The weather has been so strange this year and this week has been no exception. However I still managed to paddle 240 kms bringing my total so far in 20 weeks to 4164 kms.
 

After paddling another 240 kms this week I thought I deserved an ice cream when I passed the Sandy Beach ice cream van.

I have had a few paddlers come up to me and are unhappy that the Masters Marathon has been cancelled. These paddlers don't usually go to the Australian Marathon Champs which it conflicts with, but they would have loved to have competed in the Masters Marathon here in WA alongside all the other sports.
 

The Australian Marathon Champs are in Queensland this year which is a long way to go, so being able to compete at home, even though the competition might have been deleted a little would have been a great opportunity for those master paddlers who are not so keen to go the the Australian Championships.
 

I don't know if it is possible to get the Masters Marathon back on the agenda or if there are others out there who would compete in it if it was brought back.
 

There might be paddlers from other states who are disappointed and would have come over if it was on.
 

The TID group at Ascot coached by Matthew and Nicholas Greed.

When the storm came through on Tuesday night John was one of 3 other paddlers who were on the water.

It was actually refreshing to be out there.
 

I met John just before lockdown last year. He wanted to rent a kayak from me because he couldn't work and wanted to try paddling. I gave him a 415 to use as long as he liked. When lockdown was lifted he joined the Progressive Racing Group, first using the 415 and then using an AKC club kayak and then using the Alchemist he has now. Nearly every week he got a PB.

He is now hooked on paddling.

Island to Island Marathon
11.1kms

It was the first Marathon Race of the season which attracted good numbers and some stiff competition in all classes.
The weather was pretty good, the water wasn’t low and there was little boat traffic on the river to swamp anyone. So things were looking good.

Photo Rod Hale.

I was in div 3 as per usual. The fastest grids, the doubles and div 1 and 2 went off first. On the div 3 start line a few paddlers gathered around me in the hope that they were going to hang onto my wash, but that was silly as they were faster sprinters and it was me who was trying to hang on to their wash. I don’t have the fastest start so I am often left behind and have to catch up which happened today, I was left floundering behind Jamie Cartwright, Samuel Welker and Kris Smith. It was my own fault as I didn’t put enough effort into my start. Meanwhile one of my main competitors, Richard Lowther was racing away in the centre of the group with Matt Hutchinson in a V9 close by. Then I saw Jade Lane well ahead of Richard and going like the clappers. I knew Jade was a fast paddler but I didn’t know how fast and by the looks of her speedy start it was going to be impossible to catch her.

So there were three paddlers a long way ahead and I was still trying to pass the other three who were in front of me. By the end of the island, roughly 800 metres from the start I managed to get around them and have a clearer run ahead of me.

Jade Lane powered ahead leading the way in div 3.

Photo Rod Hale.
​​​​​​​

Richard Lowther had a good start so I was behind straight away.

Photo Rod Hale.

There was a bit of wind funneling down the river so most paddlers followed the first group and paddled over to the left to get some shelter. Someone probably worked out the tide was coming in as well. I put as much effort in as I could muster as I wanted to catch Richard which I eventually did just before Garrett Road Bridge. Matt was sitting on Richard’s wash.

I sneaked up and tried to be as quiet as I could so Richard didn’t know I was there. He made no effort to look behind so I thought he wouldn’t know, but as we passed Ron Clarke, Ron shouted, ‘good on you Terry’ and I think my cover was blown.

Richard was putting in a good effort although I wanted him to move further out from the shore to find deeper water especially around the west part of Ascot Waters Island. Matt in his Epic V9 was throwing off a messy wash which made it more difficult for me to washride Richard so I was hoping he was going to drop off, but he didn’t.

When we got to the spit post at the half way mark I managed to cut the corner and get onto Richard’s side wash and I think it was at this point we dropped Matt. Ahead was the double of Stephen and Cynthia Coward and when we caught up Richard went one side and I went the other side both trying to shake each other off but it didn’t work. At this point we knew Jade couldn’t be caught but we could take off 2^nd and 3^rd places so we both were fighting hard.

As we approached the low footbridge in Ascot Waters I sped up and cruised under without paddling. Richard kept paddling to get ahead of me but as he came out he put his right blade in and somehow pulled himself in and capsized himself. The word shit or something similar came out of his mouth. I felt relieved, but I also felt sorry, not just for Richard as he had paddled a great race up to then, but the fact that we weren’t now able to race home together and fight for the line.

