Sea Kayaking
Able Tasman
Able Tasman
Location: Abel Tasman. Kaiteriteri to Golden Bay
Tutors: Rob Delauu, Phill Johnston Coats
Group members: 16 TPP students
Date: The 3rd of August to the 10th of August, 2015
Weather: We had amazing weather all week sunny and stable. On the last night a small front pushed past. We had to deal with icy cold rain and the even icier southerlies that followed on the predawn paddle the final day. Snowing on the surrounding mountains to 300 meters.
Learning: I knew at the start of this trip the key skill needed was to be organized and on top of things. After paddling a long day it's easy to get to the beach and not look after yourself. To be successful though. A set a dry gear was needed to be easily accessible and needed to be changed into very quickly. I put high priority on always knowing where my wet gear was and hanging it up to keep it dry. When you're on top of your personal gear it makes it easier to function in the wet and cold and allows you to be able to worry about other peoples safety and well being. Even after this trip I could see there was room for improvement.
We also trained to learn how to do a reentry roll, a John Wayne reentry and a paddle float rescue. The reentry roll is quite difficult. Trying to roll a sea kayak full of water requires a lot of technique. I found finish position was key. During the transition from your main driving sweep and your finish position there is a moment when my momentum would slow down and I would look up and off balance my roll. It took me several attempts before I corrected my technique and achieve a self rescue roll.
We Spent time learning about the tides also. How the tides are relevant to the moon cycle and how different areas have different tidal ranges. You positioning on the latitude of the earth, swell and topography all need to be kept in mind to understand the tidal range of a specific area. A good trick is to note sea debris along the beach and see if there is a receding line of debris. Or one single line. This can give indication of increasing or decreasing tidal heights and also an estimate of the next tidal height.
Experience: Sea kayaking was a challenging experience. We set out to paddle from Kaiteriteri to the Golden Bay. The second day was a major leg covering nearly half of the 7 day journey in one day. I felt the impacts of tides and what they do to a sea kayak. Pulling them out or towards the coast, especially around river outlets. The trip was fill of highs and the wide life around that area was spectacular.
Real life first aid: On day six of our sea kayaking mission we had a rolling and self rescue learning session. During this a member of my group Sarah Chatterton went out with a "spring" wet suit. Sarah only spent a few minutes in the water trying to achieve a paddle float reentry. In this short space of time Sarah's body temperature quickly dropped. When Sarah had paddled in and was on shore her core body temperature was dropping significantly. She let one person know that she thought she was going hypodermic then sat next to the fire. From this point on Sarah was looked after by fellow students as the tutors were running rolling and self rescue lessons. Steps were made to get her from her wet gear into dry gear and in a tent in a sleeping bag with other people. I arrived when Sarah was by the fire. I was unsure of what had already happened and noticed Sarah looked and sounded incoherent and simply looking freezing. There was a hesitation on how to treat her, it was like people were thinking is this really hypothermia. I recommend putting a wind breaker on her and getting her into a sleeping bag. The rest unfolded with out me. The next day Sarah told us what happened and learning that we could take away from this situation. Sarah told us how the hypothermia effected her memory and her ability to function and make decisions for herself. She said the clothes we gave her felt wet and the bottles of warm water felt boiling and like they were burning her. The main learning I took from this situation is what hypothermia looks like and what to look for. I learnt how fast it can happen and how fast it needs to be treated.
Lake Brunner
Experience: Lake Brunner was suck a fun time. It's always good to jump in a boat and go for a paddle.
Learning: The length of the keel Makes edging feel so different, I love practicing this edging as the learning can be transferred to the sweep stroke in a white water kayak. It was good to practice my draw stroke and other stroke techniques I wouldn't usual practice white water paddling.
Lake Mahinapua:
Experience: Lake Mahinapua is a beautiful lake tucked away in the west coast. It was great to explore and to see the native untouched bush surrounding it.
