Heading off into the sunset - Wyong River, NSW Central Coast

A bloke named Ned, another Hawkesbury Canoe Classic competitor, got in contact with me a little while back and we decided to meet up for a night-time paddle as part of our training. So we decided on the Wyong River, a nice little river on the NSW Central Coast just north of Gosford, and a river that Ned was familiar with.

And what a brilliant kayak session it was. As night set in I discovered how hard it is to see obstacles (such as submerged trees and thick seaweed beds) and how disconcerting it can be when fish jump out of the water around you and birds take off from adjacent mangroves, none of which you can actually see in the milky darkness!

In the darkness this was about all I could see!

But what made the paddle really enjoyable was the company. Ned’s an interesting bloke with a diverse background and we hit it off immediately, chatting away in the darkness about our respective lives, the upcoming Hawkesbury Classic (which Ned’s done a few times before) and about all manner of random things. All whilst floating on the river under the stars with only the sounds of insects and jumping fish  to accompany our conversation.

Ned in his Prijon plastic fantastic, now complete with Fat Paddler sticker!

It’s hard to really describe just how nice this paddle was, and how good it was to meet another like-minded kayaker to share the fun with out on the water. Needless to say I had a great time. Cheers mate!