Life is Good

The fine weather during April has slid into equally good weather in May, and, after six weeks of solid training all I can think about is doing things instead of merely preparing to do things. On Saturday we went rock climbing in summer weather – warm and a bit sticky, especially for May. Sunday, Splashalot emerged on the promise of “interesting conditions” for my regular Sunday sea kayak but the strong wind never eventuated so instead of a downwind paddle with a solid easterly swell, we went to catch some waves on the Batemans Bay bar. The swell had popped up to an average of two metres with much bigger sets coming through which makes for good waves on the bar. Nick’s Big Foot (the footplate installed in Expedition Kayaks plumb bow kayaks) came adrift so he finished up the rides without any ability to sit himself firmly in the kayak.

Monday I headed out for a rip around the Mogo trails on my mountain bike. There was a misty drizzle as I rode to the trail-head which thickened a bit and became outright rain down at the Botanic Gardens so I cycled home in the rain cutting the ride short as all I had was a light and very worn out wind-break.

Tuesday and Wednesday we went up to Tianjara Falls to climb. The weather was perfect, some sun on the crags around the middle of the day, not too cold, and no westerly wind slamming against the cliffs. I usually plan our climbing trips up on the Braidwood Road for later in the year because early season we are always so out of rock climbing shape, particularly if it’s been a hot summer or we have been off on a big sea kayaking trip over the summer. But this year, we went early. Half to escape the ticks that infest the coastal areas and half because it always gets hard later in the year to find a few consecutive days that are warm enough and without the incessant winter westerlies.

The professional climbers love cold conditions to increase friction, but Doug and I are old, and all the cold does is prevent us from ever warming and limbering up. The climbs feel much harder than they should when that westerly blows and you are deep in shade the entire day. The Floatel, as we call our van, was fantastic. We parked in a bit of state forest and had a quiet camp with a view to the ocean and a big full moon overhead. I walked about in the woods as the sun set, happy that I can do that again without having to worry about aggravating any injuries. Life is good.