaks also accessible without a boat, that ‘work’ in varying conditions - some require a drive or ride, then a hike through rice paddies and coconut palms. When it’s blowing on-shore on one side of the island, if you know where to go, you can find perfect off-shore waves around a point somewhere.
The island of Siargao is well known as “The Surfing Capital of the Philippines” with a reputation among surfers within the Philippines and the International scene, and as you’d expect, eager foreign and locally owned accommodation and tourist facilities have profited from the magazine publicity and the influx of visitors drawn by the annual Siargao Cup competition in September.
Despite such developments, it has the full getaway feel, with the remote trek and the still relatively “unscaithed/untainted” and “undiscovered-ish” vibe.