The birds and frogs in our back garden!

Perfect One Day - Shit The Next

After Alaine and I raced on Sunday I was feeling pretty good. After a good meal and a big ice cream at the harbour I was feeling even better but by 10.00pm that night I was shivering uncontrollably, worse than I have ever shivered in my life before.

Through the night the shivers turned into sweats. Three days in bed I thought I had some sort of bug with no sore throat, no cough and no runny nose and I also thought my swollen leg that I got was because I had hardly moved in that time but after seeing the doc he said I had Cellulitis and that was why I had the shivers.

So all week I haven’t paddled and it looks as if I won’t paddle for another week or two, maybe more, it’s hard to know as I’m told that Cellulitis can take a while to heal and in some cases life threatening.

It isn’t a good time to be sitting around with my leg up. So far this week I have missed a funeral, a PRG training session, the AKC Christmas party and there are more things to come but I'm lucky to be here rather than overseas somewhere. I had planned a ten day ocean paddle over Christmas New Year period which is now in doubt.

But although this little setback is unfortunate I have had a really good enjoyable year of local paddling so I can’t really complain. My break from paddling, which I do hope will be short will now give Doug, Jayden, Sharon and my other competitors a little time to do some extra training,-  they need it if they are going to convincingly beat me!!

 

So my Cellulitis is in my left leg and the swelling has moved up my leg and passed my groin. The doc said it’s more serious than it looks, so rest, there is no paddling or exertion until it heals.

Cellulitis is a bacterial infection of the skin that tends to occur on the lower legs and in areas that are damaged or inflamed. The infection can spread to the rest of the body and serious complications can occur.

Prior to the development of antibiotics, cellulitis was fatal. With the introduction of penicillin, most people recover fully within a week so let’s hope I’m one on them.

Cellulitis usually occurs in skin areas that have been damaged or inflamed for other reasons, such as an insect bite, burn, abrasion, a cut, or a foreign object in the skin, such as metal or glass. It’s been easy to get a cut or two on my legs as I’m so old with wrinkly skin and being in the Swan River so much probably hasn’t helped.

with her new kayak

Selection Announcement
A mid-season selection for the Sprint WASPS Squad also occurred at the LiveLighter Sprint Regatta #4 held at Champion Lakes in November.
Congratulations to those who were selected to the squad:

Abbey Major*, David Burdett*, Femke Negus*
Lily Boisvert*, Selma Alibegovic*, Stephan Weyers*
Gabrielle O'Callaghan, Hana Vanek, Harriet Brown
Jeremy Alderson, Matthew Greed, Morgan Boldy
Nicholas Greed, Noah Boldy, Olivia Berson
Sam Meyers, Tim Hyde, Tyson Wright, Zac Evans

Sprint WA Update
The WA Sprint State Championships are coming up on the 30th & 31st January 2021, so get ready to race in the new year. The 2019 championships had 116 participants, making it the biggest sprint state championships in Australia.

Sprint WA have recently created a Masters Women's Sprint training squad which was sold out in under 24 hours! The lucky 24 ladies who registered will undergo specialised training under the wings of Olympians and coaches Ramon Andersson and Jesse Phillips, and will contest the WA Sprint State Championships next year.

Mandurah Canals Race

It wasn’t the sunny Mandurah we usually have in December but for racing the temperature was perfect.

Alaine was up from Augusta again so we paddled the double Epic V10. We also took down a V8 for Jane and a V8pro for Isabel. It felt a bit wintry and although I hadn’t seen the river I thought it might be a little rough. Most people paddled skis however some of the top kayakers chose kayaks.

By 8.45am the briefing was over and we were getting ready, the slower grids going off first. In this race we had to paddle out of the boat harbour canals, head across and along the river, move into more canals, cross the river into a canal, turn and head back across the river into the canals again taking a shorter route, back across the river and take a long way round to the finish. Complicated!!  Certainly was. Best look at the map.

To make it much easier for paddlers though, the Mandurah Paddle Club paddlers were stationed at every corner making sure we didn’t take the wrong route. Thaks guys.

The start of div 4. The jetty is the start line.

Photo Britt-marie Good-gerne
 

Para paddler Mark Daniels.
Photo Britt-marie Good-gerne
 

Jane Dooley, Peter Ward and Isabel Combe in my Epic demo skis.

Photo Britt-marie Good-gerne

 

A dolphin swims in front of Isabel.
 Photo Isabel Combe.
 

Warren Southwell passing Paul McLaren.

Photo Britt-marie Good-gerne 
 

Noah Boldy and Peter Pawlow. 
Photo Britt-marie Good-gerne

Alaine and I started close to the jetty but by the time the race started most paddlers drifted across with the wind and were being squashed between the heavyweights of the K3 and Mark and Francis in the Epic double. As we all took off the guys either side didn’t care if we got smashed in the face. Luckily we didn’t, but paddled clashed and to avoid injury we let them go.

