It was Jack against Gill, but this was no kid’s nursery rhyme. Eyeballing each other fiercely, we were both determined we would get the better of each other. But this was not some sort of competitive surf-off. Oh no, it was much more serious than that: Drinking games. If you thought surf camp was like boot camp only with surf, you are seriously mistaken. The days are filled with plenty of surf action and night time partying usually lasts until the next morning. The most important thing that you can pack for surf camp is plenty of energy. Along with a bus-load of eager wannabe surfer chicks, I departed from Sydney on a Friday evening bound for my weekend surf trip at Seal Rocks. The location is one of Australia’s lesser known beauty spots, tucked into the New South Wales coastline, just three hours north of Sydney. Having stopped off at Seal Rocks previously, I was excited to get back up there and try out the surf. The further we drove, the further we seemed to drift from civilisation, until we neared our accommodation buried in acres and acres of bush land. It wasn’t hard to know we weren’t far from surf camp as we followed the faint din of the music disturbing the otherwise quiet bush. We found the surf bar in full swing. A Sydney footie team joined us, helping even out the girl-boy ratio for the drinking games. After a hectic night of drinking and fighting off mozzies, it was time to hit the surf. What I liked most was that the instructors were really fun and it felt like everyone got a lot of individual attention. In no time at all every single person in the group was standing up. Easy as that. It helped that we were lucky enough to get perfect conditions – the waves were small and very manageable for beginners. Our instructor Rob taught us about surf culture and etiquette and a little about how the ocean works. Most of us had never even heard of a rip let alone know what to do if we got caught in one. Rob is from Maroubra and told us all about what it was like to grow up alongside one of Australia’s most notorious surf gangs, the Bra Boys. (If you want to know more about this rent the movie.)
