After sailing more than 1,500 nautical miles through open ocean, professional surfer John John Florence and his brothers, Nathan and Ivan, have finally found what they were looking for: waves.
The Florence brothers embarked on an ambitious surf expedition aboard Vela, John John’s 48-foot performance cruising sailboat. The journey, which has spanned weeks and taken them across remote reefs and islands, has been as much about exploration as it has been about surfing.
“Fifteen-hundred miles for one surf,” John John Florence said in a recent video update. “Fifteen-hundred miles and three weeks!”
The trio faced significant challenges en route, including bouts of rough weather and a capsized dinghy. Despite setbacks and initial disappointment with wave conditions, their determination to seek out undiscovered surf paid off after extensive scouting.
“After much scouting, we waited for some swell,” Nathan Florence wrote in a trip journal. “When it came, we got to see what the reefs did… and finally, we got to surf.”
After several hours in the water trading waves at an isolated reef, the brothers decided to push further and seek out a new break. John John compared the waves they found to “the inside of Bowls, like small Bowls,” referencing the famed Hawaiian reef break.
Although the surf wasn’t epic by traditional standards, the brothers relished the experience.
“While the waves weren’t mind-blowing,” Nate added, “we considered every minute in the water riding whatever came through as a score. After a long few weeks of no surfing, sharing some waves with just my brothers at some fun little reefs was all we needed.”
Their journey underscores a broader ethos embraced by many in the surfing community: that the most memorable parts of a surf trip often occur between sessions. For the Florence brothers, the adventure was never just about perfect waves — it was about the search, the solitude, and the moments shared along the way.
Though the waves may not have been record-breaking, for the Florence brothers, the journey itself was the true reward.
