We step out of the car and into black sand. The wind shaped the dunes the way we know it and the sea fills the air with a familiar smell. But the way the volcanic island paints it’s beaches black makes it all surreal. We slip into our wetsuits and with a childlike spark, Ramón is the first to head to the water. I’m not sure if it’s the long flight he wants to shake off, the swell he is missing out on back home or just the nature of this mysterious yet hilariously funny Chilean that gets him so excited for a shifty beach break during a choppy swell. Just a few minutes later, the rest of us follow him into the water and are surprised by some the shoulders that are popping up or at least what Ramón makes of them. Challenged by the current, wrapped in 5mm of rubber and joined in the line-up by a curious seal, we don’t mind the six-degree water and kick off our trip with a long and unexpectedly good session in a surreal place. Welcome to Iceland!

Read the full story in Waves & Woods #43.