‘The best surf I’ve ever seen’

It could have been the flight attendant whose name, Nakati, was Fijian for “It was meant to be.” Or, it may have been the ominous lightning that struck right in front of their Jet Ski and boats as they rode out into the dark water. All Kaua‘i’ born Kala Alexander and his group of big-wave surfers knew was that something special was happening  just off the coast of Fiji in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

As glassy waters welcomed the morning sunrise, a growing presence brewed beneath Alexander and the other surfers awaiting the swells at Cloudbreak. Soon the ocean started churning out mountains of water. They began at 10 feet. Then they rose to 20, then 30 and possibly larger. Before Alexander knew it, he was being met by wall after wall of what he called “the best surf I’ve ever seen in my life.”