Headin home

I've spent most of August in Moorea in the same anchorage next to the same reef pass called Haapiti. The days kind of all blur together. When there is surf, Dave and I surf. When there's not, well we're bored and we try n find other shit to do. There have been days of mindless perfection, magazine quality barrels. There have been fun days and flat days and too big days and everything in between. My life has been on hold while I've lived out my surf rat fantasy: to jump off a boat and go surf a left hand reef pass as much as possible.

The highlight of the French Polynesia trip thus far was definitely sharing a day of perfect surf with a handful of rippers and the girls from a boat called Swell. Liz Clark is a surfer and UCSB Alum who bought a boat and has singlehanded it all over the South Pacific for the last 10 years or so. She's a cruising celebrity and I'm a fan. She and pro surfer called Lea Brassy dropped anchor a stone's throw from our boat. Dave had more luck chatting up Lea than he did getting waves. Sure enough, he convinced the ladies to join us aboard Tusitala for some dinner and drinks. The evening was tame enough but I still couldn't believe my luck. Here we were, dining with a couple of semi-famous and beautiful surfer girls after a day of epic surf. A dream come true to be sure. After a few days they were on to the next island and we were left with a rainy and empty anchorage. The silence was deafening.

It's been a great experience. I feel truly fortunate to have been granted this opportunity of a lifetime. There are drawbacks to paradise, however. The hours and days and weeks of lonely downtime wore on my sanity. I thought I could use this time to reflect and to gain clarity on my aspirations in life. Instead my mind spun in circles and I became filled with anxiety about mistakes I've made and my uncertain future. My ability to stay present and motivated melted away in the hot tropical sun.

I needed to make a change and to take the next step in life. With NPAC Hurricane season in full swing Dave and I were to be pinned down likely at least through September before being able to make the intended passage to Hawaii. To make matters worse, we were 'flying under the radar' with the authorities and couldn't really risk hanging out in Tahiti proper. The thought of spending 2 more months on anchored of remote islands followed by a big three week passage was daunting. I was already stir-crazy and August had just started. Dave decided to take Tusitala west towards New Zealand and I finally booked my ticket home.

The last nine months abroad have certainly taught me a lot. I learned more about myself than I did about Australia, that's for certain. I have no idea what the future hold in store for me. More adventure, more love and more happiness is what I hope for. Optimism and perseverance is what it will take to achieve those ends. Time has come to get home and get back to work!

Thanks for reading! Til the next adventure... adieu.