I REMEMBER not expecting too much in the wave department, first glimpsing from round the bend on Ellensbrook Road a clean swell, slightly bigger and cleaner than what I thought.
I remember only one other car in the car park at 5.45am, suiting up and walking along the beach, seeing only one guy out at main break I decided to try further along the beach.
One guy was running past to surf up at Umbies.
There were many beautiful dolphins leaping out of a wave, wishing I had my camera for one of "those" moments.
A lot of craypots blatantly where they shouldn't have been.
Better waves breaking than what was forecasted, feeling the reef and peeling very nicely, a surprise little clean ground swell.
One guy at mainbreak, me at my little spot, one out at Umbies.
There was a nice left peeling off down off there.
I remember a new shiny ultramarine-coloured boat , with a symbol on the bow picking up those craypots.
One guy walked past doing a long proper stretch on the beach, a real intensive warm up that told me he was probably a bloody good surfer, and he joined the other guy at Umbies.
There were lots of people, at least eight, on the beach at lefties, milling around the sand dunes and the beach.
I was thinking how lucky we are to have this stretch of coastline with hardly anyone out, when town was so crowded and bustling on a busy scheduled weekend, toked with my short, quality shaped rides and the remote setting with no one around.
I got out around 8.30am, chatted about boards walking back to the car park with some guy.
A mate texted me around 10am with the news.
I remember the sick feeling in my gut while helping out at the Gourmet Escape ... "not another one".
Since when had going for a surf become such a hazard.
My sincere condolences to Chris's family.
He was just doing what we all love and cherish, and are lucky enough to enjoy here in this awesome little part of the world.
Mike
Margaret River
Slow and steady
I WOULD like to applaud the patience of the bus driver I travelled with from Bunbury to Cowaramup on Monday, November 11.
As we turned into Caves Road, the bus caught up with a car and trailer driven by a young man using a telephone.
Crawling along while doing so, he tried the patience of the bus driver.
It would have annoyed me long before it did him and there is no way a bus can overtake anything on that road.
Conversation over, the man proceeded at a slightly better speed but the bus driver was completely at his mercy.
The car and trailer had many places we passed where it could and should have pulled over.
Pity the world does not have more people like the bus driver and less like the selfish one in the car.
No wonder people short on patience and with a lead foot take risks on the road.
Daphne Velterop
Cowaramup
River opens old wounds
IT?is hard to understand why the Augusta Margaret River Shire has opened the Blackwood River cut for a third time as the benefit-to-cost ratio is virtually zero.
This is because removal of any pollution in the river is by flushing that results from flow in the river and not tidal movement.
Flow in the river can exit from the river into the ocean through the existing river mouth without the need for the cut.
There are many worthwhile projects in Augusta on which the money could be better spent and provide real benefit to the local community.
The cut will close within a few weeks before the onset of the hot weather and the possible formation of algal blooms, so there is no chance that it could have an impact on pollution even if tidal movement could assist, which is very unlikely.
'The Shire decision has resulted in the cutting of access to the beach, which is one of Augusta's main assets.
Holidaymakers with and without children, anglers, joggers, surfers, kite surfers, local residents and children are now restricted to 400m of grotty beach that is polluted with seaweed, vegetation resulting from scour along the cut and other debris deposited by the east to west littoral drift along the beach.
David Flavell, Augusta
