Scarlett Woman ready for dawn action
This weekend’s paddle marked the welcome return of two misssing (feared lost) Team Fat Paddler characters. The inimitable Grumm (aka The Whinging Pom) and the Unknown Greenland Paddler, recently renamed “The Famous Tim Kennings” (as he was referred to in a forum last week).
Grumm had 5 weeks earlier bought himself a Boréal Design Labrador from Sydney Harbour Kayaks and then promptly gone down like the proverbial lead zeppelin with some ghastly virus. I’d all but given up on him when he announced he was back and ready to get wet, and it was exciting to see him emerge from his house in the dark at 5.45am ready for the morning’s paddle. I also had the joy of listening to him attempting to sneak quietly out of the house but instead crash into furniture and open the world’s noisiest roller door, waking not only his household but most of the street at the same time.
Grumm, pondering his wife's reaction to his noisy house-exit....
“The Famous Tim Kennings” had not been seen since recent “controversies” where he was rumoured to have gone underground to escape the wrath of Sydney’s paparazzi. Cautiously emerging from his safe-house, Timbo had appeared in a new stealthy boat (sans Fat Paddler stickers) with a new method of hiding his identity.
Is that The Famous Tim Kennings? No, that's just some random bloke with a paddle for a head...
Without another word, our motley threesome set off under an amber sunrise heading away from the crazy storm swell coming into Sydney Harbour and towards the calm glassy waters of Bantry Bay, where the fabled Coffee Boat was likely to arrive. Timbo had remembered to bring his Greenland paddle and the two of us cruised along the shore of Middle Harbour, keeping a careful eye on Grumm who was powering his “No Rocker Rocket” through the still waters without any hope of steering it whatsoever.
On our eventual arrival at Bantry Bay we didn’t have long to wait before Garry and The Coffee Boat arrived, supplying us all with hot buckets of frothy milky coffee. We chatted away watching the white-bellied sea-eagles circling above as we sipped our coffee, before seeing the eventual arrival of the amazing Yukon Buddies crew who I’d met just the week before. Like us, they were also seeking Garry’s services.
Yukon Buddies - survivors on an amazing mission
Paddling over to them, we had a quick chat about how they were going, their training and the last minute prep for the Yukon River Quest that is now just weeks away. Then we were politely told off by their steersman for interrupting their training (can you call coffee-drinking “training”??) so we paddled off towards Roseville and left them to their training session.
A fairly urgent need was by now gripping a couple of us, so we pulled into Flat Rock Beach for a quick nature call. Looking back at our kayaks, we thought it might be cool to swap boats, so Grumm climbed into my Aquanaut, and I squished myself into his Labrador, discovering quickly that I am simply too bloody big for this sleek, fast boat. Nevertheless, I settled into the rocket and paddled off towards Roseville.
The Three Muskateers - Flat Rock beach
Grumm was thoroughly enjoying the secondary stability of the Aquanaut and the fact it can actually be turned. He was edging and paddling and generally having a ball in my fun little play boat. I on the other hand was trying desperately not to tip his rocket over into the drink, its narrow beam and hard chines twitching away as I tried to settle into the feel of it. Eventually the boat settled beneath me and I found that with the right leg-drive and body rotation, I could power it along at incredible speeds, quickly losing the other fellas behind me.
Grumm enjoying the Fat Paddler's boat. I felt instantly jealous!
The Famous Tim Kennings however was still paddling along the edge of the shore hiding his face from the prying public. As he did so, the Yukon Buddies crept up behind him in their red outrigger, giving him a quick nudge to get out of the way.
Ramming speed!!
As they passed by, we tagged along behind them giving them a kayak escort towards Roseville Bridge, where we eventually pulled over for another round of boat swaps.
Grumm in escort. He's such a gentleman....
For the final boat swap I had a quick play in The Famous Tim Kenning’s North Shore Atlantic, a beautiful boat designed for paddlers considerably smaller than myself. The Famous One in turn had a paddle in my Aquanaut, it’s HV configuration feeling like a small air-craft carrier to him as he got lost in its roomy cockpit. Grumm meanwhile spent about ten minutes trying to seal launch backwards off the beach – a very funny thing to watch indeed!
The Famous Tim Kennnings back in his own boat. Hiding behind his dark sunnies still.
After we finished our boat comparisons, we all returned to our own kayaks and cruised our way back to the Yacht Club at The Spit for a civilised bacon and egg sandwich to end the mornings paddle. A great way to finish up the re-union of the Team Fat Paddler triumvirate. Until next time – cheers! – FP
A final look at Grumm's BD Labrador. Fast lines!