Learning: Sea kayaking can be quite a relaxing sport I learned how easy it is to put a few boats on the trailer and go for paddle. Core rotation and sweep stokes are easy to practice out on a lake making sea kayaking a great sport to relax and get technical aspects of my paddling strokes down.
Weather: Fine conditions with 10 km nor west winds. High level of cirrus clouds. Weather staying stable over the day.
Learning: Today was the first day we applied our knowledge of slack tides. We brought laminated route cards of when slack tides were and flooding and ebbing tides were. We practiced skills of ferry gliding into wind. We worked on skills of moving around in a pod and water communication. Knowledge was increased on packing sea kayaks and the gear that is needed.
Experience: Day one was a challenge. There was a lot of gear we had brought for our six day journey. All the food, safety and group gear was a daunting pile that all needed to be packed somewhere. I really felt the struggle of the first day being rusty in organizing my boat and being on top of my time management. We went for a practice paddle playing with the tidal currents on the first morning of the trip. I managed to get my boat better fitted and organised before the mid day crossing of the french pass. I was pleased to have that time, when paddling the pass my boat felt significantly better and it started to sink in where I was and the amazing trip I was about to have. Throughout the day I felt sick though and wished I had contributed more. I made it a sure goal that I wouldn't let my first tough day get me down and I would strive to push harder everyday.
Learning: I knew at the start of this trip the key skill needed was to be organized and on top of things. After paddling a long day it's easy to get to the beach and not look after yourself. To be successful though. A set a dry gear was needed to be easily accessible and needed to be changed into very quickly. I put high priority on always knowing where my wet gear was and hanging it up to keep it dry. When you're on top of your personal gear it makes it easier to function in the wet and cold and allows you to be able to worry about other peoples safety and well being. Even after this trip I could see there was room for improvement. We also trained to learn how to do a reentry roll, a John Wayne reentry and a paddle float rescue. The reentry roll is quite difficult. Trying to roll a sea kayak full of water requires a lot of technique. I found finish position was key. During the transition from your main driving sweep and your finish position there is a moment when my momentum would slow down and I would look up and off balance my roll. It took me several attempts before I corrected my technique and achieve a self rescue roll.
We Spent time learning about the tides also. How the tides are relevant to the moon cycle and how different areas have different tidal ranges. You positioning on the latitude of the earth, swell and topography all need to be kept in mind to understand the tidal range of a specific area. A good trick is to note sea debris along the beach and see if there is a receding line of debris. Or one single line. This can give indication of increasing or decreasing tidal heights and also an estimate of the next tidal height.
Experience: Sea kayaking was a challenging experience. We set out to paddle from Kaiteriteri to the Golden Bay. The second day was a major leg covering nearly half of the 7 day journey in one day. I felt the impacts of tides and what they do to a sea kayak. Pulling them out or towards the coast, especially around river outlets. The trip was fill of highs and the wide life around that area was spectacular.
Real life first aid: On day six of our sea kayaking mission we had a rolling and self rescue learning session. During this a member of my group Sarah Chatterton went out with a "spring" wet suit. Sarah only spent a few minutes in the water trying to achieve a paddle float reentry. In this short space of time Sarah's body temperature quickly dropped. When Sarah had paddled in and was on shore her core body temperature was dropping significantly. She let one person know that she thought she was going hypodermic then sat next to the fire. From this point on Sarah was looked after by fellow students as the tutors were running rolling and self rescue lessons. Steps were made to get her from her wet gear into dry gear and in a tent in a sleeping bag with other people. I arrived when Sarah was by the fire. I was unsure of what had already happened and noticed Sarah looked and sounded incoherent and simply looking freezing. There was a hesitation on how to treat her, it was like people were thinking is this really hypothermia. I recommend putting a wind breaker on her and getting her into a sleeping bag. The rest unfolded with out me. The next day Sarah told us what happened and learning that we could take away from this situation. Sarah told us how the hypothermia effected her memory and her ability to function and make decisions for herself. She said the clothes we gave her felt wet and the bottles of warm water felt boiling and like they were burning her. The main learning I took from this situation is what hypothermia looks like and what to look for. I learnt how fast it can happen and how fast it needs to be treated.
