on the road again

My semester break has finally arrived and it's time to take yet another road trip. In roughly an hour I'll be embarking on a 9 day camping and surfing adventure that will include four friends from our apartment building. Our exact destinations are up in the air at the moment, depending on the conditions. However, the surf reports are some of the best I've seen since arriving in Australia, so it shouldn't be too difficult to find good spots. What I do know is that we'll eventually be arriving in Byron Bay on Tuesday to pick up our friend Jason who is flying there this weekend for a music festival. Until then we'll be exploring the northern New South Wales coastline in search of point break perfection. Now that we're more familiar with the area, it should make the trip much easier in terms of navigation and logistics. Check back soon for details. It should be epic. Don't want to jinx anything though....

yagon monster

There's nothing like going for a surf during sunset, especially when you're in rural Australia surrounded by fun waves, crystal clear water, three other surfers, and miles of empty beach. Let me put it this way: taking a 45-minute drive down dirt roads on the second night of our camping and surfing adventure last weekend was well worth it. Aside form an enjoyable beach break session at Scotts Head on Friday morning, our trip hadn't quite lived up to expectations until the late afternoon on Friday when we landed at a campground right next to the beach in an area called Yagon, just a few kilometers from Seal Rocks, roughly three hours north of Sydney. When I crossed over the dunes with my camera in hand, the picture above is exactly what I saw. Pumping left-hand waves were pressing up against the rocks and producing clean open faces as a result of the offshore winds, exactly what we needed after a long day of wave hunting. The picture is a bit deceiving, as most of the waves were breaking farther away from the rocks and were perfectly safe to ride. We didn't have much daylight left, so of course we hurried back to the van to grab our boards. I haven't run that fast in a while.

Overall, we definitely experienced mixed results during our trip, but at the end of the day we had a great time and got to surf fun waves, so I can't complain. Hanging out with a few Australians we met at the Yagon campsite was classic, and it's safe to say that I'll definitely be going back to Seal Rocks. The area has a wide variety of breaks to choose from and very few crowds. Most intriguing, though, is a local folktale about a wild ape-like bush creature that apparently haunts the area, known as the Yagon monster. We never saw anything while we were there, but there are countless testaments I found online of people claiming they'd seen some strange things moving around in the sand dunes at nightfall. Sounds like a plot to scare away surfers from crowding the waves if you ask me, but fascinating nonetheless. Here are a few pictures from the trip:

The full crew outside our apartment with the van before leaving Thursday afternoon. It had a pretty crazy paint job. Also notice the coat hanger antenna, very classy. It also didn't even have power steering, gotta love cheap rentals. I look stoked, John looks like he's impatient and just wants to go surfing, Caleb = Cali bro, and Jordan has a phenomenal afro/cheesy grin combo going.

Guess what was listed on the protected species sign at Seal Rocks. Great Whites are extremely rare according to what we've heard. Pretty crazy stuff. Apparently there's a grey nurse shark (safe to humans) breeding ground somewhere close to the area that attracts a lot of scuba divers.

The view from the top of the point at Scotts Head (that's me checking out the setup). The scenery was quite a sight, which is normal for this part of the country. We were able to score some very fun chest high surf at the beach break on Friday morning. The water temperature was likely over 80 degrees. It was probably the warmest water I've ever surfed. The point break wasn't working that day, but from what a few locals told us it can really go off there during a big swell. Apparently it's possible to ride the waves up to 300 meters on a great day. Too bad we missed out on that.

Sorry for the delay on this post. Although it might not seem like it, I am in fact going to school (don't worry Dad). I had a busy week with a poetry test on Monday and a paper due in my Australian literature class on Thursday. School has been going great so far and the classes are much different from back home in terms of structure. It seems like they put more emphasis on having only a few major assignments in each class as opposed to lots of smaller ones.

Life in Bondi has been the same as usual. We got a couple days of great surf during the middle of this past week, but the crowds were as big as ever. There were easily a few hundred people in the water when I surfed on Wednesday. Sometimes it's hard to find waves to yourself here. I've never had that problem back home in Chilmark.

That's all for now. We have our semester break coming up at the end of this week and it should prove to be a lot of fun. I've just made plans with a few friends that I'll talk about in my next post. We plan on getting shacked in some pretty exotic locales.

swell chasing

Here we go again. It's time to pack up the gear for some camping and surfing. I love this country. Tomorrow morning I'm heading into downtown Sydney with Jordan to pick up a campervan that we've rented for the upcoming weekend. After we get the van, we're going to be driving north about 5 hours to Crescent Head, one of our favorite spots from our last trip. It's a relatively quaint and isolated campground with a world class point break located right out front that can pump in head high surf. The forecast looks quite promising, so hopefully we'll score some fun waves and avoid the crowds for the most part. It should be quite an adventure, but I definitely feel more confident this time around, seeing as we've done this once before. Let's just hope we don't hit a kangaroo (there will be absolutely no driving at dusk this time around). My older brother John and our friend Caleb will also be joining us on this excursion, so hopefully they too will get to experience a small piece of true New South Wales surfing glory. I remember what we woke up to the last time we were there. Enough said...

