Wales - The Ultimate Experience
Issue 2 / Tue 1st Nov, 2016
Nicolas Fayol and his buddies head to Wales to showcase just how versatile this sport is, and how amazing that country is for it! The paddle on mountain lakes, tidal races, rushing rivers, reef breaks, beach breaks and even an artificial wave!
Can you imagine riding rivers, mountain lakes, coastal lagoons, reef breaks, beach breaks, tidal races and artificial waves all in one week? The French JP Australia SUP Team decided to do just that, and there is arguably only one place in the world that can offer such a plethora of conditions...Wales! The beer is pretty good there too.
The idea for the trip was simple: gather the French team members of JP Australia who were ready to discover something new and exciting. Our journey would take us on a paddleboard camping trip on that would span 2,000km.
After a few e-mails and phone calls, the team was formed that was prepared to turn this idea into reality. Our SUP team included Paul Conrad, Gauthier Regent, Tom Villedray, SUP river guide Nicolas Fayol, David Pierron, JP France’s own HaraldMarzolf.
The beginning of April marked the start of the journey. Our team of paddlers arrived from every direction, bringing with them eight surf SUPs, seven inflatable SUPs, ten paddles, and a pile of camera equipment. As a group, we set off to Newgale for the first part of the trip: a much needed paddle-surf session.
Arriving at sunset, we were greeted with a metre of swell accompanied by rain and cross-shore winds. After days of travel, getting wet was the only thing on our minds, we didn't care if it was from the sea or the sky! We were all stoked to enter the water for our first session of the trip.
The next morning, Newgale delivered 1.5 metres with light winds, the perfect session to kick off the day. A day of play in the water ended in planning our next adventure - surfing a tidal river wave known as “The Bitches”. Ollie, the owner of watersports shop and school Big Blue Experience, would lead us on the next leg of our journey.
“The Bitches” is a static wave that comes in with the tide near St David’s, between the coast and Ramsey Island. This spot is known amongst watermen and sea kayakers who enjoy the rapids and stunning landscape, and we would be heading there by boat early in the morning.
We were on the boat at sunrise, "setting sail" through the fresh morning mist. Ollie introduced us to Simon, our captain who just happened to be an official ThunderCat racer. A ThunderCat is an inflatable race boat that accelerates like an F1 car. Simon had the pleasure of waking us up with a white-knuckle ride navigating around rocks and strong currents to bring us to our destination.
Our base for this adventure was the foot of a cliff on Ramsey Island, surrounded by fields of sheep, sunbathing seals, and rolling farmland.
Nicolas and David were the first on the wave, Nico getting into it on an The All-Around 10’ and David choosing a Fusion 8’5". The rest of us, coming from surfing backgrounds, were unfamiliar with this setup, and sat back to watch and learn.
Once it was our turn on the wave, Paul was first off the line, bringing his impressive board skills and intensive race training together to dominate the wave in his style. We surfed for hours until the tide filled the basin and the wave disappeared.
Paddle-surfing “The Bitches”, was one of the highlights of this trip, a unique wave, gorgeous scenery, a fast-paced boat trip, and the pure joy that came from discovering something new. We headed back to Newgale feeling immensely satisfied.
The next day brought less than ideal surf, allowing us to begin our SUP adventure. We paddled in the Blue Lagoon at Abereiddy Bay, the UK stop for the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series. Our paddle brought us through this remarkable slate quarry with rocks towering 30 metres above us, and the drop-off 25 metres below our paddles. We celebrated the experiences with drinks on the beach, enjoying a beautiful sunset.
The next day, we continued exploring to the North, searching for the secret spot that Ollie had spoken of near Moylgrove. We landed on a small beach at the bottom of the bay, where we paddled beneath the curious eyes of the seagulls, through tunnels, and finally discovered the hidden entrance to the secret spot.
Accessing this spot required us to all lie down on our boards and pass beneath a low tunnel, propelled forward by the swell. The only viable way to reach this spot is by paddleboard, and we had just the right tools for the job. This is a sketchy one in the wrong tides, so be careful if you ever find it! You may lose the entrance or exit.
Continuing North, we began the search for another surf spot, but the weather wasn’t cooperating. There was nothing to do but find the nearest British pub and sit down for a few cold beers.
The next day began with a drive to Snowdonia National Park, home to Mount Snowdon, the highest peak in Wales. We travelled to LlynLlydaw, a stunning lake that would offer us an entirely different landscape than we’d seen on the coast, where we hiked for nearly an hour to reach this cold, crystal clear patch of water surrounded by mountains.
Surf Snowdonia was our next stop of the day, offering up some entertainment in the form of their Crash & Splash obstacle course and Blob jump, which launched us into several very unusual aerials! We were laughing as we sat down to dinner…another fantastic day on our paddle journey.
We woke up refreshed the next day, after camping out in this beautiful environment. The next adventure to tackle was the surf session at Surf Snowdonia, where they’ve created an artificial head-high wave in a 300-metre lagoon. The beauty of making a wave is you can control its power. We started out on the intermediate setting, where Nico, Harald, Tom, and David found the perfect balance on their all-around SUPs. It didn’t take long for us to be ready for an expert session, where Paul and Gauthier joined us as we cranked up the wave. Once we got our bearings, we were having the time of our lives! Perfect, clean, predictable waves.
We were able to catch 16 waves an hour, switching the direction partway through the session so we could all have a little fun on both our front and backsides. We all made the most of this epic spot, but Paul and Tom were the ones to watch during this session!
Exhausted, we drove back to our basecamp and found a warm and welcoming pub to enjoy some local beers and a great night of rest before the final leg of our journey.
Our last SUP session took place at the UK’s world-class white water spot, where the kayak world race championship began in 1995. We awoke shivering, and were surprised to see that it had snowed during the night! The river was flowing fast and furiously, thanks to the dam upriver that had just opened up. While many of us were hesitant due to the cold, Nico and David were rearing to get in the water.
There’s a place on the river that spans about 500 metres, an intense section featuring the biggest rapids. We took a look at the spot, planning our lines before barrelling down the river on our boards, much to the entertainment of those out for a walk along the riverside.
It was an incredible way to end the journey and begin our travels back to every corner of France. We had ridden so many different places, in all kinds of conditions and on all kinds of boards! We left feeling fulfilled, with cameras packed with great footage, our minds overflowing with adrenaline-fuelled memories, and our imaginations wandering to when and where our paddles would take us next.
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By Nicolas Fayol