Self Directed Learning
Lake Brunner
Experience: Lake Brunner was suck a fun time. It's always good to jump in a boat and go for a paddle.
Learning: The length of the keel Makes edging feel so different, I love practicing this edging as the learning can be transferred to the sweep stroke in a white water kayak. It was good to practice my draw stroke and other stroke techniques I wouldn't usual practice white water paddling.
Lake Mahinapua:
Experience: Lake Mahinapua is a beautiful lake tucked away in the west coast. It was great to explore and to see the native untouched bush surrounding it.
Learning: Sea kayaking can be quite a relaxing sport I learned how easy it is to put a few boats on the trailer and go for paddle. Core rotation and sweep stokes are easy to practice out on a lake making sea kayaking a great sport to relax and get technical aspects of my paddling strokes down.
Sea Kayaking Diploma
Location: Class room, Taylorville and Cobden beach
Tutors: Rebecca Dryland, Nick Davies and Zac Shaw
Group members: 10 Taipoutini polytechnic students
Date: The 7th of May to the 12th of May, 2015
Learning: We spent time in the Grey pool going through all our self rescues. Re-entry rolls, John Wayne self rescue and paddle float rescues. We played with different ways on trying to get into our boats. We experimented with keeping low and being higher. Working on speed and concentration on good roll technique. It felt a lot like play but sometimes that's when you learn a few tricks and really work out your own style. Then Next day we went to Taylorville. Here we started to practice some assisted rescues. Working on different styles of getting people into their boats. We practiced what to say to people where to position your boat and how to manage gear. We later in the day practiced rescuing the doubles which was awesome. We all did alright but came back a third day to get some of the assisted rescues more tight and really concentrate on a fast double rescue. We also added on this day some moving river water moves, catching eddies, edging into them and also ferry gliding in current. It was at Taylorville where we started working on our stroke technique. Practicing brace stokes and draws and edging. All building up for surf kayaking then D'Urville.
Experience: We spent three days days throughout out opening sea kayak week focused on rescues. It was fun and a lot of playing around. I really enjoyed working on my re-entry roll. I can't wait to keep playing around with it and get it better and better. Taylorville was cold but we worked on some good stuff. Learning some quick unorthodox ways to get people back in their boats.
Learning: I found lots of learning from this lesson. We did a detailed analysis of the surf looking at the waves and what was happening in a slightly different way from surfing. When we got out there we practiced a lot of bracing strokes, with a "boof" like style to get out the back. Then edging and quality sweep strokes were needed to turn the boat fast enough to get around before the next wave. We practiced edging, side surfing and hanging rudders. There was a lot of assistance required on the beach, so boat safety and management on shore breaks were quickly needed and learnt.
Experience: I am a surfer so when I found out we were taking our boats out on the West coast water I was stoked. I felt I did really well identifying what was going on with the beach hydrology. Being my home break and all. Out there was so much fun. I flipped the boat more than a few times. Luckily I have a pretty consistent roll from white water kayaking and came back up each time. I really felt how much I needed to edge and top level my brace stroke needed to be to survive out there. I really want to go out again I feel it is going to do wonders for my white water paddling.
Learning: When planning for D'Urville there were a lot of skills that were taught in a quick space of time. We spent time looking at the physics behind the moon and how it effects tides. We learnt how you can look at the moon and see if it is waxing or waning moon and how to work out if it is a spring or a neap tide. We moved on to a lot of chart reading looking at Oceanic charts and features found on these maps. Realizing that have similar qualities to topographical maps with ocean depths and lots of features that give you clues on depth and terrain. We went further and discussed mean height water spring and mean low water neap. This gave us understanding of how to calculate what features we be visible off a chart that is draw at chart datam. We looked at longitude and latitude and worked out
how to give coordinates. Then moved to Mayday calls learning an abbreviation M.I.P.N.A.N.O.O
After a few theory lessons we moved to planning the trip. Working out route cards with distances, tides and slack tides on the cards. We worked on a pitch of a possible way around the D'Urville island and all talked and discussed different ideas.