Tags: Boreal Design Labrador, coffee boat, Grumm, North Shore Atlantic, Tim Kennings, Yukon Buddies
Orbitz CEO and President Barney Harford with North & Middle Heads in background
This week our business has been visited by senior execs from our parent company Orbitz, including our VP Global Media Kit Simon and CEO & President, Barney Harford. In an effort to get our visitors and HotelClub executives out of the office for a few hours, I put together a session on the water with the help of Sydney Harbour Kayaks.
Cruising past Chinaman's Beach. A little less stuffy than the boardroom!
We’d somehow managed to find the only day this week that didn’t pour with rain, and kitted out with sea kayaks and wet weather gear, the paddlers set out towards Middle Head. With Barney and HotelClub President Jeremy Bellinghausen leading the way, the small armada hugged the western shoreline of Hunters Bay on route to Grotto Point, pausing occasionally to look more closely at the rocky shoreline.
Enjoying the paddle past Balmoral beach
I had spied a couple of stingrays whilst out on the paddle, but a couple of the other paddlers saw what looked initially like a shark, then as we got closer more like a seal. When a head popped up with a snorkle and goggles on, I’m not sure who was the most surprised, but there were a few relieved faces on the water when they realised it was only a “friendly”.
Paddling with Grotto Point in the background
Finally the group passed Grotto Point and paused to take in the view of Sydney Heads. With almost no ocean swell, the conditions were perfect to take in the sight of the rocky cliffs, and the paddlers were able to enjoy the view on Sydney’s famous waterway.
Kit pausing in front of North Head. Calmest day in weeks!
The Boot blogger Timothy Hughes heading for New Zealand
With time marching on, we turned and paddled into Balmoral Beach where we paused for a well-earned coffee, before climbing back into the kayaks for the return trip to The Spit.
Jeremy enjoyed the power of the high-angled stroke
Despite conversations on scintillating subjects such as the effects of different currency fluctuations on cost/revenue models (!!), the paddlers seemed to enjoy the opportunity to talk business outdoors and to get a few hours away from the office. In all a very nice way to spend a Monday afternoon!
A special thanks must go to Sydney Harbour Kayaks who were instrumental in this great afternoon. Their care and assistance setting everyone up in their boats and again getting everyone into cabs and away during peak hour traffic was greatly appreciated by all.
Lastly, after the paddle we took Barney and Kit to Hurricanes in Bondi, an institution for any meat-lover living in or visiting Sydney, to partake in what has to be the World’s Biggest Ribs. Needless to say they were… impressive! Cheers – FP
A rack even the Flintstones would be proud of!
Tags: Barney Harford, HotelCLub, Jeremy Bellinghausen, Kit Simon, Orbitz, Sydney Harbour Kayaks
Two very different paddle craft sharing the water - Valley Aquanaut and SUP
One of the great aspects of paddling is all the different flavours that are available. White water, flat water, ocean paddling, ski paddling, Greenland paddling, kayak polo, canoeing and of course the Stand Up Paddle (SUP) to name but a few. And there’s no reason why you can’t mix up the paddling types when you share the water, other than the obvious challenges of differential speed.
I was keen on an early paddle and invited SUP afficionado Rand to join me at the unreasonable put in time of 5.30am. He’d mentioned that he was considering doing the Hawkesbury Canoe Classic 111km paddle marathon on his SUP and needed training, so what better than pushing off into the dark for a paddle up Middle Harbour?
As I waited for him to get ready, I wandered around the shallows of The Spit with my torch looking for Ouchie. He was nowhere to be seen, but I did count several hand-sized baby stingrays in the area instead, sitting on the bottom like perfect miniatures of their bigger full-grown cousins. They were like little toys lined up in the water – my girls would have loved them!
FP lazily slip-streaming Rand on his SUP - haha!
Finally, and despite Rand’s nerves at pushing off into the dark, we set off north heading for the Roseville Bridge. He soon settled into the pace and enjoyed the lights on the water as very gradually the sky turned from black to a gentle grey glow. His fears now gone, we chatted away as the kilometres slipped behind us and we found ourselves at the Roseville boat-ramp.
Turning around, we paddled back to Flat Rock Beach where we strategically placed ourselves ready to catch The Coffee Boat on it’s trip to Bantry Bay. With Rand unable to stop his SUP, he paddled in circles until eventually he decided to head into the beach to wait for his coffee.
A lone SUP heading into Flat Rock Beach
The important arrival of The Coffee Boat
Within minutes Garry arrived in his little golden tug and brewed up a couple of fresh capuccinos for us, before chugging off into the distance. I paddled in and delivered the coffees to the beach where we enjoying the early morning light over our hot buckets of caffeine.
