There is a particular look that comes over someone who has spent too much time at work and behind a computer. Their shoulders creep upwards. Their jaw tightens. And their eyes acquire that slightly haunted expression of someone who has just received an email beginning with “For your urgent approval…”. Again…
Our man had that look.
His days were a blur of meetings, deadlines, decisions, notifications and the relentless ping of people requiring things from him. He worked hard and was successful. But he yearned for something simpler.
He wanted to breathe fresh air and smell the salt in the ocean air around him.
He wanted to feel the sun on his face and the wind in his hair.
Most of all, he wanted to remember what it felt like to do something simply because it was fun. As he looked out of the office window he realised he couldn’t remember the last time he’d done something that made him feel truly alive. He needed to spend just a few hours not being productive and not being useful. Just happy. He needed to get outside, somewhere without Wi-Fi. Somewhere where the loudest notification was a seagull and nobody could send him another spreadsheet.
So he googled “kayaking in Port Elizabeth”, found Joe Bananas and booked a kayak trip for the day, got in his car, switched his phone off to make sure there are no more interruptions that might stop him from going, and drove to the beach where the waves were calling.
Listening to the ocean’s call
It was a warm winter morning at Hobie Beach in Port Elizabeth. The sort of morning that makes you realise that winter in the Eastern Cape is just a tease.
The sky was blue, the air was warm, and the Atlantic rolled lazily towards the shore before retreating again, as if it had all the time in the world. In. Out. In. Out. No deadlines. No quarterly targets. Just an ancient rhythm that had been going on long before anyone invented email. Watching it, he felt something loosen inside him. Maybe nature had the right idea. Maybe time off wasn’t wasted. Maybe you didn’t always have to be achieving something.
Perhaps there was something to be learned from the ocean: paddle when you need to, float when you can, and don't worry too much about where the next wave takes you.
Out near Shark Rock Pier, land gave way to sea, and suddenly there was nothing between him and freedom as he stood on the beach with his kayak.
A quick tutorial by Kagiso from Joe Bananas followed. How to hold the paddle. How to steer. How to work with the waves. How not to panic when the kayak does something unexpected.
Useful stuff.
The breakers were waiting and he started paddling, the kayak slowly but surely moving forward, with Kagiso looking on from the shore.
A wave arrived and he paddled harder. The kayak went up.
Then down.
He put on his life jacket, picked up his paddle and climbed aboard.
There was splashing and wobbling and a brief and entirely reasonable consideration of whether a career involving spreadsheets might actually be preferable.
Another wave.
Paddle.
Another.
Paddle. Paddle.
The kayak climbed the wave, tipped over the top and dropped down the other side.
Salt water splashed across his face as another wave rolled over him. And then, suddenly, the battle was over. The water grew calmer, the noise softened, and the kayak began to rock gently beneath him, up and down, up and down, like a baby being lulled to sleep. His shoulders softened and his jaw unclenched. With every breath of salty sea air, the tension seemed to ebb away, carried off with the waves. In its place came a warm, almost forgotten feeling – the sheer, uncomplicated joy of being in nature, with no demands or deadlines, just an invitation to be.
For the next hour, he surrendered to the waves and the ocean, having some uncomplicated fun. The kind of fun that makes you forget to check the time.
A little adventure. A lot of freedom.
Eventually, though, it is time to turn back. The beach comes into view and the waves carry him towards the beach. As he nears the sand, the ocean gently gives him a last little nudge to push him back onto solid ground safely.
The thing about adventure is that you don’t always need to go far to find it. Sometimes it’s waiting in a little blue kayak at Hobie Beach.
And sometimes the best way to escape your busy life isn’t to run away from it. It’s simply to leave your laptop behind for a few hours and explore the coastline in a kayak.
Leave the office behind. Follow the waves. Discover the secret beaches of Port Elizabeth on a kayak with Joe Bananas.