GUEST BLOGGER ►► SHAUN CSB (PART II)

  

Guest Blogger//Shaun Devine

Tales from A New Zealand Walk About

Part II

Middle morning in Dunedin and I’ve just been futzing around drinking coffee and checking up on friends' whereabouts via Spacebook and Instaslam. The swell looks so-so and slowly building with the incoming tide. Basil pops in from helping a friend sand a sailboat and I ask him if he wants to surf.

He gazes out the window of our beachside flat and with a not-so-thrilled look in his eye replies, “Meh, it’s onshore.” But I’m thinking, “Yeah? So what? The wind is under 10 knots and there’s definitely swell in the water and worth a grovel.” Being from the East Coast United States, you’re used to days on days of onshore wind and you certainly strike while the irons hot. After a little nudge of encouragement like, “Let’s just go have a look,” we’re in the car and off to Bluebridge.

There’s a few cars in the parking lot and upon first glance it looks pretty fun. You check Bluebridge from a cliff, so if it looks semi-fun or has size you’re in for a good time. 

Across the car park, I notice a recently aquainted friend I had met up in Auckland about six weeks earlier. As we’re changing into wetties and gearing up we noted how small the world is, or in this case, the country is and have a quick yarn. She happened to be shooting photographs of the session and then off we were in chest- to shoulder-high onshore waves.

After a two-hour session we’re in the car park about to head home when then wind starts to switch offshore. With that note in my hand, we’re back to the house to refuel. Basil has some prior commitments to attend, but all I’m thinking is, “I need to get back out there!” Ted to the rescue. He hadn’t surfed yet and is frothing on a session. After a few quick slices of vegemite and cheese were back off to Bluebridge. It’s now straight offshore and cracking.

Since it’s summer time we surf well into the latest hours of the day and well past 9 p.m. On the ride home I couldn’t help but think that all the time spent on planes, trains, automobiles – customs agents and passport lines – metric conversion and currency exchanges – was worth every second. It’s days like today that the imagination is truly rewarded.

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Thanks to Shaun for sharing his NZ travel stories with us! Looking forward to a  future collaboration in Puerto Rico :) Keep checking back for more and make sure to follow him on Instagram and on the Surf & Adventure Blog too!