Photo Rod Hale.

After Garrett Road Bridge I checked my watch and I could see I was racing in the high 11s and sometimes over 12 kms an hour. The tide and wind must have been in my favour. I could see Rob Roll a few hundred metres in front and he gave me the incentive to try harder to catch him. He went off earlier in div 2.

I was pretty confident that I was going to be the second paddler over the line, after Jade to get home, but after having a glance behind I saw boats catching up. Was it the K2 of Stephen and Cynthia Coward, surely not, but who was it?  Then a few hundred metres before Tonkin Highway Bridge, Gordon Lentz, a relatively newcomer to racing in WA came up beside me with Matt on his tail. It was bugger, now the race was back on to get second place, but not with Richard but with Gordon.

We fought on and started passing Rob Roll but he wasn’t finished and he put some speed on. With two hundred metres to go the pace increased and it was a dash to the line with Gordon just being a nose ahead. I think Gordon had his sights on the finish buoy not realising I was beside him so I nearly missed getting inside the finish buoys as I had no space. 

Gordon did a good job of beating me, but nevertheless it was a great race. I was very happy with my time because I did it in under an hour, 59:44.0 which broke the current 65+ record by 1 minute 26 seconds and established a 70 plus record. It was just a fraction over 11kms.

It was another well organised race. Thanks to Doug and all the volunteers.

Harry Hewitt leads Will Lee but Harry finishes 4th, Will first, John Wilkie second, and Coran Longwood 3rd.
Photo Rod Hale.
​​​​​​​

Coran and John fight it out. 
Photo Rod Hale.
 

Genevieve Stanley, Darryl Long, Amanda Bowman and John Hilton.
They finished in that order.
Photo Rod Hale.
​​​​​​​

Josh Richards, Chris Little, Dave Bergland, Anthony Clarke and Dave Burdett.

They finished: Dave Burdett, Dave Bergland, Anthony Clarke, Josh Richards and Chris Little.

Photo Rod Hale.
​​​​​​​

Bernard Hoffman, Stuart Hide and Jane Pankhurst.

They finished in that order.

Photo Rod Hale.
​​​​​​​

Ray and Anne Smith take on Dave Boldy and Doug Hodson.
They finished in that order.

Photo Rod Hale.
 

Rachel and Ruth Campbell.
Photo Rod Hale.
​​​​​​​

Muhammad Afridi and Corbin Olsen. Corbin won.

Photo Rod Hale.
​​​​​​​

Rhys MacRae looking very professional.

Photo Rod Hale.

The islands and mainland were now quite barren.

Friday 24^th June

Although the wind and waves were hitting us broadside which made paddling uncomfortable we still managed to paddle 17 kms in 3 continuous hours. On Bigge Island to our left Savage Hill dominated it. The hills around us were now a lot more barren than further south.

At Capstan Island we rested on a nice beach in a small cove with sandstone cliffs littered with caves which we explored like kids. Once back on the water we made for Combe Hill Island and straight into a headwind. It is hard to believe that we could get cold up in the tropics but with the wind and the spray drenching us we were actually quite cold when paddling so it was heaven when we landed on the island and didn’t have to paddle any further.

After dragging our gear up, having our usual radio sked and a great cup of coffee our energies returned for a good scramble and climb up the range behind us. We came across several birds, a Brahminy Kite and we disturbed a brush tailed wallaby.

Saturday 25^th June

I slept really well but I dreamt that someone was being taken by a crocodile! I hope the day goes okay for us.

We were sheltered from the wind, the tide was up so we only had 20 metres to carry our gear down to the water so things were looking good. That was until we started paddling east and the wind and waves were hitting us in our faces. But it only got worse. It was hard enough just trying to keep grip of my paddle, to keep my hat from blowing off and to keep upright. We were really being battered so we needed intense concentration.

We decided to head for an island for shelter as we were being beaten up from all directions. Large waves hurled towards us, our bows lifted right up in the air and smashed down into the hollow of the next drenching us completely. My lips were salt ridden, my body cold and only at a few days ago at Kuri Bay we sent most of our warm clothes to Broome. When we reached the island we changed our clothes to get warm but it was still very early in the morning and we had a long way to go.

