A wise surfer once said we are all equal before a wave but only 35 per cent of the 3.8 million surfers in the world are female.

Surfing enthusiast Ewa Gutowska is doing her best to shift the balance, at least in Bermuda.

The fitness and yoga instructor held a woman’s surf retreat at the newly opened Retreat House in Southampton earlier this month, with surf instructor Ian Bridges.

In the workshop, five female participants spent several hours at Horseshoe Bay learning how to surf, then went back to nearby Retreat House for yoga, a sound bath and relaxation.

“There is something special that happens when women get together,” Ms Gutowska said.

“There is always so much encouragement and cheering each other on. There is a lot of laughing and just being silly. Surfing is such a special way to share playfulness and joy with other women.”

Most of her clients are beginners so there is sometimes nervousness as they take to their boards for the first time. It was that way for her when she started chasing waves.

“I had a lot of fear around being in the water,” she said.

“A lot of stuff can come up when you start surfing. There is a way to process your fear and regulate your nervous system.”

Ms Gutowska was born in Poland and emigrated to Canada when she was 10. She started visiting Bermuda about a decade ago when she met her husband, Rupert Henagulph.

It was her husband who introduced her to the activity.

“It was just after we started dating,” she said. “He is very passionate about surfing. At Horseshoe Bay, he put me on a large paddle board and pushed me into a wave.”

She was able to get to her feet and ride out the swell, with her yoga training helping her to balance.

“It was only a little wave,” she admitted with a laugh. “I felt so much joy and freedom that I kept trying and trying.”

In 2021 she went on a surfing retreat in Costa Rica.

“It was just such a beautiful experience,” she said. “I thought why is nobody doing this in Bermuda? We have beautiful waters. The nature aspect of Bermuda is my favourite thing about living here.”

Ms Gutowska was inspired to start Illuminate Retreats, offering surfing and yoga events. She held her first weekend retreat in 2022. She reflected on the feedback and then held off holding another one until this spring.

“I made them day retreats so I could keep the costs down,” she said. “Now, a retreat is around $360.”

When she is not running retreats, she teaches yoga at Alchemy Fitness.

Her passion for surfing continues to grow.

She is pleased that several former clients are continuing to surf.

“They loved it and decided to get a board of their own and get more lessons,” she said.

Like a lot of surfers, she started out using a foam board.

“In the beginning you need something with lots of padding, lots of weight, and something that is stable,” she said. “Different boards can help you surf in different ways.”

Buying her first real surfboard, rather than renting one, or borrowing one was a milestone for her.

When she bought her mid-length board, 7ft 2in in length, she was excited.

“It was my own board,” she said. “It felt very special that I was able to invest in it so that I could learn the craft.”

She still has it.

“It was around $600 to $700,” she said. “You can buy boards for $2,000 or more. It just depends on how much you want to invest in it. There are also less expensive boards you can get.”

Her favourite place to surf is still Horseshoe Bay, hands down.

“If there is a storm in the Atlantic, you get this beautiful swell coming through,” she said. “It is magical when there are bigger waves.”

The biggest wave she ever caught was at Horseshoe in 2020.

“A storm was passing the island,” she said. “This wave was bigger than my head. It was probably 6ft or 7ft. I was able to catch it and ride it. My friend just happened to be taking pictures and caught a shot of me on it.”

Ms Gutowska and her husband run Alchemy Fitness Gym on Reid Street in Hamilton, where she teaches yoga and fitness classes.

She started practising yoga, back in Canada, after experiencing sciatic pain from an injury.

“There is something really powerful about yoga,” she said. “I took a 40-day programme and that just completely transformed my life. Right away, I signed up to become a yoga teacher.”

She loved the self-reflection work she had to do during her yoga training. Later, she hired a life coach to help her with personal development and really valued the opportunity to look inward.

“I thought maybe that is something I could do, myself,” she said. “So I did a life coaching certification. I was looking for a way to expand my career.”

So far, she has not had many individual life-coaching clients.

“I have been able to add my coaching into Illuminate Retreats through group conversations, workshops and things like that,” she said. “I am more successful coaching in groups rather than one on one.”

Another surf workshop she has planned for next month is already sold out. She plans to stop in December and start up again in 2025.

“The intension for Illuminate Retreats is to grow and expand,” she said.

• For more information, visit Ewa Gutowska’s website:www.with-ewa.com