Setting off again, we paddled barely a kilometre when we came across a funny sight. Up ahead an outrigger canoe had also flagged down the Coffee Boat, with Garry furiously making coffees for the whole crew.
Hello, what have we got here then?
The girls from Yukon Buddies keeping Garry very busy
Rand and I pulled up for a chat and were amazed to hear that this crew of lady dragon-boat paddlers, know as the Yukon Buddies, were training to do the Yukon River Quest, a 746km paddle down the Yukon River in Canada that will take them around 65hours to complete! Just the week before they’d done the 111km Hawkesbury Classic course as training and were on track for their mammoth paddle task ahead.
After saying goodbye and wishing the girls good luck, we paddled back to the The Spit just as the weather cracked open with a deluge of rain. We packed our gear into our respective cars and then went our separate ways, smiling after our fun morning’s paddle with our two radically different craft.
Lastly, recently I made a donation to the Bridge City Paddling Club from Portland, Oregon (USA) who are doing a 12hour paddle to raise money for the Blue Planet Run Foundation, a non-profit that is working to ensure that safe drinking water is available to those in the world that need it. For my donation I also received a tshirt, which I promised I’d get a photo of here in Oz. So to all the dragon-boat paddlers from Bridge City, here it is. Cheers! – FP
FP meets the Bridge City Paddling Club at Sydney Harbour Kayaks
Tags: Bridge City Paddling Club, coffee boat, SUP, Yukon Buddies, Yukon River Quest
Grotto Point Reserve, viewed from Middle Head
Sometimes life’s pressures build up and force us to seek therapy. For some, that might involve relying on a friendly shoulder to cry on. For others, it may be a retail session maxing out the credit cards. For me however, it involves time alone outdoors to clear the mind.
On this particular day I’d taken the kayak out for a solo sunrise mission after a week of incessant work, family and other stresses. Pushing off from The Spit at 5.30am in the darkness, I cruised along the shoreline keeping well clear of fishing boats as I made my way to Grotto Point. The swell coming through the Heads was sitting around the 2 metre mark and pushing up a sensational left-hander that was barely visible in the limited light as I passed the Grotto lighthouse, heading towards Middle Head. Decent-sized fishing cruisers were heading out to sea and the water in the sound was nice and confused as I tried to find a good spot to watch the sunrise.
Early morning light over North Head
Sitting just off to the side of Middle Head I got to watch some good sized waves battering its cliffs, and in the distance I could see the southern cliffs of North Head taking a pounding. The wind was icy but the water balmy, and I relaxed in the messy waves with my Adanac paddle held over the side as an outrigger to keep me stable. As the sun started to rise the colours around me took on pink and orange hues which reflected off the moving water creating rippling firey effects about the kayak. In this mesmerising start to the day, I could feel my mind unwinding and the stresses ebbing away with the tide.
The sky is on fire over North Head
Only the day before of course, these waters were chaotic. The 16 year old Jessica Watson had completed her incredible solo sail around the world by passing through the Heads and onwards to Sydney to meet 50,000 odd fans. But she’d done it surrounded by a flotilla of boats escorting her in, which had churned up the Harbour into a giant washing-machine. But now, there was hardly a boat out here to be worried about and I could just enjoy the moment alone on the water.
Dawn's first rays of sunlight
Finally, after about 45 minutes bobbing around Middle Head, I turned back and paddled off into Middle Harbour. With a clear head and a semblance of peace found, I indulged in a little rock-hopping and a fast cruise up to Sugar Loaf Bay before pulling back into The Spit for a coffee with the team at Sydney Harbour Kayaks.
Sometimes modern life throws you a few curve balls and it’s easy to get beaten down by stresses that pile up on each other. Fortunately the outdoors is a great leveller, putting the world into perspective and reminding you that you’re alive. It may not remove the stresses from your life, but it does let you know that they are just little tiny things in the big wide wonder that is life. Cheers – FP
Tags: dawn, Ella's Pink Lady, grotto point, Jessica Watson, Middle Head, North Head, stress, sunrise
Kayaks prepped and ready to set off into the darkness
There is something magical about paddling at night. The lights of civilisation reflecting off inky water, the incredible array of stars overhead, and the tension of not being able to see what is in the water below all add up to an exhilarating experience. For my mate Tim, it was something he’d never done before, so I convinced him to come along for the experience.
As we pushed off from The Spit, the first thing we noticed was our old friend “Ouchie”, seemingly non-plussed at our invasion of his night-time sleeping spot. We manouvered our boats over him for a better look, before paddling off into the darkness of Middle Harbour.
