CHAOS rules supreme

Every October long weekend here in NSW a bunch of mates get together for a paddling trip with a difference.
This group of guys meet annually to celebrate life as we know it and its a fun 5 days of paddling and catching up with mates from a diverse background from kayak builders/designers,medical GP's/ house builders and retired paddlers.

We have a funny way of doing things on this paddle ........no rules and a theme each year to bring a little bit of humour.... but we always have a few standard(no) rules
No maps..
No forecast's...
No watches....
which makes for a different type of paddling something you might find on an Expedition trips in a remote location
 Most of all we meet to remember Andrew McAuley  who was a team member before tragically being lost on an extreme trip..It was this annual trip that Andrew tested his kayak out for his Tasman crossing.

This year we paddled from Mystery Bay to Pambula on the NSW South Coast  and I had the job of finding new camp spots to land at.
One new spot that I wont tell any one about is called the sacred thong site with  an amazing Coastal Mahogany tree that is supporting itself along the ground for approx 15mtrs was a standout camping spot this year.

The down side of camping here was that we had to land on rocks!! The paddler below is just seconds away from hitting a rock in his wooden kayak

Now this is OK but you have to have nerve to do it,lots of people say you need a plastic boat to play with rocks...what a load of goop..I have done hundreds of landings in composite boats without a problem it just takes commitment ....sadly we had a couple of accidents and cracks and splits in boats but that is just  a part of sea kayaking.

It was a great trip with  lots of good paddling moments and the stand out was when Andy in his Mirage 580 attempted to enter a rock pool that needed good timing through big surges in the swell pushed to go in but missed the timing only to find himself stuck at about a 60 degree angle on rocks ,then the next surge came through obviously with lots of power because as soon as the surge hit his high and dry boat it catapulted him and his kayak through the air ..and I mean through the air like a shot from a cannon ....we were very amused

All up it was a great trip with some great moments