Day 12 East Coast Low Forced Rest Day

Mother nature 2: Juliana 0

Waking up with yet another stunning ocean view of this beautiful east coast never seems to get old, however it was pretty obvious that the east coast low was having a solid go at hindering the paddle progress for the day. The boys left me in the surf club and suggested i continue sleeping while they did a conditions check. They came back with the news that today would be a lay day to my disappointment.

While the boys were out I spent the time making my own observations of the coastline, i made note of the whales jumping around and moving incredible quickly through the swell  due north-ish. As far as i was concerned things through my eyes looked good to go, at last the swell power and winds in the direction i had been hoping for!

We all headed into town to take another last look at the conditions, once closer to the centre of Port Macquarie, the ocean couldn’t have looked calmer, there was a quiet tranquil stillness about the ocean which fascinated me as i knew the wind lines and incoming swell were quite literally around the corner. It was frustrating to call a day off the water when things looked so ideal, but this is why my crew call the shots over me. They think more on the safety and logistical side than me, where as i simply think woooooo southerly yay!!!

We came back to the surf club base to regroup and re plan, I had such great intentions to explore and go for a run, however sleep got the better of me. I was out cold for hours as the wind continued to build and outside temperatures continued to drop. Fish made moves north as he is off the water and back to reality of his other job over the weekend.  The stand in merman is Tony, this guy is lucky enough to have been on the water with me for 2 days in total now and they have been 2 of my best, so fingers crossed the next few days are just as positive!

Early afternoon i got a call that was exciting enough to lift the lost city of Atlantis from the depths of the ocean… my big Mermaid sister girl Jess (house mate from the Newcastle Mermaid seaside palace) had driven up here to Port! Our excitement was intense, so many hugs, so many girly squeals and giggles, so much to hear and catch up on!

The afternoon was filled with recovery massage, down time, packing, organising, and getting team mermaid all prepped.

This image shows the East Coast Low with our current position being in the eye of the storms power, you know its a big low when it stretches between New Zealand and Australia…