I wrote what I thought was the final instalment of this series back in 2017, but seven years have passed and a lot has happened in that time. The sense of connection to the ocean and the way it has been woven into our lives has both increased, but it has also been the source of our greatest tragedy.
When you teach your kids to love the ocean you never think it will claim their life. Despite what we know of the risks and dangers it’s hard to imagine you, or someone close to you, will be that person who literally ends their life in the water. If you’ve been reading my blog for a while then you would know that earlier this year our son Sam, died while free-diving, but I will come back to that later.
As my 50s drew to an end I reflected with friends that I think I may have surfed more in this decade than I did in my teen years – which is really saying something. I can think of many days when I have driven home in the dark after my third surf for the day at our local beach. Like the fat kid at the buffet, I just kept going back for more even though I was spent and had no more energy. It just seemed too good to waste an opportunity to be in beautiful waves with good friends. Some days we would sit out there and reflect that you could pay lots of money to go on a surf adventure and not get pristine conditions like we have in our backyard.
Speaking of surf travel, in this time we made another trip to Medewi, not as successful as the first, but still a lot of fun. It seemed the crowds had increased even more and it took the edge off the enjoyment. I doubt we will go back again. It was also the period during which Sam and I went to Siargo in the Philippines, another trip that didn’t quite turn out as expected. Sam got a bad flu on the way over and was smashed and out of action for the first 3 days of the trip. Meanwhile on those days I surfed a wave in the village where we stayed, a perfect, uncrowded right and left that was out of the main surfing hotspot areas. I had 3 days of amazing waves while Sam was sick. On day 4 it delivered it’s final push of swell just as Sam was emerging from his fug. Sadly he missed the best of it and the rest of the trip was spent surfing scrappy waves in crazy crowds and not really enjoying it. I paddled out at famous ‘Cloud 9’ on a small day, but it was infested with locals who didn’t want to share, so I picked up one or two small waves before giving it away. Bummer…
On the second last day of that trip, Lucy, our dog died and Danelle sent a text advising me, but suggesting I didn’t tell Sam. That didn’t go to plan as Sam picked up my phone when the message came in and just happened to see the news. It definitely took the edge off a surf adventure that was already not going well for him. But if I’ve learnt anything it is to not get your hopes up when on surfing adventures because the weather, swell and conditions are not privvy to my holiday plans and may not be cooperative.
These days I’d hesitate before doing an overseas surf trip. Unless there is a heap else to do, it could just be a very long and frustrating couple of weeks – and there are so very few places now that are uncrowded. That said if you know of a place where there are fun waves, no crowds and a water temp of above 20 lemme know and I will be there!
As Sam got older his surfing improved and he began to surf more challenging waves – bigger than I was happy to venture into any more. Increasingly I realised that my capacity for heavy hold downs was diminishing and I needed to be more calculating about what I was capable of. It was humbling and even a little embarrassing to set off on a 5 day solo surf trip to Horrocks and surrounds only to arrive and see double overhead waves rolling thru and then realise I lacked the confidence to paddle out. Time is catching up with me.
As Sam was moving onto bigger things Ellie was just getting moving. I can’t remember exactly when she started surfing, but I do remember the first day we drove down to Mettams to watch her. I expected to see her flailing around in the white water and maybe making it to her feet on the odd occasion. I had no idea she had been spending hours in the water practising, so when I saw her paddle into a set wave, snap to her feet and then ride it thru to shore I literally jumped off the concrete bench I was sitting on and cheered and carried on like a madman. My daughter was a surfer… It was like one of my greatest joys – both of my kids were ocean lovers and surfers.
Sam’s love of the ocean expanded to free-diving where he and his partner, Cosi, caught some very big fish. The Hamilton name has not been associated with fishing until this time, but maybe we were just doing it wrong… Perhaps a speargun is the easiest way to land a good catch. As they grew in confidence Sam and Cosi headed further out to sea in their kayak, always in search of the best catch. Getting the news on March 24th this year that Sam had drowned while fishing is still utterly devastating. Perhaps if we had not been ‘ocean people’ it never would have happened… you think these things. I don’t think I can write anything more about that. It just ‘is’ a reality in our lives now. Sam is dead – gone… The place that has been the source of such great joy in our lives is now forever a place of deepest sadness.
In 2021 we did another ‘lap’ of the country and I was eagerly anticipating another surf-fest as part of that trip. When we left home my back was sore and I had a bit of sciatic pain, limiting my movement and ability to ‘pop-up’. I managed a few surfs in South Oz, Vic and even Tassie before I managed to bugger up my back further by heaving a generator in and out of the back of our ute. More than anything I was looking forward to the NSW coastline with its never ending bays and points but by the time we reached Newcastle I could barely move. I tried a couple of surfs with Sam when the kids joined us for a bit, but I just couldn’t pop-up without pain shooting down my leg. I persisted for a few more surfs – ever hopeful – but all I was doing was getting angry and frustrated. We landed in the Gold Coast during a lock down, which coincided with a heavy swell, meaning Snapper to Kirra was all lining up and looking sensational. I was half glad I couldn’t paddle out as the size of wave and the rip pulling north would have seen me being ‘that guy’ who just didn’t know his limitations!
Back surgery was next and while it wasn’t a perfect fix, a year of strength training and stand up paddle boarding seems to have strengthened my core and I’m now in a place where I can surf without pain.
It’s been fun to watch Ellie’s surf savvy increase exponentially as she has caught the bug. Someone else is now checking wave, wind and period every day now too and understands the cravings that come with surfing – and the pain that accompanies a run of flat days.
In the last couple of years I have rediscovered the ‘coral coast’ a little more and found a few favourite spots up that way. It’s closer to Yanchep than down south and also a lot less crowded, so that may be where I spend a bit of time going forward. As mentioned before, I’ve also picked up SUPing, initially as a way of developing core & back strength, but I’ve done a little surfing on it as well. There have been a couple of hot still days where I have paddled out to Alkimos reef and found a small wave just perfect for the SUP, as well as a few days of surfing our local as well as over the lagoon reef (on high tide), something I never thought possible. Initially SUPing was hurting my back, but increasing the paddle length, as simple as it sounds seems to have fixed that.
As I wrote this (a few weeks back) we are in an air bnb in Eaglehawk neck Tasmania and I am looking out the window at perfect beach breaks going unridden because I chose not to bring a surfboard and wetsuit… Such is life hey?! Hamilton’s law = the possibility of great surf is directly proportional to the chances of you not bringing a surfboard on the trip… I did jump in for a very brief body surf as the 15 degree water was colder than I had even anticipated!
So seven years on from my last post the ocean is still deeply and beautifully woven into the fabric of our lives. From my morning coffee where I can see the ocean thru our kitchen window, to walking Tahnee and checking the surf, to my daily Yanchep Beaches 365 daily updates, a page I started for fun that now has 7000 followers.
The sea has been a place of great loss for us in the last 12 months, but for so much of my life it has been a source of immense joy and peace, so I can’t see me moving away any time soon. In a time of transition and upheaval we sometimes talk about where we’d move to if we could choose anywhere… literally anywhere… And we keep coming back to where we are – right here in Yanchep. It feels wonderful just to be able to say that.
I imagine if I live till I’m 85 I’ll still be getting up in the morning, checking the wind and the swell, wandering down to the beach but maybe watching someone else enjoy it!