Ouchie the stingray cruising along underneath us
I could tell that Tim was tense as he tried to make jokes about fishies with big teeth beneath us. Paddling at night, you simply cannot see what is in the water around you, and it is a fair fear for us knowing that we have Bull Sharks and the odd Hammerhead in these waters. To help put his mind at ease, I quietly hummed the theme to JAWS as I paddled. He pretended to be amused.
Once we passed under the The Spit Bridge and into Middle Harbour proper, the real beauty of paddling in the dark became apparent. Tim was mesmerised by the beauty of lights reflecting off the water, of the Harbour-side mansions lit up with flood lights, and of the odd party going on already at the early stages of the evening.
Once we paddled past the houses we found ourselves heading towards Bantry Bay in almost complete darkness. With only the distant twinkling lights of cruisers in Bantry Bay to guide us, we could lie back on our boats and stare up at the stars, now looking spectacularly bright above us.
There were very few boats on the water, but occasionally we’d hear a motor boat speeding towards us. I had cyalumes taped to the stern and bow, and Timbo had some small marine lights on his boat, but strapped to my deck were two powerful waterproof torches which I’d turn on at the faintest hint of a motor to make sure we were clearly lit up. They were also within easy reach in case I needed to shine them towards any boats heading our way.
The kayak's front deck lit up by my headlights
Without being able to see movement in the water, your feel for your kayak becomes far more intuitive as you adjust and balance purely on feel alone. This becomes a little more nerve-racking when there are waves about as you can’t see them coming to be able to prepare to brace. As a speeding cruiser passed us, we knew there was the inevitable bow wave streaking out towards us, and as we paddled we barely had a seconds notice before the waves caught us. With a sudden burst of paddling, I felt the stern lift up and then I was off, surfing the wave in the dark purely by feel and loving the incredible sense of speed as I sliced through the black water.
As I started to drop off the wave, I turned to look for Timbo. As I did he too latched onto a wave and I had the incredible view of his boat seemingly flying across the water with a churning wave rolling along behind him. When he finished his wave, he looked both excited and relieved that he’d kept his boat upright for his first night-time surf.
From there we continued a very cruisy pace up towards Bantry Bay, heading for a small landing spot known as Flat Rock Beach. At this part of the harbour we had only the flashing red lights of distant channel markers to guide us, as the hills and water were now completely shrouded in darkness. As we approached the beach however the water came to life around us, as fish skipped alongside us and from time to time directly into the sides of the kayaks.
We eventually found the right approach into Flat Rock Beach and slowly drifted in across it’s very shallow shores. Then we hopped out of our kayaks and wandered up the beach, taking in the sounds of the bushland and the beauty of the starry sky as I unloaded my dry-bag. Then sitting on a rock, I unpacked the Trangia and put the kettle on.
The orange glow of the Trangia at night.
Now with a hot steaming cups of coffee, and a few muesli bars, we sat on the beach and enjoyed the vision of stars and lights reflecting off the water. Timbo was almost speechless at the beauty of being on the water at night but quietly moaned about all the wasted nights he could have spent in his boat.
Once we finished the coffee we packed up the Trangia and started the gentle paddle back to The Spit. Once underway Timbo started laughing at the reflective tape lighting up my boat like a Christmas tree under his torchlight, but I got my revenge by firing off the camera in his direction blinding him with the flash. Despite our amusement, the boats looked incredible as they slid quietly through the darkness.
Timbo - a splash of colour in the black night
As we neared civilisation again we could hear the raucous laughter of parties going on in waterfront houses. As we silently slipped past we chuckled at the drunken revelry going on in the houses above us, oblivious to the two paddlers cruising below. Houses were lit up with disco lights and strobes as Saturday night in Sydney got properly underway.
Approaching lights of civilisation on Middle Harbour
Finally we made our way under The Spit Bridge and back into the beach we’re we’d launched. Once out of our boats, we turned to check the waters for Ouchie, who as expected was waiting for us in the shallows. Not that he was quite so keen on having my torch shone in his eyes, so he turned his barbed-tail and slowly cruised off into deeper waters. Sticking the camera into the water I managed to capture one final photo him as he swam away from us.
Bye bye and sweet dreams Ouchie!
With that we packed our boats away and each head off for home and a warm bed after the nights beautiful paddle. Tim will no doubt be up for more night paddles, and I can’t recommend it enough to paddlers looking to experience something a little different. Cheers – FP
Tags: coffee, Flat Rock Beach, night paddle, Ouchie, Sting Ray, Tim Kennings, Timbo, Trangia