Looking in our intended direction the conditions looked even worse than what we had gone through so we decided to hang around a while to see if the conditions would improve. When we were ready and warmed up we took a walk around the island and within 150 metres we found an eagles nest sat on top of a huge log. Some of the sticks and twigs were a metre long and inside were two babies and an egg. Flying overhead were the two parents gliding in circles and keeping an eye on us. After a walk around we returned to our beach and watched an eagle swoop down and catch a fish and later landed 200 metres away to have a feed. While the oyster catchers, stints and beach curlews were patrolling our beach Ewen had a snooze.

By 10.30am the wind eased a little or it could have been in my mind because I wanted to get on. I woke Ewen and said it was time to go as the wind had eased but when he looked out he didn’t seem to share my opinion.

Our kayaks had been left high and dry because the tide had been going out so to avoid unloading them completely we lifted them with a struggle across some rocks and into the water.

Once in the water the wind had blown me over 100 metres before I could get my spraydeck on. It was blowing a gale once out of the lee of the cove. We paddled for about an hour before the sea calmed a little and we could relax. Ahead was an island with a tiny beach, a little out of our way but when you need a rest and a pee a few hundred metres didn’t matter.

Because of the rough conditions we had to be careful not to drink too much water when we were doing long distances without landing because it was a difficult task trying to pee in a container in the rough seas. At least the colder conditions saved our water supply.

Back out on the water with 12 kms to go I felt buggered but after eating a muesli bar I started to get my energy back, I started singing for the next hour and I really put some power in every stroke. When we landed I rushed to get the Flying Doctor Radio set up to have a talk with Mike. He had several TV stations wanting to interview them as the end of their year in the wilderness was only a few days away.

It was great to be on the water when the sun came up.

Sunday 26^th June

It was Sunday but not a rest day, in fact I woke up at 4.00am and I asked Ewen if he was awake and if we should make an early start. I heard a grunt so I assumed he heard so I started getting ready. There was no wind, probably a sign of better weather. By 5.20am we were fully packed and ready to go. It was still completely dark so we stood around for 15 minutes until a little light seeped in so we could see.

It was strange to paddle away in the dark with no wind and it wasn’t until 6.05am that the sun started to appear. A red glow came up above the hills from the east. Ewen was excited as he had never seen a sunrise from a kayak in the ocean before. It was a spectacular sight.

The wind started to pick up from the south which made it a bit bumpy but compared with yesterday it was pretty good. We paddled about 10 kms and found an island with a two metre beach between rocks to have our second breakfast. We had eaten all my muesli and we only had Ewen’s muesli that had been tainted by resin left to eat. It wasn’t a good taste and for the next hour or so we were belching a resin taste.

With the wind and current in our favour for once we were making good progress paddling 10kms in 1 hour 40 mins. Within 3 kilometres of Cape Voltaire we sighted several dolphins. One had its dorsal fin sliced about 40cms from its tip. As we rounded the cape the wind started picking up heralding the start of another fight with the wind and the current. There were a couple of nice beaches in Krait Bay but being a little out of our way we decided to head around the next point in an easterly direction and into rolling swells which finished up as large breaking waves hitting a nearby reef.

We decided to land and have lunch. The water was really sparkling blue, crystal clear and shallow with several sharks of all sizes swimming around, I suspect after a meal. A two metre shark kept close to us the entire time but it wasn’t threatening.

The sharks and stingrays were still milling around when we moved away out of the bay and into a sea so rough and bouncy it was enough to make us feel seasick. The current and the wind was so strong we were hardly moving but eventually we left the main tidal race and headed towards Bigge Point, a low piece of land jutting out from a bay.  

After 45 kms and 11 hours of paddling our tired bodies were so happy to reach a beach at Bigge Point to camp. We had paddled 14 kms more than we intended to do to get back on schedule which meant now we only had one more days paddling to go.

Behind the mangroves was a mud flat and a great place for crocodiles to hang out.

Monday 27^th June

We were on the water early watching the sun rise as we paddled towards our final paddling destination. It was our last day on the water with only 32 kms left to paddle which included skirting the mouth of the Mitchell River. Conditions were a little better but still challenging so we were happy when we reached the bay fronting Crystal Creek. A falling tide had left our only access, being a narrow channel which cut through a mangrove swamp and the home we had been told of two saltwater crocodiles quite shallow. We had the choice of trying to reach the end of the creek before the water disappeared completely and possibly become stranded or spend another night in the bay and wait for a high tide in the morning. We decided to chance it.

