Getting better on the board!

Day 3
Wednesday we woke up early despite slight hangovers and got back on the bus to start the "road trip" portion of the ride. We headed north towards Byron Bay and stopped off to surf at Crowdy Heads Beach. The waves here were pretty decent but much smaller than the ones from the previous day. We all rode the surf for a few hours in the morning but after lunch most of us decided it was time just enjoy the solid ground. The past few days had been wearing on us and we had some much deserved rest.


That night we stayed at Wai Wai Lodge and watched some surf videos and Point Break starring Keanu Reeves for some encouragement/inspiration! After watching these movies, we were all pretty pumped about surfing the next day.

Day 4
Thursday was pretty exciting for me because I had my best two rides of the trip! We headed north to Yurigui National Park where we set up a camp (tents and all!). The first couple of hours we all just tossed around various balls (football, rugby, soccer, frisbee) and it was so obvious who was from which country! The Americans all caught the football with confidence... had trouble throwing the rugby ball... and ran the other direction when the soccer ball came flying at them whereas the English couldn't throw a football if their lives depended on it! haha!


The beach at Yurigui was not the best for surfing beginners! There were huge pebbles all over the sand on the beach and in the water. The surf was so violent that after being knocked down a million times, it took literally 30 minutes just to get about 20 meters into the waves. As it turns out, all the girls (except for myself and one other) sat the afternoon out... but I forced my way out into the waves! They were HUGE... I paddled out past the breaks with the guys... and caught a huge wave! Yahoo! It was the coolest sensation and I continued to try for another couple of hours. By the end of the session, I could not move my shoulders another stroke so I gave up.




Me with my longboard on the pebble beach.








Jay, Craig (Engl), Felipe (Boston), Jack (Ireland), Tim (Michigan), and Chris (England) inspired by Point Break






I have to say this was my first "real" camping experience! There were no showers, light, or running water and we were so dirty from surfing all day! The sanitation of the surf camp had not been very good all week and it only got worse! We were rinsing our plates/cutlery with dirty water and then putting them back in the drainboard. You would be amazed at how well Meagan and I are adapting! haha I just closed my eyes and pretended it didn't happen! haha

We went on a sunset kangaroo walk and saw a few of them hopping around. This area was so beautiful!











That night all had a few beers around the campfire and then when it got dark, headed down a pitch black trail through the dunes to the beach where we sat around talking under the stars. You can see so many stars here... including the Southern Cross and the Milky Way! (You can't see them from the northern hemisphere!)




Jess, Jay, and Dylan singing at the campfire.






Sleeping in the tent was not that great because the ground was hard as granite and all I brought was a sheet and a pillow. The girl sleeping in the tent with Meagan and I had rented a sleeping bag from the camp and it smelled like cat pee ... so our tent did too! We were freezing and Meagan and I ended up having to snuggle on my pillow with my sheet because she had nothing! ha ha

Day 5
Friday was the surf competition at Broken Heads Beach... not to see who could actually surf but to see who could be the silliest on the board and do the most ridiculous stunts. One guy even surfed naked! He got close to winning but the guy who did the back flip off the board won! After the competition, we all hit the surf and caught some great waves before we rode the bus another few hours towards Byron Bay.


Kyle striking a pose on his surf board!