Hi all!
My apologies for the delayed entry. Unfortunately technology is a bit of a luxury in the Transkei so I decided to save it for now.
At the moment we are just settling into our new hostel at our last stop in Ballito, KwaZulu-Natal which is a little town on the east coast of South Africa. But before I go into all that, I'll quickly wrap up things from Coffee Bay.
On Wednesday the on-shore blew so we decided to spend the day exploring. Joseph, our guide from the hostel, took the guys on a hike to the famous Hole-in-the-Wall which is a bit of an icon in the area. The walk winds along the coast, over hills, through bushes and round headlands on small footpaths and goat-trails and offer some really spectacular views of the Wild Coast. It was a tough trek, but well worth it when the guys finally arrived at the hole. Waiting for us at the river was Kluas.also from the hostel, with freshly made, fire-grilled toasties. The guys got stuck in appeasing apatites and resting tired bodies before Joseph took everyone to jump into the hole and cool off in the river. It was another classic day in the Transkei and we all slept like babies that night!
On Thursday the wind swung westerly again and the conditions we're looking good for the point in Coffee Bay. We spent the day down on the beach surfing the perfect little right-handers that peeled down into the bay. In the evening I noticed that the sky was nice and clear – perfect for star-gazing, so it was up the hill for our lot to learn more about the southern sky. We watched as Scorpio rose over the sea and learned how to navigate using the Southern Cross. Apart from all the new info, just being out on the hill with no light pollution around was just awesome. In a place where time practically stands still, its hard to imagine that it could go any slower, but up on the hill that night, that's exactly what it felt like. Definitely an evening well spent.
On Friday the swell hit and it was time for us to go in search of new waves. We got up early to get on the road. The spot we were going to surf was a little east of Coffee Bay and we were chasing the tide so we needed to get on it! The drive takes you through the hills and villages until you come out at a small bay. From the hills I could already see the lines of swell running in and it was looking epic! We got ourselves to the beach as fast as we could go, jumped into our suits and headed straight out. The water was crystal clear and super warm, and the waves were just perfect for the guys to put in a few good rides at our new spot. We spent all morning in the sea until the tide came in. For lunch I took the guys to one of my favorite beaches in the area where we chilled out on the rocks and enjoyed a bite to eat before heading back to Coffee Bay for an evening sundowner on the hills.
Yesterday we continued with our lessons at Coffee Bay. With the guys comfortably up and riding and with all the input given by the various coaches along the trip, it was time to take things up another level. We worked on an exercise on the beach designed at strengthening the muscles used for turning. It's a simple but very effective way of improving any surfers turning abilities, not only that, but its also a really good work-out. After our session on the beach it was time to put it all into practice on the waves. It was another long day of surfing and many of the guys put in some of their best waves to date during that session. As our final day in Coffee Bay came to a close we all headed back to the hostel for another classic dinner and bag packing session.
This morning we left early and got out onto the main road in good time. The trek to Ballito is quite a long one, but, as with most of our dives, the scenery always keeps it interesting. Coming into KwaZulu-Natal was like entering another country. The brown, grassy plains of the Transkei are replaced by the green sugar cane hills of the Hibiscus Coast with the tall peaks of the Drakensberg way off in the distance. I call this part of the world home, so it was especially exciting for me to be back in this familiar setting which will be our home for the next 9 days. As a local, I'm really keen to be showing the guys around some of my favorite spots in Durban so these next few days are going to be good – add to that a tidy looking swell forecast and we're all set!
So until next time.
Take Care
Bevan