THj Swell reports

Notes from smalltownsurfcountry 19/08/2018

my favourite bend in the road

The biggest news of the week is ….. drum roll …. SMART Drum Lines, a tag and release program for sharks. This is a change of mind from the WA govt, who have now agreed to trial some science in Gracetown – see above fav bend in road photo.

This has been met with Yays and Hmmmms in town. Im on the side of science and not killing stuff. Some aren’t so keen on having a nibbles platter on hand for any passing creature.

Other conversational topics popular at the tail end of winter here are the water temperature drop, the wind speeds – a friend declared 30knots was her cut off the other day-

Thawing feet

the empty shops in town- more closing soon and with them the scapegoating of Airbnb when really everyone is suffering from ‘brokeness’ (except the banks).

the sharks haven’t helped as a tourist drawcard in a tourist town. so i hope the smart drum lines will help abate those fears.

The most common talk however is from holiday returnies who’ve left for their annual winter pilgrimage and returned with tanlines. everyone’s always going somewhere it seems at this time of year.

yet this years sojourns have had a twist…

‘how was your holiday ? ‘terrifying!’ was one exchange. Terrified had been in Lombok during the recent earthquake.

So Im liking my little corner of the world, i just hope i don’t have to keep paying 3.50 $ a cucumber… Here’s a shot of my favourite bay with a little bit of low tide chaos goin’ on. Xthj

tarhairedjack- news, events and adventures

The THJ Swell report 10/08/2018

Notes from smalltownsurfcountry

The sun has finally come out today after two weeks which has seen hail and more hail, several severe weather warnings, then more rain, westerlies for days and now a southerly.

And I forgot my hood! So I put a 1ml Mattus rashie over my 4/3 and was toasting. The strong current running through Huzzas made for a lot of paddling which is also good for warmth. I switched off for a moment a few times and took a few on the head- you know when your mate laughs and says ‘yeah I saw you get nailed’. Lesson to self – FOCUS !

A lot of People leave town here for at least some part of winter, so if you find yourself in Bali or Gnarloo surrounded by Margaret River people it’s because if they don’t odds are they’ll have a vitaminD deficiency by the end of winter.

Two more shops are set to close soon on the Main Street as surviving through another winter was too economically challenging and right now Western Australia is up there for mortgage defaults so the money isn’t going around. Most people perceive Margaret River to be a well to do place, rich in natural beauty is more the case.

And we have whooping cough, with at least eight cases reported. So between the sharks, the economic downturn, the weather and clusters of disease the waves are not so crowded.

So long xthj

THj Swell reports

Soooo bored

Are you one with your surfboard? synchronised and pure of thought? in unison seeking waves, hunting and gathering wave counts or stuck in a perpetual haze of youth, sunsets and post surf drinks?

Well thats not me either….i wish i was more one with my board then perhaps together we could do small great things on waves of substance majestically … sorry drifting off…

I think what makes people surf or swim with a fervour that’s akin to a rather large cult is very interesting and cuts deep into how we connect as humans to each other and to our planet.

Humour, friendship and that oceanic feeling , shared or alone out there in the wildness of the ocean.

So I think of this cartoon in two ways 1. you are of the chosen few who become one with their boards or 2. you are just bored, bored with life, with the sameness of the same old surf stories being oushed around, bored with predictability.

If its no. 2 find some mates and hit the water no matter what state its in (but be safe).

xthj