Intro. Ever since I can remember we have been going to Gnaraloo. It’s something about that place that makes me exceptionally happy (which is not the correct word, it’s an unexplainable feeling of warmth and love), mixed with all the little things about it that make it feel like home. Whenever we drive up that dusty, dirt road and see the three mile camp my eyes brighten. We have only made one trip this year, but it was a great one.

Day 1: Leaving at 3:30am and mentally preparing yourself for a seven hour drive is not the best way to start the weekend, but this time it wasn’t actually that bad. I slept a bit on the way. The dog was comfortably sleeping at my feet. We stopped at gas stations on the way. There’s something about staring out of the window at red dirt and plains of spinifex, weird desert plants and the occasional small shrub that has been eaten by goats that makes you go kinda insane. There was something about this drive that was different; instead of being glued to my iPad, I was sticking my head out the window with the dog and jamming out to Dad rock and roll music. I really enjoyed myself. As always I got that warm, happy feeling I get every time we drive through the three mile camp sign.

We dropped the trailer off and headed down to Tombstones, it was packed, small, but looked like so much fun. So we put on our wetsuits and made our way down. Miraculously everyone decided to go in as we were paddling out, so we were left with a small, good bunch of people. The water was crystal clear and warm. The paddle didn’t seem as long as normal, but still pretty tiring. I was catching wave after wave and doing a range of different turns, milking each wave onto the inside. It was a lovely experience. So after our extremely fun surf we helped Dad set up camp before going for a snorkel in the lagoon. An array of fish were too be seen and it felt like paradise. We went in after about an hour; Tais nearly touched a stingray and got freaked out. So taut concluded our first day, it felt great to get back in the water and look up at then clear start speckled sky once again.

Day 2: We began the day having a surf at Fencies, it wa drought and the swell was building. Tais and I wnet in very quickly, then were soon picked up by Dad who drove us down to the Bluff. We wnet to the shop, saw Reid and Monique, picked up Coral and wnet for a surf. It was my first time surfing Bluff Point and boy was it fun. The swell wa S building and by the end of the session there were solid six foot sets coming through. So I pulled in, did turns and had fun. I’d been out for about two hours and I said to Coral, “Coz I think I’m going to go in.” She then begged me to stay out, so I did for another two hours before following her in. It was great to surf a new and different wave, even though it was different than what I thought it would be like.

Day 3: the day of the big swell arrived. Tais and I woke up, had breakfast then rode our broken to Tombstones to watch Dad. Even though the crown was big only a few guys were getting the waves; Dad, Hugh, Taco, Jay Davies and Dino Adrian. We watched, took photos of guys getting smashed, barrelled and everything in between. Dad got some absolute bombs (10-12ft) and that was that. We checked out the bluff, didn’t look that good, wnet home, end of day three.

Day 4: wind was terrible, had a short surf in the morning, played games wtc for the rest of the day.

Day 5: winds are also terrible. The radiator on the car broke, so we got a ride with our neighbours down to the Bluff for Ebonny’s party. We arrived early so we were part of the decorating team. Later I got murdered by Oska’s chillies, we made Matt into a gnats ta and dos many more memorable things that were really fun. I lhad lots of fun and learnt two valuable lessons: 1. Never eat Oska’s chillies or at least never pretend they’re not hot. 2. Oska can actually braid.

Day 6: winds were terrible, Tais and I searched for shells and clams and stuff on the low tide. It was really beautiful.

Day 7. Had an exceptionally fun surf at Tombstones, it was very similar to the first day, small, glassy and just amazing! We surfed again in the afternoon

Day 8: We looked around at monuments etc. and room photos of flowers and collected shells.

Day 9: we packed up camp and left my second home, saying a sad goodbye. The trip was amazing and even though I did not recount many surfs, I did have more, I am just keeping some memories in my mind and in those experiences instead of writing them on paper. I love Gnaraloo, always have and always will. 🙂