Experience: The planning and learning of the D'Urville trip was challenging and interesting. There was a lot more to the ocean than I had realized and the tidal influence is surprising. Cool hydrology was learnt like looking at standing waves and the new charts were an awesome resource to discover. Looking at D'Uville it seems extremely hard to navigate and very dependent on good weather. The West coast is exposed and winds and swell would make it near impossible.
Rescue Training
Learning: We spent time in the Grey pool going through all our self rescues. Re-entry rolls, John Wayne self rescue and paddle float rescues. We played with different ways on trying to get into our boats. We experimented with keeping low and being higher. Working on speed and concentration on good roll technique. It felt a lot like play but sometimes that's when you learn a few tricks and really work out your own style. Then Next day we went to Taylorville. Here we started to practice some assisted rescues. Working on different styles of getting people into their boats. We practiced what to say to people where to position your boat and how to manage gear. We later in the day practiced rescuing the doubles which was awesome. We all did alright but came back a third day to get some of the assisted rescues more tight and really concentrate on a fast double rescue. We also added on this day some moving river water moves, catching eddies, edging into them and also ferry gliding in current. It was at Taylorville where we started working on our stroke technique. Practicing brace stokes and draws and edging. All building up for surf kayaking then D'Urville.
Experience: We spent three days days throughout out opening sea kayak week focused on rescues. It was fun and a lot of playing around. I really enjoyed working on my re-entry roll. I can't wait to keep playing around with it and get it better and better. Taylorville was cold but we worked on some good stuff. Learning some quick unorthodox ways to get people back in their boats.
Surf Kayaking Lessons
Experience: I am a surfer so when I found out we were taking our boats out on the West coast water I was stoked. I felt I did really well identifying what was going on with the beach hydrology. Being my home break and all. Out there was so much fun. I flipped the boat more than a few times. Luckily I have a pretty consistent roll from white water kayaking and came back up each time. I really felt how much I needed to edge and top level my brace stroke needed to be to survive out there. I really want to go out again I feel it is going to do wonders for my white water paddling.
Planning for D'Urville
how to give coordinates. Then moved to Mayday calls learning an abbreviation M.I.P.N.A.N.O.O
After a few theory lessons we moved to planning the trip. Working out route cards with distances, tides and slack tides on the cards. We worked on a pitch of a possible way around the D'Urville island and all talked and discussed different ideas.
Experience: The planning and learning of the D'Urville trip was challenging and interesting. There was a lot more to the ocean than I had realized and the tidal influence is surprising. Cool hydrology was learnt like looking at standing waves and the new charts were an awesome resource to discover. Looking at D'Uville it seems extremely hard to navigate and very dependent on good weather. The West coast is exposed and winds and swell would make it near impossible.
D'Urville Island
"What lays beyond The French Pass"
Location: D'Urville island (East coast)
Tutors: Rebecca Dryland, Tas
Group members: 8 Taipoutini polytechnic students
Group members: 8 Taipoutini polytechnic students
Date: The 13th of May to the 19th of May, 2015
Day 1: French pass to Penguin island
Day 1: French pass to Penguin island
Weather: Fine conditions with 10 km nor west winds. High level of cirrus clouds. Weather staying stable over the day.Learning: Today was the first day we applied our knowledge of slack tides. We brought laminated route cards of when slack tides were and flooding and ebbing tides were. We practiced skills of ferry gliding into wind. We worked on skills of moving around in a pod and water communication. Knowledge was increased on packing sea kayaks and the gear that is needed.