We were hoping to be close to Ray and Anne as we were close in one of the earlier races but they have got a lot better since then and they were able to get on the wash of Doug and Dave and got away, however we still had Michael and Sally and Stephen & Cindy Coward in our field of view. As luck should have it Michael and Sally came up on our left side and we were able to do some wash-riding out into the river. To my surprise the river was calmer than I expected which was good news for the paddlers with stability issues. There were few power boats as well which might have been partly due to the cloudy weather we were experiencing.

The first two turns were right handers so we were able to gain a few metres on the turns but Michael and Sally would come back at us. I wasn’t too keen to try to outpace them but keen enough to want to keep up with them. I knew Michael was either faster or as fast as me and Sally in theory should have been faster than Alaine as this was only about the fifth time Alaine had paddled this year so I had to make sure I didn’t go too fast and tire Alaine out.

We were passing many huge houses and Santa’s and Christmas decorations which we really couldn’t appreciate as weaved along the canals. We came to a left hand corner and immediately after we came to a low narrow arched bridge and no room for two boats to move through. Michael and Sally had the lead so we fell back and rode their tail wash until I saw a chance to get beside them again. We had already passed a few of the slower paddlers like Julie and Ray and now we started passing Jane and Isabel and a few others. We came alongside Michael and Sally just before crossing the river which wasn’t too bumpy. The turn buoy was at the end of the next canal and Michael and Sally had the inside line and the advantage however we didn’t lose any ground.

First and second placing Will Lee and Luke Dooley. 
Photo Britt-marie Good-gerne
 

Michael Leahy and Sally Harris setting the pace.

Luckily our pace lifted and theirs dropped.

Back out in the river I saw Peter and Ross floundering a little and within a few metres Michael steered a slightly different tack to us and we started leaving them behind which was good news. By the time we were back in the canal we were many metres ahead which I hadn’t expected. I thought they were saving their energy. With rejoice in my paddling mood I decided to take advantage of the gap and started putting the pressure on hoping that Alaine had enough energy to just keep paddling on our shorter route back. Next we passed Kris who I have never seen on a ski before, he said he felt strange, and further along Kate and Steph. Once we passed them Kate broke away from Steph and tried keeping up with us without success.

Once we got back across the river and into our final kilometre and with Michael and Sally so far behind we knew they couldn’t beat us so we were happy to cross that line. I was pretty stoked that Alaine could paddle so hard with so little training.

It was then presentation time, a fish and chip meal, an ice cream and the drive home.

These two, Julie McDonald and Ray Smith are good buddies and their racing is always close. 

Photo Britt-marie Good-gerne
 

The Progressive Racing Group after having another enjoyable race.

Kimberley Kayaking 1982

part 22
 100 Days Solo

The Last Days

With the food packs low and water virtually exhausted it didn’t take me long to load the kayak and escape the menacing mosquitoes. I was really remote, the weather was extremely hot and getting hotter, I was being chased and hit by sharks, it was harder to find water so I was ready to call it a day at Mitchell Plateau, rather than carrying on to Wyndham. I had been away from Perth for four months and I estimated it would take about 6 weeks to finish the trip if I carried on. This meant it would be December before I reached Wyndham. The wet season was due, and the heat was becoming unbearable. Also the crocodile breeding season was imminent and I had been warned that this was when they were at their most aggressive. I could have hurried to finish the distance, but the whole point of the trip was to see and do as much as I could in whatever time I had. I now just knew it was time to pull out, but I promised myself if I did I would return to finish the expedition next year.

My pull out point which was only a few kilometres away encouraged me to paddle quicker around Crystal Head. At this point I could see Warrender Hill and a bay with several sandy beaches and further around MacGregor Point, high hills, cliff faces and then a big bay with mangroves took my divided attention. I was just hoping to land without any more shark hits or crocodiles chases. The end didn’t look that far from here.

By the time I reached Walsh Point at Mitchell Plateau nearly 100 days had passed since I had left Broome and now it was all over. What an unbelievable, amazing trip I had had. I pulled ashore to see a trickle of water filtering along the creek. With only 1 litre left I was overjoyed that I was saved. If the creek hadn’t been running I would have been in deep shit. I was pretty happy, although I was sad to be at the end of my journey.

An old shed with only a handful of tin sheets on its roof was standing precariously near the track not that far from the water’s edge. I carried my gear across to it and made myself at home.

Walsh Point, Point Warrender, Mitchell Plateau.
 

My plan now was to store my gear in the kayak and walk to the Mitchell Plateau mining camp in the hope to get a mail plane out to Kununurra at a later date. The next morning my luck was in after starting my walk. A four wheel drive vehicle drew up and offered me a lift to the camp. I didn’t argue as it was 40 kilometres away.