GOING BIG: Boost SurfSho at Bondi

I just watched the best surfing I will ever see in person. I talked to Kelly Slater (9-time world champion). I surfed with Jordy Smith (current World No. 2). I live in Australia. I'm addicted to surfing.

What a weekend it was indeed. Friday saw the start of the 2010 Boost SurfSho at Bondi Beach, the first competition hosted here since '88. Conditions were nearly ideal for an aerial competition, with slight onshore winds and shoulder to head high surf all weekend. Sunday's final heat was spectacular to say the least, with nearly 40,000 people in attendance. In the end it was 20 year-old Australian prodigy and WCT (World Championship Tour) rookie Owen Wright, who landed a Frontside Air-Reverse (that's a 360 grab) in the final to take home the victory. Here's a picture of him in mid-flight that I was able to take from the beach (click on it to view the enlarged version). I could hardly contain myself when he stood tall after nailing the highest scoring air of the day for a 9.8 out of a possible 10. Talk about elevation.


Watching world class surfing live from the beach is a unique and breathtaking experience for anyone, regardless of your level of interest in the sport. The speed, power, athleticism, and skill that these guys perform with during sessions gets magnified tenfold. Surf films don't even come close to doing their ability justice.

I can't think of a sport that's more interactive and intimate for the spectators. The surfers walk directly through the crowd while getting in and out of the water, often giving high-fives and responding to encouragement with recognition and gratitude. After surfers exit the water, its not uncommon for them to get mobbed by spectators and cameras. They often sign autographs, pose for photos, and share a few words. I managed to get autographs from Mick Fanning (2-time world champion), Taj Burrow (current World No. 1), Jordy Smith (current world No. 2), and Owen Wright (the event winner). Kelly Slater didn't sign any autographs, which was unfortunate, but understandable at the same time. Here are a couple more photos from the weekend, as well as a highlight video:

(Gold Coast wild card and finalist Chippa Wilson launching a proper air)

(the man, the myth, the legend: Kelly Slater, heading out for an early morning heat)

video highlights:


Sorry for the lack of updates. My next post should be up in a couple days. Take care until then. I'm gonna hit the ocean. It looks fun out there today.

what's happening

I went to a real Australian bbq last night. I've been learning about Rugby. I surf every day. I feel cultured.

There's a lot going on around these parts at the moment. First and foremost, I have officially struck surfing gold. Next weekend, March 12-14, Bondi Beach will be hosting the Boost Mobile SurfSho, an aerial surf competition that draws some of the best surfers from around the world. Bondi hasn't hosted a surf contest since 1988. I don't know if my luck can get any better than that. The fact that it's an aerial competition means that it will be centered around performing airs, which, if you've never watched a modern surf film, are incredible to watch. It'll feature big names such as Mick Fanning (reigning World Champ), Taj Burrow, Jordy Smith, Owen Wright, and most importantly Kelly Slater (the undisputed greatest surfer of all time). Pretty hard to imagine that Kelly Slater will be surfing at the same spot that I surf every day, only a half-mile from my apartment. Not to mention, my older brother John arrives early on Sunday morning for a week-long stay, so he too will get to catch some of the action.

In other news, I've just finished my first week of classes. My schedule seems like it should work out well. Not having class on Fridays will definitely allow me to take a few weekend surf trips here and there. I'm taking Australian Literature, Poetry and Poetics, Modes of Publishing, and Sports Law. All of the classes are structured quite differently from anything I've taken back home, which should be interesting.

This evening my roommates and I are headed to a Rugby Union match at the Sydney Football Stadium between the HSBC Waratahs (from New South Wales) and the Sharks (from Durban, South Africa). Both teams compete in the Super 14, which is the largest Rugby Union championship in the Southern Hemisphere. The league draws teams from New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa. Rugby is quite big here in Australia, whether it be Rubgy Union or Rugby League (two different forms of the sport). It's also great to watch and easy to follow so I can't complain. I haven't heard too much about Australian Rules Football, but from what I gather it seems to be much more popular in Melbourne.

That's all for now. I'll try to get some pictures up here soon.