Story to come ...
CHARTER TWELVE // 17 AUGUST – 28 AUGUST // 2010
Story to come ...
CHARTER ELEVEN // 2 AUGUST – 13 AUGUST // 2010
Passengers:
Dean Hoeck, Brett Hardy, Chad Slater, Joseph Bryant, Michael Syth, Brett Cruickshank,
Ben Kearney, Lee Sillince, Jye Byrnes, Ben Hainsworth.
John,
Thanks for a great trip. Despite going through a few pairs of undies, it was great to surf HT's with you. It's hard not to have a great time, surfing, fishing and drinking beers with ya best mates, but Hilsey, Pim, Salamat, Choma, Eric and Udi all did a great job and made our experience even better. I think they were all on their best behavior when you were on board so we scored ;) We hope that they enjoyed their trip as well.
We took a 1000 photos of you so once we get them all together we will email them through. Finally, we had such a good time that we want to do it all again in 2012. So if you can pencil us in for August 2012, for the same dates (or thereabouts) then that would be great.
From all the boys, thanks again and we look forward to catching up again soon.
Cheers
Ben Hainsworth
Hey John,
Yeah, I reckon we all echo Ben's comments mate. Sickest, funnest trip, that ya always day dream about at work... Thanks a million!
It was unreal to score HT's at that size & uncrowded... and getting pushed (or towed!) into a coupla waves that we might have otherwise hesitated on (those few surfs at HT's were definitely the highlight of my trip!)
Hillsy (& Salamat) were non-stop in their efforts to ensure that we scored fun, uncrowded waves and even as the swell dropped we were still all able to find uncrowded, rippable waves each day... unexpected, fun little random barrells down at the Indies Trader Right one lunchtime springs to mind, as does fun tow-ins at Louis... & a couple shallow runners at Hideaways... & so on!!!
The food was grrat & plentiful, & the rest of the crew more than ensured that we lived like kings for those couple of minutes a day when we weren't surfing, fishing, drinking or sleeping!
Also just wanted to mention that we were also really stoked with the positive / easy going approach with use of everything from the maximum use of the Binda Laut for fishing & maximising surfing options & time in the water, to the jetski, to fishing gear, diving gear etc... as previous charters (& even other boats we encountered) have not been anywhere near as accommodating for total use of all equipment... stoked as!
Thanks again John, sure ya will squeeze a few more barrels outta the season & we all look forward to doing it all again in 2 years (with at least 50 cartons taken on board!)...
Cheers Chad
CHARTER TEN // 20 JULY – 31 JULY // 2010
Passengers:
Clifford Wishart, Gary Waghorn, Allan Farrell, Rodney Windsor, Glen Vaux,
Neil Campbell, Michael Dignam, Stuart Thomson, Roderick Wishart, Bruce Rowley.
Hi John & Belinda,
Sorry I hadn't replied earlier – had a great trip – waves fine and Hillsy had us in the right spot every time as we found talking to guys on other boats – that knowledge and having the fast tender made the difference, especially when swell is small as its all about being in the right place at the right time. Crew were excellent – friendly and always helpful and food was excellent too.
Can u send me your booking schedule for 2011 – thinking about going again next year.
Cheers.
Neil.
CHARTER NINE // 6 JULY – 17 JULY // 2010
Passengers:
Artur Urbanski, Matthew Johnson, Malcolm Francis, Ryan Atkinson, Benjamin Ansell,
Jonas Grocock, Paul Moir, Stephen Scarvelis.
G'day John and Belinda,
Artur hear, we did the July 6 to 17 charter. Sorry it's taken a bit to write this, I have been catching up on jobs, back to reality.
Just wanted to say from all the boys it was the best trip of our lives, although we didn't get the perfection we hoped, for the waves were on tap any how!! The thing that really made the trip was the boat set up, captain and crew all of who were exceptional. The food was unreal and for the first time ever even I was not hungry. Hillsy worked hard to get us the uncrowded waves we asked for, I had hoped to have a few sessions by ourselves let alone to be on our own 80% of the time STOKED! As for the crew wow, none of us have had service like that before and for a whole 11 days! These boys are champions you really have a good crew doing the BJ, the ultimate justice. UNREALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Will be back and thank you ARTUR!
