Log

Charley Boorman Log- Day 13

In which Charley Boorman has a few surfing issues!

I was off to a bad start as soon as they pulled out the wetsuit. The only spare they had at The Mantis And Moon was a small. I may not be the biggest guy in the world, but a small wetsuit really wouldn’t cut it. Still, I wasn’t going to let that stop me.

Now, I haven’t surfed much and short of that referesher with Cass, it’s been a while. It was a relatively calm day at Umzumbe and the waves only a few feet high, but it was still pretty strong stuff compared to what I’m used to and the ill-fitting wetsuit was starting to make my arms and legs go numb – the last thing you need when you’re fighting to make it through the surf.

I’m angry at myself to say it now, but I had to get out of the water. The waves pushed me under a couple of times and I knew I was in trouble – and it was only going to get worse the more I tried to stay in.

Walking back along the beach, I undid that bloody wetsuit and gloriously felt the feeling start to return to my tired limbs. I watched Andy and the guys in the sea for a while then headed back to Mantis And Moon.

On the way I saw Russ in shorts and sandals standing on the beach, holding a cup of tea he’d brought all the way from the hostel. I guess he makes his own Extreme adventures.

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