Australia… land of beaches, people of all backgrounds, a friendly bbq with mates and the odd beer or two

Ahhh Australia. Land of my birth and where I choose to live. It’s a bloody brilliant place to grow up & live, and I love her totally. A land of magnificent beaches, pounding surf, summer lightning storms and killer creatures of all shapes and sizes! A land with rainforests, tropical reefs, snow-capped mountains and thousands and thousands of miles of red desert. A huge island that is also a continent with tens of thousands of kilometres of coastline. A paddlers paradise no matter what style of paddling you’re into.

It’s a land where a beer or a barbie with mates is a given, and no more so than on Australia Day. A day to celebrate our nation, a day to watch the cricket, a day to dip your hands into a cold eski for an ice-cold can of VB or perhaps even a Bundy rum and coke. A day for a few snags and a lamb chop or two.

We get a long weekend to enjoy but this year it’s going to be marked by storms, enormous surf and tidal surges, monsoonal rain in the north and howling winds. Plenty of us will want to get out on the water but keep in mind the conditions are dangerous – be prepared or stay away and enjoy the cricket instead! Our usual surf spot is going to get hit with ocean swell close to 6 metres high, so it’s going to be intense. We’ll head out tomorrow morning for 2 metres or so, which’ll be fun, but after that we’ll stay well away from the coast and perhaps enjoy the bbq instead!

Our usual surf spot, Shelley Beach at Manly. A few big waves this weekend!

Whatever you plan to do, have a cracker of a weekend, enjoy the time with your mates, suck back a few tinnies as you burn a few chops, but most of all have a safe and fun weekend. Cheers, FP