The children are away. It’s half term and they’ve been kidnapped by their grandparents. I’ve just done my first four nights, got home from the latest 12-8 graveyard shift an hour before and with Flo beside me in my van and her car deposited at Gunton we’re heading for Gorleston to paddle the six or seven miles south with the remains of the flood. Flo doesn’t do the sea but I reckon it’ll be a nice easy one that might spark an enjoyment. It would have been if the conditions hadn’t changed…
From south west to south east, from force 3 to force 5, things went wrong as we drove north and, on arrival, all we could see were two yaks playing in the waves rebounding off the pier. Bugger. Still, we’d come all this way so we may as well take the Scupper and Chatham off the roof.
We reach the water’s edge. It looks okay, a bit bumpy but nothing too dramatic to the south. I launch Flo and she paddles out; I tell her to keep going and not stop, meaning until she’s past the breakers.
I pull the Chatham closer, sit in and pull my deck around me…fingers crossed…I push myself out and go, breaking my way through the waves. Blimey, this is lively. The big problem is the wind, it’s overpowering the tide and Flo is being pushed backwards, towards the harbour wall. There’s plenty of clapotis in the cauldron here and frankly this is way out of her enjoyment levels…I head out and soon get close enough for her to hear…turn around, we’re going in.
She’s not really enjoying herself to be honest, she’s paddling away as instructed but is somewhat concerned about turning around, convinced that she is likely to go over at any minute. Not unfounded in all honesty, the sea is getting pretty nasty here right now. Still, she’s in the Scupper so she should be fine; I on the other hand have felt my right-side footpeg go shooting forward out of the notch and can only brace on the left so it’s all down to leaning and paddling…thank god for all the playing i‘ve had in the waves close to shore in the past because I’m not convinced that I won’t be swimming soon either. But I’m waterproof. Anyway, we turn and start to head in, I point out a landmark to aim for that should keep her away from the pier and off we go. She comes in closer to the beach but I want to land further down where the waves are a bit easier to land through and then I watch as a larger set comes through…uh oh!
3-4ft of wave curls up to her side, she’s beam on to it. I suspect she’s going to get rolled and turn towards her though I can’t do a lot. Her head disappears behind the wall of water and it breaks. Blimey! She’s made it! She’s brace-stroked her way out of it and though she is visibly stressed she’s stayed upright without even knowing how to cope with that. She takes another and then it flattens and I tell her to turn in and paddle. She does, hits the beach and hops out. I follow, landing surprisingly smoothly, and hop out. Hands shaking, she apologises but I’m having none of it – it was no fun and there aren’t that many people who would have stayed out in it. We load up and head back home. Oh well.
I pull the Chatham closer, sit in and pull my deck around me…fingers crossed…I push myself out and go, breaking my way through the waves. Blimey, this is lively. The big problem is the wind, it’s overpowering the tide and Flo is being pushed backwards, towards the harbour wall. There’s plenty of clapotis in the cauldron here and frankly this is way out of her enjoyment levels…I head out and soon get close enough for her to hear…turn around, we’re going in.
She’s not really enjoying herself to be honest, she’s paddling away as instructed but is somewhat concerned about turning around, convinced that she is likely to go over at any minute. Not unfounded in all honesty, the sea is getting pretty nasty here right now. Still, she’s in the Scupper so she should be fine; I on the other hand have felt my right-side footpeg go shooting forward out of the notch and can only brace on the left so it’s all down to leaning and paddling…thank god for all the playing i‘ve had in the waves close to shore in the past because I’m not convinced that I won’t be swimming soon either. But I’m waterproof. Anyway, we turn and start to head in, I point out a landmark to aim for that should keep her away from the pier and off we go. She comes in closer to the beach but I want to land further down where the waves are a bit easier to land through and then I watch as a larger set comes through…uh oh!
3-4ft of wave curls up to her side, she’s beam on to it. I suspect she’s going to get rolled and turn towards her though I can’t do a lot. Her head disappears behind the wall of water and it breaks. Blimey! She’s made it! She’s brace-stroked her way out of it and though she is visibly stressed she’s stayed upright without even knowing how to cope with that. She takes another and then it flattens and I tell her to turn in and paddle. She does, hits the beach and hops out. I follow, landing surprisingly smoothly, and hop out. Hands shaking, she apologises but I’m having none of it – it was no fun and there aren’t that many people who would have stayed out in it. We load up and head back home. Oh well.
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