Bali haven is all it’s quacked up to be
A mob of fluffy ducks is storming security, charging along the Keramas shoreline, past guards and the surf competition cordon.
A mob of fluffy ducks is storming security, charging along the Keramas shoreline, past guards and the surfing competition cordon. Legends such as Kelly Slater or Steph Gilmore may be out in the break getting barrelled on perfect waves, but it’s the charge of the little brown ducks that steals the show. Herded by a Balinese farmer with a flag, they scamper frantically along the waterline, causing even the event commentator to collapse into honking duck calls.
Such is Keramas, a 2km-long black-sand beach on Bali’s east coast that is home to an impeccable right-hand reef break, along with a clutch of small resorts and villas. An hour’s drive north of Denpasar, Keramas in Gianyar regency is still a coast of temples, offerings and uncrowded sands where villagers crouch at low tide, picking pebbles to sell as garden decorations.
Since the Komune surf resort opened here in 2012 this once semi-secret spot has hosted professional world tour surfing contests, and the surrounding fields have sprouted homestays, villas and warung eateries.
“Keramas locals don’t want to see their place end-up like Kuta,” I am told by an Australian woman who has built a tasteful villa nearby. The community of about 5000 people wanted to see their kids in local employment and this largely has happened, with resorts such as Komune and Desa Pramana Swan drawing staff from surrounding villages.
Progress, of course, has come to Keramas, although not all of it is smart. One jerrybuilt seawall is crumbling while an abandoned beach club decays like a shipwreck. But morning here still smells like a Balinese “morning of the earth” should: sea-salt tang, last night’s rain, wafting incense and a whiff of clove cigarettes. The cone of Gunung Agung volcano hangs in the sky like a sentinel, although one minute it’s there and then, with a shift of clouds, suddenly it’s gone.
While beachfront warungs such as eco-cool La Casa and down-home Locas might have front-row seats on the wave action (including floodlit night surfing), a few hundred metres down the beach are the 25 roomy villas of Desa Pramana Swan resort. With a range of one to four-bedroom pool villas, its self-catering, air-conditioned accommodation is designed for families or groups of friends on long or short stays. At Pramana’s beachside Swan Lounge restaurant, I can breakfast on my favourite, babur injin (black rice porridge), eggs Benedict, or plenty of options in between, while planning the day.
My choices include heading up the shore to the important Masceti temple on the point or visiting the nearby Saba Bay Asri Turtle Conservation project.
Further afield are the traditional Bali icons of Goa Gajah elephant cave, Tegalalang’s famous rice terraces and the water temples at Tampak Siring and Tirta Gangga.
On one inland trip I discover Keramas Sacred River, a new 14-room forest hideaway beside a tiny river temple near Keramas village. There’s a butterfly farm, bicycle tours, yoga, a pool, neat villas and a historic 7th-century temple in the grounds, plus surely the most perfect banana fritters in all Bali.
Keramas Beach looks east towards the Lombok Strait where Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Penida islands sit double-stacked on the horizon. With the waves rolling in here year-round the surf is usually crowded, but there are no malls or touts, yet. Almost too often I overhear someone say Keramas is “just like the Seminyak of yesterday”. Let’s pray it doesn’t become the Seminyak of tomorrow.
Meanwhile if you’re on the beach at around 9am or 3pm, although you’d never set your watch by it, beware the Keramas duck rush. Stand in the way and you risk being trampled by 200 feather dusters.
John Borthwick was a guest of Pramana Hotels & Resorts.
IN THE KNOW
Desa Pramana Swan resort at Keramas is a one-hour drive northeast of Denpasar. A one-bedroom pool villa starts at $US120 ($180) a night, plus 21 per cent tax.
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