With a Southerly blow forecast for midday, I would have liked an early start, but by the time I had finished following up on my conversation with Gary Nairn MP and a few other things to do with the mill, it was already 11am and the wind was ruffling the surface of Twofold Bay. Tucked in behind the headland, I got especially good protection behind the massive bulk of the Eden Woodchip pile (see, there's a positive side to everything) before tracking onto open ocean
Cocora Beach, the Eden Chip pile in the background
I was half way across the mouth Disaster Bay when the Southerly hit in earnest. They call this the Tortured Coastline for the bands of multi-coloured rocks that fold and twist over each other on the coastal cliffs, but today it was torture of a different kind. In case you are wondering what paddling into a 20-30 knot headwind is like, just imagine that you are walking down a road into the teeth of a gale. Now imagine that as you are walking forwards, the whole road is moving backwards almost as fast as you can walk, and has 2 metre lumps in it, and someone keeps throwing cold salty water in your eyes. That's about what its like.
Its also kind of fun being out there battling the elements and testing your limits when others are safely inside.
It about 3 more hours to make the 10k to Bitangabee Bay, a gorgeous, sheltered inlet where I met Linda, the National Parks Ranger hosting the site. When I told her about the trip Linda asked her daughter Tara to go around the campsite and raise some money.
A huge thank you to the entire population of Bitangabee Bay campsite who sponsored almost 2 kilometres, and a special thanks to the now-very-famous Tara, fund-raiser extraordinaire.
We had a big gathering and a long discussion about the pulp mill and sustainability over dinner, and they all saw me off in the morning too.