Experience: Day one was a challenge. There was a lot of gear we had brought for our six day journey. All the food, safety and group gear was a daunting pile that all needed to be packed somewhere. I really felt the struggle of the first day being rusty in organizing my boat and being on top of my time management. We went for a practice paddle playing with the tidal currents on the first morning of the trip. I managed to get my boat better fitted and organised before the mid day crossing of the french pass. I was pleased to have that time, when paddling the pass my boat felt significantly better and it started to sink in where I was and the amazing trip I was about to have. Throughout the day I felt sick though and wished I had contributed more. I made it a sure goal that I wouldn't let my first tough day get me down and I would strive to push harder everyday.
Day 2: Penguin island to Garden Bay
Weather: Calm morning with 5 km nor west winds. Winds picking up to 15 km's in the evening. Alto clouds forming throughout the day.
Learning: Skills were developed in repacking sea kayaks and the morning routine of getting ready and geared up. We spent time hearing radio weather reports and recording the information we heard. We learnt to go through group processes to analyze weather, people, terrain and the sea to decide weather to paddle each day. We then assessed the wind speed direction and tidal flow and direction to work out paddle speed and the planning of the day.
Experience: What a sunset to wake up to. Penguin island camp site was amazing to stay at. The memories of eating caught and cooked fish was still on my mind. We woke up to amazing weather which was a surprise to the rainy weather that was forecasted. I caught my first fish that morning which was an awesome feeling. I was so ready to have him for eating. He was a small Kawai though so with some convincing I decided to let him go. The tidal currents worked in favor for us and we managed to paddle around one of the Puangiangi islands. It was an awesome crossing and we were expecting the winds and the rain to come down at any moment but they never came. We ended up making it to camp site Garden bay. I worked on setting up the tarps with drift wood. Bettering my tarp assembling skills which is always fun. It was a really good day and I was grateful to be out there.
Learning: Skills were developed in repacking sea kayaks and the morning routine of getting ready and geared up. We spent time hearing radio weather reports and recording the information we heard. We learnt to go through group processes to analyze weather, people, terrain and the sea to decide weather to paddle each day. We then assessed the wind speed direction and tidal flow and direction to work out paddle speed and the planning of the day.
Experience: What a sunset to wake up to. Penguin island camp site was amazing to stay at. The memories of eating caught and cooked fish was still on my mind. We woke up to amazing weather which was a surprise to the rainy weather that was forecasted. I caught my first fish that morning which was an awesome feeling. I was so ready to have him for eating. He was a small Kawai though so with some convincing I decided to let him go. The tidal currents worked in favor for us and we managed to paddle around one of the Puangiangi islands. It was an awesome crossing and we were expecting the winds and the rain to come down at any moment but they never came. We ended up making it to camp site Garden bay. I worked on setting up the tarps with drift wood. Bettering my tarp assembling skills which is always fun. It was a really good day and I was grateful to be out there.
Day 3: Garden bay to Billhook bay
Weather: 10 km nor west winds in the morning with gusts of 25, picking up in the evening to 45 km's. Light rain in the afternoon, strong winds throughout the night.
Learning: This section of our trip really developed a knowledge of paddling into head winds. It developed a sense of our group paddling speed and ability to preform. I was realizing that constantly a groups ability must be measured so right choices are made in regards to difficulty versus skill level. This morning started with more radio and weather analysis. We saw our first horizon line with swell on it and really started to identify that we were coming higher up D'Urivile island to the more exposed northern end of it. We constantly were reading and looking at the weather, identifying wind direction from the immediate clouds, then further weather predictions by reading what the clouds were giving clues of. Understanding lenticular cloud, and clouds that hang at a cirrus and alto level we gathered the clues they offered and made future weather predictions from them.
