Tomorrow I'm knocking off early and heading down to Sero beach to do the first ever SUP downwinder back to Port Moresby. Was down there on Sunday with my friend Thomas and on a whim he decided to Kite back from there. His report of the journey was very positive and he wants to do it again so myself and another kiter are going to join him.



We have not yet decided if we will take a chase boat but its a possibility. We will take a waterproof camera but Thomas wants me to carry it on the SUP and shoot them kiting. Hmmm

The distance to Ela Beach is about 11km. The kiters will end there but if its not too dark I will probably push on to finish at the RPYC marina which would add another 4-5km. Wind is looking OK with SSE of about 20 knots but hopefully it will be faster than that. If its a success may attempt again on Sunday when we are expecting some real wind. If anyone wants to come with I have a spare board and paddle. Would suit rider <75kg but all welcome. Be at Sero boardriders club by 3:30pm Friday

Have a good one..

It's our turn tomorrow..

DJ

Forecast for Saturday
Winds: Northerly 10 to 20 knots increasing to 20 to 30 knots during the morning
then increasing to 25 to 35 knots

Firstly I apologise for no pictures guys. Thomas had the camera and he didnt want to risk it on the downwinder because hes going to Madagascar today and needs the camera for the next 6 weeks.

That said it was a very scenic downwinder. there are dramatic ridgelines soaring out of the sea along the way and jagged points sticking out every few km. The wind was a solid 20 knots, gusting to 25 and occasionally above that as it was compressed by some of the coastline. Was hoping for a true South Easterly but it was more of a SSE and it was trying very hard to push me onto the coastline. As such I found myself paddling on my right hand side for 90% of the trip This would get a bit frantic as I approached each point and saw waves smashing onto the jagged rocks. Luckily I have a bit of experience with side on downwinders

The waves were a bit confusing sometimes. It was very high tide so we had a reasonable groundswell coming from SE and a smaller windswell from the SSE combining with it. It was only a few degrees difference but it made for a challenging run. Nevertheless I managed to get heaps of runners and at one point I linked up at least 5 before I lost count. We passed many small villages along the way and at about halfway we were joined by a small group of windsurfers from Taikone village who came out and had a play around us, which was pretty cool. The guys on the kites had a blast and I enjoyed myself too. The run into Ela Beach was pretty epic with some big swells coming through.

We didnt take a chase boat, was too much hassle to organise on a weekday, but next time I think we will. I'm definitely going to use it to drop me off outside the reef break as paddling out crosswind was a bit of a drag.

Hopefully I will do it again soon and get some more people to join us.