SURFS, OCEAN KAYAK, BIKES, HIKES - 24 TO 30 APRIL 2020

24 APRIL 2020

A morning hike at Kincumba Mountain with Jacinta.

We followed the Kanning Track plus the old track that runs over the sandstone rocks above it.

It was quiet with plenty of bird calls and the concessional sighting of some of them. The track was thick with ferns. A pleasant walk.


25 APRIL 2020

An ocean kayak from Patonga Beach to Pearl Beach.

First off, this was a lot further than I thought but it was worth it.

My ocean sit-on kayak was a  lot more complicated to set up before launch - foot petal adjustment, attaching the seat and lining up the steering fin so that it was centred. This kayak was also very heavy (30 plus kg) and the handles are in an awkward balancing position so getting it in and out of the van and carrying it was difficult. Anyway, I lived.

The water was smooth and glassy at the start and once around the first point and wind though gentle made the water a little bumpy. The small swell made it possible for me to paddle close to the rocky shoreline all the way.

The shoreline was mainly rock which had tumbled down from the high cliffs that were only ten metres from the water's edge. There were three small beach areas to land  along the way.

It was an exciting paddle knowing that there was a possibility of tipping.

At one point, two seals were frolicking in water a short distance from me. They were undulating in and out of the water, waving their tails and fins slowly above the water and shaking off water from the upper parts of their bodies like a dog.

The paddle was a 10 km return journey. It took just short of three hours with two beach rests and a swim at Pearl Beach.

27 APRIL 2020

Light rain today.

An afternoon walk around the Haven with Jacinta.

28 APRIL 2020

An early mountain bike ride at Brisbane Water National Park.

A ride along the Bulls Hill trail and tracks. A couple of short steep sections with loose rocks. Great views across the waterways. A couple of rock scrambles to see what was on top of the large boulders.

A short but fun ride.

29 APRIL 2020

A surf check with a wander around Magenta Beach.

Parked the van, walked along the sandy track and I was on Magenta Beach.

Pretty blue skies, sun shining, birds tweeting, waves a rolling and all to myself. :)

A mid afternoon surf at North Avoca Beach with Ken.

It was small and mushy. It was nice to get wet.

30 APRIL 2020

 An early afternoon surf at Terrigal Beach in front of the surf club with Ken.

There was the odd one or two okay wave. The surf started off with a bit of size and bumpy and finished small and smooth.

SURFS, KAYAK, HIKE AND MTB - 6 APRIL 2018

2 April 2018

A surf at North Avoca Beach. Not the best but there were one or two okay waves.

Later, I had an ocean kayak heading north of Patonga.

There was a strong tidal current in parts as it was just before high tide. Overall. it was rough and pretty exciting. No tipping over ... so far.

3 April 2018

It was a looked better out than in surf at Wamberal Beach.

4 April 2018

A mountain bike ride at Bouddi on the Turkey, NW Ridge and Strom tracks. A good ride - controlled and faster, which made it  fun and enjoyable. I  sort of feel I'm improving as I getting through spots I couldn't on previous rides. Still. there are a couple of skills I wished I could do.

5 April 2018

A surf check.

The surf wasn't too good so I had an early hike at Kincumba Mountain on the Kanning Track. 

A pretty hike with huge boulders, ferns, a cave, bush flowers and a background of bird song.

Another surf check. I ended up at Soldiers Beach and had  good waves and not many out. A fun time.

6 april 2018

Another fun surf at Soldiers Beach - a right then swing back onto the left. Noone else was doing it so I was lucky and had heaps of good waves.

NEW KAYAK - TERMINATOR 10 - 17 MARCH 2018

14 March 2018

A surf check at Wamberal was a no go.

I had coffee, an ocean swim and a walk at Terrigal Haven.

I drove down to Sydney for a hearing appointment for a hearing test and adjustments to my hearing aids. My hearing hadn't deteriorated but some adjustments were made to the aides. Working better than before.

Afterwards, I drove over to Central in the city centre and picked up Jacinta who as there for a work conference. We had dinner at a restaurant at Newtown, then a wander around the streets.

Back at the hotel, we went to a bar and had a few drinks.

15 March 2018

I woke early and drove back home from Sydney.

I brought a terminator 10 sit-on kayak. I took it down to Avoca Lagoon for a test run. I tried the seat and foot handles in different positions. I couldn't quite get it right. Back on shore, I was thinking about going to the store for advice when I met a guy (he just got out of the water with his kayak) who gave me great advice on adjustments. I took the kayak back out and was a lot happier.

16 March 2018

An ocean kayak at Patonga on the new kayak followed by a swim off the end of the Patonga pier.

17 March 2018

I had a kayak on Avoca Lagoon on the sit-in kayak and had a fun time capsizing it and trying to reenter it from shallow to deep water. No problems getting in but residue water in the kayak affected its balance. I will need some system to bail the excess water out.