Two months ago I had just got in Perth after a mammoth 3 days long trip. I was testing a new way of flying to Australia as it's getting more and more difficult to get there with windsurf equipment. Excess luggage turned out to be really cheap for the 90 kg of boardbags indeed, and the trip another very long story.
To make it short, I first had to drive (well, my Mum had to drive me...) the 3 hours to Zurich airport as there were no flight departing from where I live. In Zurich I was told that my passport, which was a little ripped on the side, wouldn't be accepted in Thailand and I had to go and get a new one done. Good start...
My flight was going from Zurich to Bangkok via Germany, and after a 24 hours stopover in Thailand it was going from Bangkok to Singapore, and finally from Singapore to Perth. What I didn't know was that I had to pick up all my bags and check them in again every time. Luckily Asian people are very kind, and the whole airport staff, including policemen and customs police, ended up getting involved in carrying my boardbags around. After 60 hours of travelling I actually made it to Perth, where the sun, wind and waves were waiting.
October is still early in the season, which means we get a lot of different kind of weather. It can be glassy and very hot one day, and raining with howling westerly winds the following day. I like it a lot as we get to do different things and sail lots of different conditions and spots.
There is always a place to windsurf here, whatever the wind direction. So the first few weeks I got to spend a lot of time on the water, freestyling and wave sailing. One of the best day so far was a Saturday in Lancelin, with a really strong seabreeze and half mast to logo high waves.
I love it when we get such good conditions over the weekend because every one is there. We ended up sailing with quite a few mates, all of them ripping, getting sick rides and big jumps. Scotty McKercher, Ben Severne, Simon Hurrey, and a few more of the guys were there. It's a great inspiration to sail with them, I love it. We had a similar day on the river with strong westerly wind, a lot of friends were there as well, and everyone was loving it and trying lots of moves. You get these special days every now and then when the atmosphere and everything else is just perfect. These are the days you remember for a very long time.
Western Australia is such a unique place, for the windsurfing, the surfing, the beach and the sea, and lots more of course, but also for the lifestyle. Life here is relaxed and simple, it's all about enjoying it. And that's what people do!
My van is packed and as full as it can possibly get, and we're literally about to hit the road.
We're heading up north as the forecast is really good, with swell and wind for as far as we can see. We'll stop in Geraldton for a few days first, then if all goes to plan we should be going to Gnaraloo...
What a life!
