Byron Bay is just south of the Gold Coast on the East Coast of Australia.
Imagine driving through the most greenest of golf courses surrounded by lush foliage, and that was the drive to Byron. Very nice.
I rented a house that is a 5 minute walk to the beach and a 10 minute walk to town, a very nice little spot owned by a guy called Peter Jackson. The neighbor Lyle has lived there since 1953 and made a point of telling me (3 times) that he bought the place after saving a years wages of cutting Sugar Cane up north...save your pennies people, his place is probably worth 3/4 of a Mil.....
I have put pictures of Byron Bay on the photo section.
Read more here about Byron Bay and how I will keep busy!
I woke today around 9 30 after putting the 7 AM run on hold...walked into town and rented a mountain bike, rented a 9'4 long board (which just sticks out of the hatch back) and headed to Watago Beach. Very nice righ hand break. Waves were VERY nice. LONG LONG LONG rides, some over 300 meters!! (not me obviously).
Its truely amazing to watch some of these surfers. Young, Old, Male, Female, Fit, Not-Fit...every one is out there, and there is only the water, the waves and a feeling that nothing else matters. Quite a change from quarterly revenue targets, hiring goals and profit targets....You can guess which I would rather choose.
Surfing was followed by a guitar lesson!! I brought my mini Martin with me, and I WILL LEARN TO PLAY STAIRWAY!!! and maybe a little Dave Matthews?
More surfing after that, where I ran into the owner of my place Peter in the water. He lent me a board (7'4 Mini Malibu) and I surfed in the waves in front of the house, which is a less than strenuous 5 minute walk. Nice little right hand break on a sandy beach. First time on anything other than a longboard, and BOY was it fun...who would of thought that I could turn on a surfboard....
Byron Bay was a whaling and lumber town from the late 1800's. The town died once, and has turned into a vacation hot spot since the 80's, with the number of tourists exploding from 2000. Not nearly as bad as the Gold Coast which went from 30,000 people to 500,000 people in only 30 years! Byron has only 10,000 people and is still very friendly.
A nice mexican home made dinner washed down with a nice Pinot while watching 'The Office' is my night tonight....
More surfing, guitar and hopefully some running on the beach tomorrow. For some reason its hard to find free time while I am on Vacation!