Indo Vs North QLD.

A week on the water and we can't believe time is racing past so quickly. I suppose we are heading east, and we have already crossed one time zone but I have a sneaky suspicion that the headwinds somehow push time past us faster than normal.

The differences between paddling in far north QLD and Indonesia are as many as the number of spices used to add bite to every Balinese meal. From the end of the wet season in QLD you are almost guaranteed a regular trade wind to blast you north east along the coastline. Whether using a sail or not, you couldn't help but derive some benefit from these conditions. Here in Indonesia, in July, the weather is not so constant.

The towering, mountainous peaks of Bali's north shore act like the jumps in a skate park for the wind that flutters and flecks the clouds around the summits while blasting down upon those unweary souls paddling precariously below. Gusts that nearly blow us over come from nowhere, a tailwind that was filling our sails, flips 180 degrees in an instant to blow us back to where we came. Wind can whoosh all morning, dying in the heat of the afternoon, or build steadily from a whisper to a roar as the day ages. We can't predict it, we just keep paddling.

Perhaps though, the single greatest advantage to paddling in such a heavily populated archipelago is that there are just so many people. There are willing hands, from toddlers to toothless octogenarians, willing and waiting to help us drag our heavy plastic vessels up the beach wherever we land. In QLD the kayak adventurer must plan their rations meticulously as the next spot to resupply may be hundreds of kilometres and weeks of paddling away. The overpopulated coastline of Bali, in comparison, has small shops, essential supplies and cheap, friendly restaurants at remarkably regular intervals.

Fresh fish, nasi goreng, cold Coca-cola, chocolate bars, tropical fruit and drinking water are on offer almost wherever one cares to stop. Our boats are significantly lighter as a result than they were, hauling weeks of supplies in QLD. A few rupiah kept dry in a handy hatch can make all the difference to a day and nothing beats sitting out a headwind in the heat of the day than a freshly made, and icy cold mango juice.

Of course a coastline riddled with rice paddies, fishing boats and villages has its challenges as well. Finding a spot to pull up for the night isn't perhaps as straightforward as a pristine Barrier Reef island but so far we have found no issues. Tonight we are camped in the middle of a wide, black beach, our tent neatly tucked between our kayaks. The stored heat in the volcanic rocks below my self-inflating mat only adds to the pleasure of watching shooting stars zoom overhead.

Yep, things might be different over here, but I LIKE IT!

Photo: Taking a lunch break, Bali style.