Paradise Found

After several years spent living in Europe and traveling the world, Louka Pitot has decided to return home, to enjoy island life and quality time spent with his girlfriend. It also happens to have some rather good foiling options too…

Words: Louka Pitot
Photos: Svetlana Romantsova

As a professional kitesurfer, I’ve been to some amazing places, if not some of the best spots in the world… but nothing compares to the feeling I get when I'm home. Home is where I can be myself and where I feel most comfortable, and it's also my all-time favorite playground. My home is in Africa. My home is Mauritius.

Mauritius is a small island nation in the Indian Ocean, known for its crystal-clear waters, stunning beaches, and diverse marine life. What makes it even more special is the fact that I only just moved back here after living in Europe for five years. It is where my friends and family are, and where I can truly unwind and enjoy my time off. Now that I’m based here again, I can’t believe I ever left this place. I mean, look at these photos… would you?

Anyways, when it comes to foiling though, it would be a lie to say the opportunities to foil are endless. Sure, we’ve got prime wing foiling conditions, but only very few prone spots, which is a pity, but therefore when it works for prone, there is literally no one out. This means that I can spend hours on the water without worrying about getting in anyone's way (or vice versa).

The reason we don’t really have waves to prone is that most breaks are too shallow, as they break over a reef, or too hollow for me just yet. Besides this little break seen here that only works when we have a solid swell, the other spots are unfortunately affected by the strong and dominant, almost year-round trade winds. Whenever we are lucky enough to get glassy days, we still need to have proper high tides with a big coefficient to prone alternative spots, as well as a boat to bring us to the breaks. That makes it dependent on so many parameters, we don’t score as often as we might like.

That said, we do have a small wave that sometimes works for prone. Definitely my favorite break to foil on the island, it’s a tiny beach break that most surfers would overlook. Being on the foil completely changes the game. It's not a wave I would be able to surf on a regular board, but on the foil, it's the most fun wave ever. It's also the perfect longboard wave, which is great for my girlfriend, Alice, who is a three-time longboarding world champion. Sharing waves with her is always a blast, and when we can both “train” on the same break, we know it’s gonna be a fun day.

Our life is special, and we have so many similar hobbies, but the one thing we don’t share is foiling and logging. Luckily, foiling works great alongside longboarding, and we both appreciate the similarities and differences between the two. Alice hasn't tried foiling yet, but I'm hopeful that she'll give it a go soon. Until then, here we are, sharing waves together on our respective setups.

The months I get to spend in Mauritius every year are worth every second. It’s a blessing to be surrounded by passionate people and a community who understand the simplicity of life and cherish the small things. People who make the most of the environment they find themselves in, and to be able to do all that with Alice is even more fun, and for that I’m truly thankful.