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Experience: Day three was great. I had been collecting rocks as we went on this trip and Garden bay was full of amazing rocks. The rocks I was mainly looking for were these amazing rocks called argulites. They were everywhere there was an amazing rock bed of red argulites right at the Garden bay camp site. The days paddling was short and quite easy. We managed to make on harder move entering Billhook bay. We traveled in a large arching circle in order to avoid getting near cliff faces and reefs that lay besides Billhook. We did this with the understanding that wind and tidal currents can blow people into rocks and there needs to be enough room to complete a rescue. When at Billhook we set up a mid day camp and were left to have an hour and a half free time. Some of the boys went diving but me and Locke were off for a run up the ridge to see the daunting West coast line. It didn't take long before we ran from one high point to the next to the next. Soon we were running to the tip of the East coast. We had little time so we were running hard which was a big job when you're in gumboots. Eventually we made it though and there I was staring down into the merging point of the two coasts. The swell was huge and all we could see is two giant bodies of water surging towards each other and then the aggressive collision followed by an enormous crash. By the time we had run back to camp the winds has picked up significantly. The afternoon paddle further up the coast was cancelled. We met up with Henry, Ryan and Hosea to see how the diving went. That's when I see Henry cheering with dead octopus in his heads. That nigh we ate field mushrooms, paua, octopus and water cress. What a night. It ended with me and Henry laying on top of a hill watching a lightning storm roll pass and a night in the tent with some pretty extreme winds.
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Experience: Day three was great. I had been collecting rocks as we went on this trip and Garden bay was full of amazing rocks. The rocks I was mainly looking for were these amazing rocks called argulites. They were everywhere there was an amazing rock bed of red argulites right at the Garden bay camp site. The days paddling was short and quite easy. We managed to make on harder move entering Billhook bay. We traveled in a large arching circle in order to avoid getting near cliff faces and reefs that lay besides Billhook. We did this with the understanding that wind and tidal currents can blow people into rocks and there needs to be enough room to complete a rescue. When at Billhook we set up a mid day camp and were left to have an hour and a half free time. Some of the boys went diving but me and Locke were off for a run up the ridge to see the daunting West coast line. It didn't take long before we ran from one high point to the next to the next. Soon we were running to the tip of the East coast. We had little time so we were running hard which was a big job when you're in gumboots. Eventually we made it though and there I was staring down into the merging point of the two coasts. The swell was huge and all we could see is two giant bodies of water surging towards each other and then the aggressive collision followed by an enormous crash. By the time we had run back to camp the winds has picked up significantly. The afternoon paddle further up the coast was cancelled. We met up with Henry, Ryan and Hosea to see how the diving went. That's when I see Henry cheering with dead octopus in his heads. That nigh we ate field mushrooms, paua, octopus and water cress. What a night. It ended with me and Henry laying on top of a hill watching a lightning storm roll pass and a night in the tent with some pretty extreme winds.
Day 4: Billhook bay to Whareatea bay
Weather: 15 km southerly winds with gusts of 25 km. Sou easterly swells 2 meters. Over cast conditions clearing in the afternoon with dropping winds.
Learning: The morning started with our now regular decision making process. We decided to navigate round a small island just off Billhook bay. Here we experienced tidal current meeting opposing wind direction, creating these standing waves that were so often talked about. The rest of the day was spent fighting head winds, tidal currents and swell. Lots of learning was taken in these rougher conditions and we had to be very aware of reefs that now had swell breaking upon them.
Experience: Day four was a bigger day. The morning was amazing but the swell and the tidal currents were going off. We tried to paddle to this island. I took lead boat then all of a sudden things started to pick up. The wave height got huge. I could see reefs breaking around the island and waves just starting to crumple into white water. It wasn't a moment before I saw these waves breaking that the call was yelled,"turn around, everyone lets get out of here, turn around." The waves and sea and wind were all raging and so were we. Yelling and hollering it was awesome. We were all so pumped. Eventually we made it past this area though and then there was the long battle against all the elements. We paddled at an alright speed and found a good wind shelter from the Puangiangi islands on the way down. In the islands we saw a "boil up" and Ariel managed to catch a nice sized Kawai which was a highlight. Camp was set up well and we were all excited about how many nights and days we had pulled off and we were all amazed we were yet to get rained on. Though that would change.
