Jbay Day 4 Part 1

August 1st

In the morning, I take my time before heading out to the surf. I tell Tanja about my session at Supers the day before and how it had gotten in my head. She says, “You must get back on the horse.”

“The only time I’ve ever broken a bone was on a horse,” I say, laughing.

I go out with Andre at Boneyards. I’m more comfortable duck diving a few waves at the beach break than attempting the current and rock combo again. The plan is to paddle and drift to Supers. I want to learn more about that wave, I want to get better at it. I take off on a peak hoping to get a free ride down. There is a reason no one is sitting at Boneyards today and that is because it is sectioning. When it does, I hop off my board and into the pillowy whitewater. Maybe I was a bit too confident this time. I get the full washing, spun and upside down. I am surprised by how long I’m under and focus on protecting my head and relaxing. And then I feel the tension in my leg go.

The leash has broken, first wave. I can’t see the board but I know where it is headed…Deon’s pristine Firewire is about to have a meeting with sharp mussel bejeweled rocks. The current takes me well past the board but as soon as I hit something solid I scramble over to collect it. Alas, the tide is low and the board is nestled in soft reef, unscathed, with the reminder “I Live” written cheerfully on the nose.

I laugh at myself walking over the rocks, imagining what that scene looked like from the walkways overlooking the beach. I’m thankful to be injury free and only having to apologize for a broken leash and not a busted board.

Here is an unedited video clip of the waves, taken with a very low quality point and shoot. Included just to show the waves in motion.

I probably should have just gone and got another leash. But I wanted some time to regain my energy and confidence and I wanted to warm up.

In the meantime, Tanja invites me to go on a free game drive. There is a road that runs through a reserve and she tells me that sometimes you can see animals.

She and Deon are bird lovers and their home is a sanctuary of sorts. I hear them recount their sightings to each other and gain a new appreciation for bird watching. It is so natural to speak of the creatures we have encountered. Is there any better conversation? No politics or philosophy or putting people down.

Just the simple act of experiencing nature and sharing that.

“What did you see today?”

During my time in South Africa I saw a huge pod of dolphins surfing and a humpback whale breaching in the line up. I saw elands, elephants, baboons, sunbirds, seals, cape white eyes, fish eagles, buffalo, springboks, sable antelope and rhinos. I did not see any sharks or lions or giraffes. All the more reason to return.

Rhino and baby