It's not often we get flat spells like this in Otago. There's nearly always a wave to be had somewhere. Of course, we may just be being a little picky.
I had brekky with a surfing mate from Christchurch this past week, and he thought it might be the latter. The waves out in front of our Esplanade table were 1-2 foot and lazy. No one was out. He reckoned if that was in Sumner, there would be 100 people scrambling over it. I did see a few pretty good waves peel through on the sets. Maybe we are just spoilt here.
To be fair, the evening before, I had a swim at Blackhead, which just turned on and filled most of the locals' boots with waves. Hayley Pascoe was "only out for a quick one", but she must have surfed for three hours or more – I lost count of how many barrels she pulled into. I love seeing people get barreled. It's one of the very best moments in surfing.
My work has brought me to Wellington, and there are definitely no barrels here at the moment. Lyall Bay is a meagre 1 foot on the sets, much to the delight of the handful of optimists hoping to snag a wave. It's got a cool vibe here with loads of swimmers and sunbakers, fitness groups, coffee shop lurkers, people watchers and characters with souped-up Skylines doing laps. A little bit of everything.
Next stop for me is a loop into the Waikato, Taranaki, Papamoa and Auckland for a whirlwind moto filming mission.
See you at the beach, Derek
PS If you see something you like hanging in our gallery and would like to take a closer look, then please just email me or call on 021 139 8188. I can have someone let you in and help you with your purchase. Plus we have heaps of books in stock – perfect for Christmas gifts. You can also make a purchase directly from the comfort of your couch: Box of Light Gallery.
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