After the havoc of yesterday, we were both ready to get down to Hossegor and set up camp for a few days. We took the long way along the coast through a number of small towns, all with there own camping grounds, some really nice places but most of them not open for the summer yet. We settled in at Seignosse, just north of Hossegor. The waves were looking pretty good but we decided to go for a walk along the beach and wait for a surf in the morning. In the evening we realised that we had no lighter or matches to light our gas stove so we headed into town to pick one up, but no where was open so in desperation we went to an Irish pub and the barmaid gave us her lighter. It was almost empty but we gave her some change anyway. It wasn’t until we were walking out the door that we realised that we had just paid 3 euros (almost 5 bucks) for an empty lighter. Then we proceeded to get hopelessly lost on the way back to camp, mainly because someone didn’t have the map open most of the time, Amanda. In frustration we got to an intersection and I said “left or right?”, “Left” came the reply. So I turned right and we were home in 2 minutes flat. Nothing like driving for 45 minutes to buy an empty lighter for 5 bucks.
The next morning we woke to a thick fog making it hard to see what the waves were like, I could barely make a couple of surfers already in the water, but it looked OK. So I raced back to camp to get ready for my first surf in the Atlantic Ocean. I opened my board bag only to find that KLM Airlines had creased my nose and put a big hole in the bottom of my board. Well done KLM, you tools!!! Unfortunately we still have to fly with them to Mexico. Great.
So the morning was spent finding a ding repairer to fix the damage. My brother Mick and his mate OJ were due to arrive later in the day, but Mick would have to surf alone, because my board wasn’t going to be ready until tomorrow afternoon. By the time he had arrived though, the swell had virtually disappeared, and would remain that way for our entire time on the French surf coast. Not once did we even contemplate trying to ride the tiny wavelets for 4 days. Our main form of entertainment was Frisbee and some beer drinking as well. Our Frisbee skills have developed rapidly and we have now achieved almost perfect control of the Frisbee’s direction, bending it around trees and skimming hedges as well. We did venture from our campsite in different directions each day. We lunched in Hossegor at the Rock Food Café on the beachfront during a particularly thick fog. Middle of the day, warm and sunny in the main part of town 500 metres back from the beach, but on the beach itself thick fog, and cool. After lunch we played Frisbee. We had to do something, we’re all getting really fat!!!
On our last night in Hossegor we were lashed by a violent thunderstorm, and another first thing the next morning. We were camped under these massive pine trees and lightning was cracking all around us. We survived the night and made the decision to make a move south into Spain, to a place called Zarautz, a bit past San Sebastian.
Until next time…
No comments:
Post a Comment