Surf's Up!

There were several people back home whose sole advice for me down under was to "not go in the water." For these un-named few, I must emphasize that the following post remained a shark-free incident :) So yes, I went surfing. First time ever. It was bound to happen sooner or later. Carson contacted his action-adventure coordinator, Alistair the Great, and we were off one Sunday morning with hopes of rays of sun and waves of glory. There were six of us total - Carson and Chris, surfing veterans, a Canadian student attending Melbourne University (also a veteran), and myself and two German blokes, surfing rookies. Below are the before-and-after photos of the two-hour drive to the beach.

Once we arrived though, we were more than ready to get started, and it was already turning out to be quite a nice day! We suited up (full wetsuits, good thing too, because even though the day was nice, the water was quite cold - about 57 degrees Farenheit). How attractive are these suits....

The morning was filled with a brief sand-based lesson ala Alistair. No sharks or jellies, check.Four-step process to get up on your board, check. And we were off. The waves were perfect, and Alistair helped us rookies individually to catch a wave and try and get up on our boards. I didn't get up before we broke for lunch, but I managed to get up three times once we got back in the water after lunch. Of course, I only stayed up on my board for about 5 seconds each time, but it was so much fun, and I'd definitely like to go again. Surfing is quite tiring, especially when trying to wrestle the waves and position yourself correctly. I caught Carson napping on his board while breaking on the sand :)

The beach was beautiful, and practically deserted except for a few other surfers.

We only lasted until early afternoon, at which point the wind started picking up, causing the waves to become too frequent and the surfers to lose their footing :) We packed up and headed out. On the way home, Alistair took us to Bells Beach, made famous by the movie Point Break (50 years storm). Bells Beach sports some of the best waves known - there was a girl surfing in her bikini swim suit, and I have no idea how she didn't freeze. We even came upon a gathering of kangaroos in a nearby golf course, and I finally got to see a baby joey in it's mother's pouch! It was a great day!