RRD/Ezzy UK rider Carl Tomlinson reports on his Christmas trip down under –
“Chrimbo in Gerro
Our antipodean countrymen have their own version of English known as “Australian” where words are sometimes shortened and end in “o” or “ie” so Geraldton becomes Gerro, Christmas becomes “Chrimbo”, Coronation Beach becomes Coro, board shorts becomes “boardies”, relatives becomes “relies”, etc. Last Christmas we came to Geraldton in Western Australia and for me windsurfing was pretty much as good as it gets and we decided to visit again this year. A three-week trip was booked travelling to Perth with Qatar airways, which has a generous 30kg luggage allowance, a quick transfer in Doha, a modern fleet of aircraft which makes the long journey more comfortable and flights conveniently departing from Manchester. We stayed in the first night with friends Mike & Cat in Perth and the next day headed into the city centre to pick up a hire bike for Jane at Cycle Centre. Then headed up the coastal highway for the 250-mile drive to Gerro.
Apart from a large cyclone making the sea breeze being a little more onshore than usual, things were pretty much as normal in Gerro, it was sunny, 25-30C, and the wind was in pretty much every day in the afternoon and sometimes all day. A big swell (5m) rolled in towards the end of the first week and brought some nice side shore down the line conditions at Sunset Beach for a couple of days. The swell direction wasn’t quite right, but that didn’t really matter it was warm, sunny and the waves were a good head high, it was the best windsurfing I’d had since September. Some of the seasoned travellers headed up to Gnaraloo to make the most of the great forecast and one of the things that is nice about going to Gerro is the windsurfing feels like a community. So, when the forecast is good for some of the more remote spots that aren’t always consistent the word gets around and there is the opportunity to sail some of the best spots the world has to offer such as Esperance and Gnarloo in the company of experienced sailors.
Everyone who stays at Gerro will tell you there’s not always a lot else to do, I’m sure it’s one of the reasons why some people choose to live there! So, to break things up after the first week, Jane had planned a trip up to Shark Bay, about 500km North. Shark Bay part of a World Heritage site and has some unique natural fauna and forna. Its perhaps better known for Monkey Mia a beach and now resort where a small pod of Dolphins come in every morning right up to the edge of the beach. We stayed in the small seaside town of Denham and our hosts Phil & Kerrie, who’d lived there 20 years, really helped us get the most from the short time we stayed.
Back to Gerro and things were pretty much as usual, sailing at Coronation Beach with a 4.1, 4.5 or 5.0m. Blasting out over the flat shallow lagoon to the reef where the larger rolling ocean swells break into steeper waves anywhere from knee to head high with the wind slightly cross on shore, perfect for jumps and notching up some onshore wave riding.
It was another great trip, windy with waves every day, nice gaff to stay at by the beach, lots of wind and waves, warm and sunny and plenty time to catch up with friends. After a good 2 ½ weeks in Gerro, it was time to head back to Perth, kick back, relax, catch up with old friends, enjoy a beautiful city and all it has to offer. I’m sure we’ll be back and stay for longer another time, but for now it’s back to work and time to plan the next windsurfing trip.
If you are thinking of making the trip, see the piece I wrote last year for a more detailed “where, when and what to take” guide to windsurfing in Gerro (https://www.windsurf.co.uk/geraldton-windsurfing-guide/). I took my Ezzy Taka3 5.0, 4.5, 4.1, 3.8 and used mainly 4.5. Larger sailors often pack a 5.5 as well but I’m only 73kg so don’t need a big rig. People are sailing all sorts of boards but typically a good board to take would be 80l wave or 90l freestyle board, I took my RRD Wave Cult v6 74l which is a great all round wave board for the general Gerro wave conditions and for my weight.
Many thanks to Jane for patiently taking pictures and as always to Seasprite and Dave White for looking after me with RRD boards, Ezzy Sails and Streamlined accessories.”