It was a little concerning paddling between lines of mangroves especially when they became narrow and it was impossible for us to escape, but luckily we didn’t see any crocs on the prowl. Finally we reached the end of the creek where we could go no further and were confronted by a muddy, slippery mass of oyster laden rocks and steep muddy banks. It looked an evil place and our memories lingered back to the croc attack 3 weeks earlier. As we shunted nervously towards a barrage of muddy boulders we could see our Kimberley banner tied up on the cliff face so we knew Duncan and Dennis were around. The water soon disappeared and we became stranded and endured a three hour struggle to hoist our gear over the slippery oyster laden boulders to the top of the cliff to where we hoped Dennis and Duncan would be. We were lucky not to have injured ourselves.    

We could paddle no further.

Our final paddle destination.

It was a difficult task carrying all our gear and kayaks up over the muddy oyster laden boulders.

On My Paddles
 

I spotted a person, possibly young looking at the push bike camped out at Reg Bond Park on Tuesday morning. I hope they found a better place Tuesday night when we had the real storm.
 

The young Spoonbills are growing fast.
 

Every morning on my paddles upstream I look for Kingfishers that I have got to known along my way.
 

As you can see from the vines it will soon be Christmas and grape season.
There are a huge amount of duck been breeding along this section of river at Caversham.

These brush fences are made to stop erosion along the river but within a short time they break up leaving just the stakes which become more of a danger than a use.
 

The brush is gone leaving just the stakes and erosion continues to happen as the brush is not replaced when it gets washed away.

Kris Metcher in Safety Bay

A Sea Lion checks out Kris.

Photo Kris Metcher 
 

Hi what's happening up there!

Photo Kris Metcher 
 

Photo Kris Metcher 

Low Water Level

Kris Smith and Steph Bedden went for a paddle on the Moore River but found it wasn't as high as it usually is. With the sand bar open the water from the Moore River just flows straight out rather than back up and create a deep river when the bar is closed.

There is a month to go before we have a race on the Moore River. Lets hope the bar will close and the water will return.
 

The break in the sandbar has caused the river to be very low.

Photo Kris Smith.
 

Upstream there is virtually no water.

Steph stands in the middle of the channel.
Photo Kris Smith.
 

There used to be water!!

Someone please close the sand bar.

Ascot Kayak Club

31st October

Bayswater Paddle Sports.

Regatta 3 has moved from Saturday 30 October to Sunday 31 October 8.30 am Bayswater. Further details to follow but some K4 action is on the cards including the popular 6km K4 dice around Ascot Island.

COURSE OVERVIEW

The Basic Skills Course is delivered by our Paddle Academy instructors, and is designed for anybody wanting to learn the essential paddling strokes and safety skills to go paddling in WA. Individuals of any paddling ability will benefit from this course, and all participants will receive a certificate following completion of the course. A variety of paddling skills, safety and rescue techniques will be taught in the program, including

• Preparation of paddle craft and equipment
• Launching and landing your craft
• Correct paddling posture
• Paddling strokes and the correct technique
• ‘Rafting up’
• Assisting with deep water rescues

Cost: $120 (adults) or $80 (under 18)

All equipment is provided (kayak, paddle, life jacket), but please feel free to use your own craft if you wish.

Note: the minimum age is 12

INSURANCE

All participants will be covered under the Paddle Australia Insurance for the duration of the basic skills course only.

If you wish to purchase a direct membership with Paddle WA for just $85 to get 24/7 insurance coverage, visit paddlewa.asn.au/direct-membership or contact develop@paddlewa.asn.au

Mandurah Duel

Date: November 14, 2021

SPECIAL FEATURES

• Electronically timed
• Ocean ski VS Outrigger VS SUPs VS Kayaks for line honours
• Close to shore

ENTRY FEES

• Single Craft – $60*
• Double Craft – $100*
• OC6 – $300*

* Fees include Mandurah Duel cap

The Mandurah Duel is a 12.5km multi-class ocean event on one of Australia's best downwinder runs. All classes of craft battle it out for line honours as they follow the coast from the Dawesville Cut to the Mandurah Ocean Club (which hosts the event) at Halls Head.

Enter here:

https://secure.onreg.com/onreg2/front/step1.php?sessionname=fc5aff7d400b794e35f5f76f0be93963&id=5433