Chasing turtles over the Great Barrier Reef at Green Island



Wow that was fun. Helping out on a research project on Green Island off Cairns and managed to squeeze two sessions in. Unbelievably good wind, too good as only one small kite between us. What a spot, it blows from the south east on to the far corner of the island, well beyond the walking range of most day trippers so it feels like your own island paradise. 30 kts in shallow water, loads of fun, even more fun following turtles around the reef. I spotted some rays as well. The wind strong enough to be able to move slowly and controlled over the water checking out the life below. Divine. To top it off, Brother Rich benefited from 10 mins of expert coaching! And pulled off his first air.   

You can get out here for an early afternoon session on the ferry from Cairns, well worth it if you're in this part of the world. Some coral to watch for in low tide but plenty of seagrass areas as well for less sharp landings. Also a nice little bit of reef break on the farthest south-east corner and a little one on the west not too far from the jetty too. 

 

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Buttery flat at Lake Tabourie, then back to the cable park at Penrith



From waitingforthewind.com


Cuspy and I took the van down south to scope out some new spots. Here's what the birthday boy had to say: Day 1  started at Tabourlie lake. Lovely spot. Nice for families. Perfect for N or S if windy. We got about 12 knots directly onshore. Enough to muck about in but not enough to have fun in and too much like hard work. [Not enough for big boy, but aplenty for me, just south of the rocks to the south of the sand bar was butter flat and nicely powered  on my 12m - Cuspy also tried straplesss briefly and shocked us all with his immediate talent! Ed!]
Checked the arrows and at 3pm we made the call to drive north. 90 mins to Shoalhaven Heads. Place was full of kiters when we arrived. Good sign. Flat water spot too low, so into the waves we went. 20 knots and building. Kited til sundown. Epic. Twin tip, surfboard, strapless. We tried all 3. Few nice toeside runs under the barrel...
Finished with a steak and a beer at the local 'bogun house' and prayers for wind for the next day.  


Back to me: Day 2 on this little kitetrip was classic old school "Waiting for the Wind", all day to kite, van full of gear, green arrows on the forecast, but came to nowt, then glimmers of hope, the occasional tantalising yellow, culminating in the odd fluttering tree leaf. But managed to explore many beaches from Seven Mile up to Minnamurra, and all the "bogan" towns along the way (the snobbery is all Cuspy!). Then squeezed some rock & roll into the day with a last-minute dash to the cable park out at Penrith. My first time and will be back for more. Not a patch on kitesurfing but fun nonetheless and great for a day when the main plans might get blown out (pardon the pun). As for Australia, loving it right now, exploring around and about, kiting being the catalyst to check out new towns and beaches and hanging out with mates all over and the fam in Bondi.

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