I was overjoyed to have reached the mining camp, although the last 100 days alone had been amazing, and it would be hard for me to do such a diverse trip ever again. With so much excitement behind me I was now feeling it was really time to go home.

I had been communicating with the camp up until 4 weeks ago, as they had agreed to hold a food parcel for me that I had sent there, but by the time I arrived the camp had been closed for 2 weeks leaving only a caretaker to look after the camp. I walked into the mess room and met the caretaker and his wife. They had been farmers in the wheat belt and now looking after the camp. I expected a good welcome as they wouldn’t have met many people who had paddled the Kimberley coast but when I told them about the sharks and the dangers I experienced it didn't impress them and they thought of me more of a fool than an explorer. 

When I suggested that I wanted to wait around until Thursday to get the mail plane out to civilization, he told me that I couldn’t wait at the mining camp as it was private property. I was shocked to here that. I was in the middle of nowhere and ready to give up my trip, and they tell me I couldn’t stay. I then told them I would camp down at the creek and wait there, but he said I couldn’t because it was private company property as well. Now I really couldn’t believe what I was hearing. How could any decent person turn me away! Knowing that I was a POM apparently didn't help.

I asked if my food drop was there, but apparently it was involved in a vehicle accident and never arrived, but he did offer to give me some left-over food from the mess to get me to my next food drop in Kalumburu. He also offered me a single men’s room for the night, one of about 40 vacant rooms in the camp. I made myself at home with the unbelievable thoughts that I was being sent back into the wilderness. I wasn’t happy.

There was a library of videos in the room so I watched Charles Bronson in Death Hunt. It was a good film but I was saddened by the fact that after thinking I was headed home I wasn't now going home. I had to get my mind back into shape and accept I wasn’t going home but it was hard to do. After a good cry I mentally got my head back to where it needed to be and focused on the trip ahead. I had just done a 100 days so a few more wouldn't hurt.    

Morning brought no good news. The caretaker hadn’t changed his mind, but he did give me some rice and old dried fruit to keep me going for the next 10 days. He also offered me a lift to the weather station some kilometres towards the coast, which at least saved me a few kilometres of walking. The break might have been short but having water again and a couple of days rest, I was ready for the next stage. 

We said our goodbyes which weren't very sincere and I started my walk towards my kayak. At least it was downhill a lot of the way and it gave me time to get in an even better frame of mind and except that I was returning to the ocean and soon be on my way to Kalumburu. By the time I reached the kayak I was ready physically, mentally and actually happy that I was heading out. I'm back!

Getting my gear ready to leave again.

After one more night in the shed the tide was well out in the morning when I walked down through the mud with my kayak and gear 50 metres from shore. I was completely packed and sitting on my kayak waiting for the tide to reach me when a couple in a small Suzuki 4 x 4 shouted to me. They said the caretaker had told them what he had done and they were so angry with him and couldn’t believe it. They were there to offer me a lift to Kununurra.

Now I was in a dilemma. I had convinced myself to go on, now I had this offer. What do I do?

The lifeline was too good to let go, so we carried all my gear back to the shed then dug a big hole to bury my kayak as it was too big and heavy to load onto the small Suzuki and take home. It would spend the wet season here.

On the way out on the rugged track we didn’t stop at the mining camp as we didn’t want anything to do with the caretakers. It was a rough track virtually all the way to Wyndham where we met the bitumen and then they dropped me off in Kununurra. I was very thankful. I then hitch hiked back to Perth taking 10 days.

The kayak was dug up 5 months later by a friend living in Kununurra. I also returned to finish the trip that year.

In the meantime my friends who offered me a lift out complained to the mining company about the caretakers and when I arrived back at the mining camp a year later after finishing a trip from Wyndham to Mitchell Plateau, the caretakers weren't very pleased and chased me out of the camp. That trip and many others as they say - is another story.

My kayak was buried for five months before being dug up.

At the World Masters 2019 Canoe Marathon in China.

Birds on Ron Courtney Island
 

A Darter on the north end of the island.
 

A Darter just off the south end of the island.
 

A Moorhen on the west side of the island.
 

A Egret on the eastside of the island.

Used Time Traveller
Good condition

Length 6.0 Metres  Width 54 cm   Cockpit: Keyhole

The Time Traveller is a stable, fast kayak suitable for most levels.

With rudder and pedal steering.

I'm selling it for a friend.

Used. $1500.00

Flatwater Guide Courses 2021

Paddle WA Board Member and senior instructor Leonie Cockman is running a series of Flatwater Guide courses for kayak, canoe and sit-on-top craft. Leonie is also able to qualify Flatwater Instructors on request.

Upcoming Courses
12th/13th January 2021 - Ascot Kayak Club
8th/9th February 2021 - Ascot Kayak Club
11th/12th February - Denmark TBC

Contact Leonie on education@paddlewa.asn.au for more information and bookings.