CHARTER EIGHT // 22 JUNE – 3 JULY // 2010
Passengers:
Ben Day, Darcy Day, Scott Langman, William Cox, Johnathan Day, Timothy Day, Andrew Bazell, Peter James, Daniel Armstrong, Matthew Armstrong.
Dear John and Belinda,
I thought I'd drop you a note to let you know we had a wonderful time on the BJ once again. The boat remains in terrific condition and while there may be the odd charter vessel out there that boasts more sumptuous facilities, I think I speak for all the guests when I say that ours was extremely comfortable and capable and had an authenticity to it that made us feel that we were on a 'real' surf charter, not a floating hotel. It captures, in my humble opinion, the true spirit of a surf adventure.
This is obviously a credit to you both as it has stood the test of time. Judging by the feedback in the guest log book, we're not alone in our appreciation of the virtues of the Barrenjoey.
Of course, this time, we had the benefit of a high-speed tender and a jetski. The jetski was fun, but the Bynda Laut added a new dimension to the charter that significantly increased our 'reach' in terms of surf access and optimising our time. It truly enhanced the value of our investment and I can't imagine how we ever did without it. I'm sure you feel the same.
When explaining our Charter 4 map in the galley with some of the guys that weren't there the first time, it made me feel a bit sad that we didn't get to see you both. Was looking forward to a nice big hug (not from you John, from your beautiful wife). I hope your friend in Bali is OK. Anyway, there's always next time (my 50th birthday is looming in 2012!)
Initially, I was a little worried how we'd get on with the other captain. Would we be able to needle him as much as you, John? Would he respond favourably to niggle? How would he cope with sly comments on the new map we'd brought with us? Would he rise to the challenge of Table Tennis on board? Well I'm happy to report that from the first moment we met Ben Hillier, my fears were allayed. His infectious enthusiasm and genuine nature shone through from the start. Within the first few minutes, I'd outlined a mad plan to build a table tennis table. I anticipated a half-hearted response (so many guys must get on board with mad plans). But no. Hillsy was totally into it and wanted to know the thickness of the timber required, how big it needed to be, what paint I needed etc etc. Then he made the fatal mistake of telling me that he had a great double-handed backhand. And so the banter began!
Over the course of the next ten days, Hillsy made it his mission to get us to more surf spots than any charter in BJ history. In the end, he ticked off 21 spots – a BJ record. One of the guys in our trip – Baz from Apollo Bay (you would like him John – you're two peas in a pod) – managed to surf all 21. I might send you a small, framed shot of Baz to put up in the galley with a little plaque noting his achievement!
But it wasn't just Hillsy's ability to gauge shifting wind, tide and swell to deliver the best surf outcome that made our trip. As you well know, it's a difficult job to be the boss, the friend, the safety officer, the surf guide, the first aid department, the host, the engineer… the Jack-of-all-trades on such a trip. The fact that you have to do this 24/7 with a smile makes it, in my view, one extremely difficult job. Sure, from the outside, it appears to us guests like a simple occupation and a dream one at that! But there were many, many moments when Hillsy displayed considerable depth in all the required capacities, and in this regard, he was seriously impressive.
I should also mention the Indo crew on board. Rico, Yudi, Chiraul? and Henrik cared for us like brothers, and apart from being there to cater for our every whim, were great company. Pim was also a breath of fresh air to have around and made sure all our food moments were sublime. It's really nice to have a female on board to 'ground' the guys (I'm sure Belinda would agree eh?). Pim's pretty handy on the table tennis too!
In terms of the chemistry of the guests on board? The best trip I've done and I think I'm not alone in saying this.
We had four members of the Day clan. Ben and his 13 year old son, Darcy (a cracking surfer), and Tim and his twenty five year old son, Johnny. It was memorable alone for this connection between cousins, nephews, uncles, fathers and sons.
Here's perhaps the shot that captures it all – taken at Roxies by yours truly on sunset. Darcy in the barrel and Uncle Tim high-fiving on the shoulder, the BJ in the distance. Wow.