Learning: The morning started with our now regular decision making process. We decided to navigate round a small island just off Billhook bay. Here we experienced tidal current meeting opposing wind direction, creating these standing waves that were so often talked about. The rest of the day was spent fighting head winds, tidal currents and swell. Lots of learning was taken in these rougher conditions and we had to be very aware of reefs that now had swell breaking upon them.
Experience: Day four was a bigger day. The morning was amazing but the swell and the tidal currents were going off. We tried to paddle to this island. I took lead boat then all of a sudden things started to pick up. The wave height got huge. I could see reefs breaking around the island and waves just starting to crumple into white water. It wasn't a moment before I saw these waves breaking that the call was yelled,"turn around, everyone lets get out of here, turn around." The waves and sea and wind were all raging and so were we. Yelling and hollering it was awesome. We were all so pumped. Eventually we made it past this area though and then there was the long battle against all the elements. We paddled at an alright speed and found a good wind shelter from the Puangiangi islands on the way down. In the islands we saw a "boil up" and Ariel managed to catch a nice sized Kawai which was a highlight. Camp was set up well and we were all excited about how many nights and days we had pulled off and we were all amazed we were yet to get rained on. Though that would change.
Day 5: Whareatea bay to French pass
Weather: Rain and Thunderstorms in the morning with still wind conditions. Winds picking up mid day to 15 km with gusts of 50 km nor westerly.
Learning: This day was weather crazy, we learned about paddling in thunder storms. We also learn't about paddling in high winds and features created by these high winds. Greater ability in group management was needed and learning skills like eddie hoping with wind break features were applied. Our skills in controlling a boat in strong winds were developed such as, rudder control, edging, sweep strokes and lots of bracing. We also set up an emergency camp, applying tarp skills and quick gear set up in freezing, windy miserable temperatures. The ended with more tidal current calculations and understanding a different way to paddle the French pass.
Experience: It was the last day of the trip and it did not disappoint. What a day. It started with a light drizzle in the morning calm nice conditions. Then the rain picked up ten fold and were scrabbling to pack up camp in bucketing wind conditions. Soon we were all tired and freezing going through our weather process and it was looking bad. The forecast had gotten worse from the day before and we were in for some winds. At that moment though it was calm as anything. Though cold and tired we were excited for what the day had in store. We all new we had to cross the D'Urville peninsular which was the crux move of the trip. Being exposed to a compressing nor westerly.We just put on the water when the lightning hit. The rain was going crazy and bolts of lightning were seen in the distance. One, two, three, four, five, six then the roar of the thunder. It was close but we seemed to have enough distance to paddle, We hugged the coast lines and traveled on this marvelous morning. Soon the rain stop and there was a calm after the storm. We paddled by all these amazing flooding streams and eventually some water falls which was even cooler. We couldn't believe it once again there were huge winds forecast but it was calm as anything. We were nearly around D'Urville peninsular thinking we were in for an easy day when the winds hit. Three hundred meters before making our crux move and then all hell broke loose. Soon willy walls and squalls of winds gusted at us at speeds of 50 km's plus. We were on full game, Paddling, Bracing. Really really trying not to be blown into rocks. We all battled the weather trying to find breaks in the gusts and wind breaks behind features. Finally we made it round the peninsular but it wasn't over. Huge gust were running through the bay and it was still game on. We paddled up to these muscle buoys and used them as nets to catch us if the wind was too strong. I was paddling this journey with Hazel. She was feeling weak and cold all day, worse was we were in the southern light. The huge boat loaded with all the gear. Though we were stable we were heave and easily blown by the wind. When we were in the muscle buoys. It wasn't too bad. We were making distance towards a sheltered beach on the other side of the bay. Then a huge gust roared through. All I see is Tas blown straight into a muscle buoy and him holding on to save his self. I scream paddle Hazel paddle. As the wind blows us towards a muscle buoy. We hit the buoy and are pushed over the rope. The gust stops and I started paddling as hard as I could to get out from in between the buoys. Soon we were marooned on a beach settling up a survival shelter as we waited for the weather to die down. We sat there for an hour and a half before we could paddle again. It was tough work but slowly we made the distance and came close to our last leg. We crossed the French pass earlier than slack tide using the currents pulling in to equalize the wind blowing out of the pass. It worked perfectly, which is good cause two of the boys were pulling three muscle buoys we found on the shore connected to there tow lines. When we made it to the other side we all gathered up and let out a howl you wouldn't believe. We had made it. What a day. What a trip.
