5th February 2007.
Its been almost a week since I wrote last.
My car was supposed to be fixed last Friday. Ringing to check up on it just before I left on Thusday morning, the smash repairer told me that NRMA was going to write it off because his quote was so expensive. Up the creek with a paddle but no vehicle!
The quote seemed way too high to me, but I would have just had to cop it if it wasn't for Tim Frazer, from the Mallacoota branch of the Surfrider Foundation, who was determined not to let me get ripped off. So he and his dad John went up to Eden, got the "$500" radiator repair done in an hour for free, and is now working on the suspension. What a legend.
Now to more important things...the adventure. Its been massive.
Thursday, 1st Feb: Leaving Mallacoota
Pulling out of Mallacoota the Easterly was starting to build, and with a forecast 20 knot seabreeze and 4-6 foot of SE swell I was looking forward to a great day of wave riding. The wind and swell built to 20 knots, then just kept building. Before I knew I was in a 30 knot "breeze" pushing an 8-12 foot swell.
The sea was a seething, heaving mass of whitecaps, waves were breaking all over my laden kayak, and with the endless beaches of this coast, there was nowhere to land. I'd also made the mistake of packing my storm weather gear out of reach. By the time I neared Point Hicks I was cold and tiring, and hoping I could find somewhere to pull in. It didn;t look good, in fact, the approach to Point Hicks was a horror show - waves exploding on the rocks of the point and on reefs well out to sea. With so much "action" it would would be easy to paddle straight onto a reef. Shipwreck conditions. I gave the Point itself a wide berth, hoping to avoid outlying reefs, and also hopnig that I would then be able to paddle back and find some shelter behind it. Rounding the lighthouse I started to come into the wind shadow, but the swell was wrapping around headland and standing up in massive breakers before smashing into rocks. Did I mention that it was low tide on the full moon?
I was considering just paddling on through the night when I spotted a tiny cove wedged between rocks behind the headland. Hoping to time the sets I cut across the swell, paddling for all I was worth, glancing over my shoulder waiting for the "armageddon" wave. I made the shelter of the cove before anything came around the corner. Later, I walked up to the lighthouse to warm up and shake out the tension. Seeing the fury of the ocean from this high vantage, I couldn't believe I'd just been out there. Towards dusk later the began to drop, and the close-out sets were replaced by the most perfect waves I've seen in a long time. If only I had a surf board!
Instead I watched the waves peel unridden and golden in the sunset, ate a huge meal and had a great night's sleep on a sand dune.
Friday: to Marlo (almost)
With Easterlies forecast again I rose at dawn to get most of my padling done before the wind peaked mid-afternoon. As it turned out, the wind blew gently from the North East (offshore on this South facing coast) and I was having a very mellow paddle, a dramatic contrast to the previous day. The swell was stillk running at 6-8 foot with the occasional 10 foot set, providing a nice rolling sensation out past the breakers, and I got to Bemm River where I thought I'd pull in for lunch. Now I love a challenge, and with so much ahead of me I like the oportunity to practice my skills. Like most rivers, the Bemm deposits lots of sand where it exits to the ocean, and when river flow is low and the entrance closes, this leaves a shallow "bar" of sand out to sea, then a channel, then anyther bar on the shore. This gives you two sets of breakers to negotiate, with waves rising out of deep water to crash on the shallow bars. Its much more difficult than your standard beach landing, a feature of this coastline which makes it so dificult to negotiate.
On the way in my timing was perfect. I waited out the sets and rode in on a medium sized one, also avoiding being crunched in the smaller but nastier shorebreak.
By the time I'd had a massive lunch, the tide had dropped a bit, and in addition to the big waves breaking out the back, the medium sized ones were now crunching down in the channel. That meant that there was no hanging around in the channel to time an escape between sets, I just had to go. Having said that, the big ones out the back were mostly crumbling, with only the odd monster breaking top to bottom.
I got through the shorebreak. got through the channel, got over what I thought was the outside break.