Matt and his 16 year old son Dan (an extremely talented young surfer himself) also enjoyed the father/son time together and I managed to forge new friendships with Baz, Scott and 'Coxy' that will last a long time, I'm sure.
No fewer than four of us had 'our best wave ever'. You'll be pleased to know one of them was the lone kneeboarder! In the half-light of dawn I got a tube ride at Macaronis that went forever and came out clean. No photos, but witnessed by Tim Day! Best barrel in 35 years of kneeboarding. I also managed to rip a heap of skin off my back, pop my knee and bust two kneeboards… but you gotta have a crack, don't you?
Quite apart from the trip defining shot of Darcy and Tim above, I have some tremendous photographs from the trip. We intend to put together a bound book with notes from the trip. If you're interested, I'll let you know how to order it online when it's finished (it's through a fantastic photo book company called Blurb in America).
This shot, taken by Yudi with my fisheye off the top of the mast at the island behind Scarecrows is likely to be the cover:
Anyway, I hope you both are well and your young family thriving. I look forward to getting back up there in the near future for more Sumatran magic. I hope the table tennis table survives (we donated net, bats and balls so you better start practising) and look forward to the opportunity of sharing a Bintang with you at some point.
Cheers,
Pete James.
CHARTER SEVEN // 8 JUNE – 19 JUNE // 2010
Passengers:
Scott Brown, Chris Armati, Owen Lansbury, Dean Dampney, Graham Jones, Shaun Dickson,
Scott Janney, Steven Lynch, Ean Beard, Peter Taplin.
CHARTER SIX // 25 MAY – 5 JUNE // 2010
Passengers:
Anthony Patterson, Gary Elkerton, Peter Ellis, Laurent Caloz, Mark Mayfield,
Andrew Fidler, Bradley Trivett, Mark Spaans, John Bull, Stephen Cox.
CHARTER FIVE // 10 MAY – 21 MAY // 2010
Story to come ...
CHARTER FOUR // 27 APRIL – 8 MAY // 2010
Passengers:
Tony "Hazza" Head, Jeff "Fonzie" Fondacaro, Glen Garner, Tracy Boxall, John East,
James O'Toole, Col Williamson and Michael "Pluck" Perry.
It was a mix of young, in between and the old crew for the BJ Tour, 27th April – 8th May. The Bondi/Perth crew notched up 30 surfs at 18 breaks in 10 days which is a great testament to Hillise and the boys. Too shouts of "what are you waiting for get out there" from the smiling fisherman Salamat as he threw us off the Bynda Laut the fun and waves never stopped.
The vibe on the boat was always cool and the goal of the crew to get us into quality waves, provide quality food and provide a safe anchorage each night to enjoy a few beers was achieved every day. Ex-Bondi now Perth based Hazza tackled HTs on his "KO Plonka" to the hoots of the crew and ended up snagging the biggest fish of the trip, a 25-30 kgs Mahi Mahi.
Young fella Glen from Margs was fearless at Green Bush on his backhand and challenged "father-in-law" Hazza in the fishing stakes (but not quite). Fonzie won wipeout of the trip award with several lip launches and reef tombstones, not to mention his "funky trunks". The WA goofies John and James fell in love with Bang Bangs and ex pro surfer Tracy had more stamina than the boys, surfin four times a day. Bondi's Col rode with style no matter what size, swooping down the line at Bat Caves and Thunders. Pluck charged anything and everything and surely had the wave count for the trip covered with one lip smack at Bongholes a stand out. It was good to see him get dusted and dragged down the reef a couple of times – problem was it did not happen enough!
BJ cooks Elvis and Eric cooked up storm day after day and we were fed like kings. Skipper Hillise was a froth'in grom urging the crew on at every break. The Bynda Laut was a classic surf chariot getting us in early and late and Salamat and Udi got us in and out of the waves and back to BJ for beers and 'second breakfast'. The "Drunk Monkey Bar" topped off a classic surf trip that was made all the better by the vibe and a great crew who kept us surfing day in and day out.
Anyone who reads this could do a lot worse than join the Barrenjoey for a trip that will provide all you need and where all you need is board shorts, a surfboard or two and some sun screen. Have a dig!
Many thanks for a BAGUS adventure.
Haz and Pluck