Learning: This day was weather crazy, we learned about paddling in thunder storms. We also learn't about paddling in high winds and features created by these high winds. Greater ability in group management was needed and learning skills like eddie hoping with wind break features were applied. Our skills in controlling a boat in strong winds were developed such as, rudder control, edging, sweep strokes and lots of bracing. We also set up an emergency camp, applying tarp skills and quick gear set up in freezing, windy miserable temperatures. The ended with more tidal current calculations and understanding a different way to paddle the French pass.
Experience: It was the last day of the trip and it did not disappoint. What a day. It started with a light drizzle in the morning calm nice conditions. Then the rain picked up ten fold and were scrabbling to pack up camp in bucketing wind conditions. Soon we were all tired and freezing going through our weather process and it was looking bad. The forecast had gotten worse from the day before and we were in for some winds. At that moment though it was calm as anything. Though cold and tired we were excited for what the day had in store. We all new we had to cross the D'Urville peninsular which was the crux move of the trip. Being exposed to a compressing nor westerly.We just put on the water when the lightning hit. The rain was going crazy and bolts of lightning were seen in the distance. One, two, three, four, five, six then the roar of the thunder. It was close but we seemed to have enough distance to paddle, We hugged the coast lines and traveled on this marvelous morning. Soon the rain stop and there was a calm after the storm. We paddled by all these amazing flooding streams and eventually some water falls which was even cooler. We couldn't believe it once again there were huge winds forecast but it was calm as anything. We were nearly around D'Urville peninsular thinking we were in for an easy day when the winds hit. Three hundred meters before making our crux move and then all hell broke loose. Soon willy walls and squalls of winds gusted at us at speeds of 50 km's plus. We were on full game, Paddling, Bracing. Really really trying not to be blown into rocks. We all battled the weather trying to find breaks in the gusts and wind breaks behind features. Finally we made it round the peninsular but it wasn't over. Huge gust were running through the bay and it was still game on. We paddled up to these muscle buoys and used them as nets to catch us if the wind was too strong. I was paddling this journey with Hazel. She was feeling weak and cold all day, worse was we were in the southern light. The huge boat loaded with all the gear. Though we were stable we were heave and easily blown by the wind. When we were in the muscle buoys. It wasn't too bad. We were making distance towards a sheltered beach on the other side of the bay. Then a huge gust roared through. All I see is Tas blown straight into a muscle buoy and him holding on to save his self. I scream paddle Hazel paddle. As the wind blows us towards a muscle buoy. We hit the buoy and are pushed over the rope. The gust stops and I started paddling as hard as I could to get out from in between the buoys. Soon we were marooned on a beach settling up a survival shelter as we waited for the weather to die down. We sat there for an hour and a half before we could paddle again. It was tough work but slowly we made the distance and came close to our last leg. We crossed the French pass earlier than slack tide using the currents pulling in to equalize the wind blowing out of the pass. It worked perfectly, which is good cause two of the boys were pulling three muscle buoys we found on the shore connected to there tow lines. When we made it to the other side we all gathered up and let out a howl you wouldn't believe. We had made it. What a day. What a trip.
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