And then I saw it.
The armageddon wave I'd avoided yesterday had found me.
There was nowhere to go. In the hope that I could get over it I paddled for all I was worth, but it just had my name written on it As the front of the kayak rose up the face i nslow motion, I watched the lip curl over and come down on me from a huge height. I was picked up like a toy, turned upside down, flung backwards, dragged underwater and pulled out of the kayak.
Gathering my wits and possessions, I figured that the wave was such a freak that there probably wouldn't be another bvreaking that far out. Luckily I was right about that, and I managed to swim the kayak out, then I hopped up on the deck and paddled it with a very waterlogged cockpit past the breakers. Safe and in the warm sunshine beyond the breakers, I was pumping out the cockpit and thinking what fun it had been when I saw two big gashes in the side of the kayak. The pressure of the wave had "creased" the kayak, and on one side the glass had split completely. The leaving it structurally vulnerable, and taking on water.
It was then that I was very grateful for my decision to swim the kayak out rather than go back in and start again . There is almost no doubt that if I'd gone back through the channel and the shorebreak, the kayak would have broken up completely.
As it was, the Pittarak, famed for its toughness, had survived where just about anything else would have broken in half straight away.
Paddling those 20ks, water sloshing around my legs in a half smashed kayak, and a wrecked car to deal with in Eden, was a real low point in the trip. In a very unusual negative frame of mind, I was thinking that Gunns and other irresponsible companies need to realise that when they act in a greedy and irresponsible manner, there's a cost.
It's not just someone like me making an all out effort, its all the other people who have been forced to spend time and money to oppose this completely irresponsible proposal. The RPDC has received 780 submissions on the proposed mil, most of them in opposition opposed, many of them based on scientific research paid for by individuals. This represents thousands of hours of citizen's time and effort, and huge stress.
So, Messrs Howard and Lennon, how can you provide $11 million dollars to help a $900 million company promote the proposal for the mill, then leave the people who can least afford it to pay to defend themselves? Of all the odious elements in this pulp mill proposal, favouring Gunns interests over the public would have to be the worst.
I nursed the kauyak to Cape Conran where a whole series of wonderful people helped me out? Bill and Helen gave me a lift into Marlo, the nearest town, The Marlo Angling Club gave me place to camp, Rob and Annette provided a trailer to pick up the kayak, Mark (I think) bought me a much needed beer and dinner, Dave Preece and Paul the local headmaster rocked up with cloth and resin for the repair, and Tony and Sharon gave me a place to stay and fed me to the gills.
Thanks to them, I was soon out of the negative mood (though the facts remain)
And by the way, they are also horrified about the dioxins from the proposed mill as without a fishing industry, their town, and their livelihoods, would disappear
Saturday.
Fixing the kayak, and with three layers of 6oz cloth its now stronger than ever. In the afternoon Rob gave me a lift back to Conran so I could start back where I pulled the kayak out. Had a very pleasant and uneventful 20k afternoon paddle in still conditions and a very watertight boat.
Sunday
Leaving Marlo, the winds were behind me at 20 knots, and had a hoot surfing all the way. Just couldn't help myself going in at the Lake Tyes bar, just to make sure I could shake the hoodoo. The swell wasn't as big, but with the tide low and a 20 knot onshore breeze it was still no joke. I got in easy but got trashed again on the way out with waves breaking in about 1 foot of water on the bar, dredging up sand and beating me back to the shore. I got out on the second go, taking a split-second opportunity to cross a slighly deeper part of the bar on a lull. No damage to the kayak this time, and came into Lake's Entrance nice and easy on the last of the ebbing tide.
And that brings me up to date. Its Monday, Tim and John are working on the cart so that its driveable, and Emi wil meet me here tomorow. I'll probably stick around to wait out a Southerly Change due tonight and get the window fixed, then continue on to Wilson's Prom
Only just over 1/3rd way, and what an adventure its become.
Sim