Jefferys Bay

I'm a strange sort round here. People don't quite know what to make of me. An Australian who doesn't surf.

I can't really offer then any explanation. "I live in Melbourne, it's not exactly Byron Bay" I say. They shrug there shoulders. "What's wrong with the South Coast?"They say. I shrug back at them. "I want to learn" I explain apologetically.

Tanned and freckled, blonde and built like a tank, the man strolling up the steps of our hostel was unmistakably our surf instructor. His excited dog lead, a sheep dog with a few dreadlocks hanging from behind his ears.

"How'd you get the scar on your leg?" asked Steve.
"Motorbike accident" Adrian answered gruffly in a thick Afrikaans accent.
"Awww!" said Steve, throwing his arms in the air "I can't believe you didn't say just say shark attack!" Adrian didn't think this was funny. He also didn't like waiting while we posed for photos in our wetsuits.

After two hours I'm not sure you could say I surfed. But it was a lot of fun crashing and falling, and laughing at the stupid look of glee everyone got on their face the instant they made it to there knees. I could do with some more practice.

But what a place to start. Jeffery's bay was made famous by the 1964 film Endless Summer, which earned it the reputation as the perfect wave. Its arguable that previously the bay was just a few rocks and the town was created on the back of the movie. The supertubes as they are know are actually just up the coast at Francis bay, but the main beach at Jeffery's gives you a good surf in waist high water, which is great if you just want to muck around.

Aside from surfing, there not a lot more to do. There's a fair few surf shop factory outlets, all Australian brands, Billabong, Quicksilver, etc, which sell clothing surprising much cheaper than at home. You can get t-shirts here that say "Billabong, Bells Beach" for $30. I feel sort of cheated by that.

Ive been staying at Island Vibe, the party hostel of the town. Friday night when we arrived with a bus load of newbies the party mode was just starting to kick in. By Saturday night the dorms were full and it was all on.

Perched up on a sand dune at the end of the main beach you get 270 degree views of the beach from just outside your dorm. Some of the serious surfers have been here for months. There not here for the party though. Early to bed every night and out by sunrise, surfing is there only priority.

For us just here to try it for a few days, we didn't really have the discipline. Sunday was my birthday, so everyone made sure they celebrated every minute of it. At midnight the whole bar sang Happy Birthday. We hit the local clubs, or rather club, an absolute dive called Alcatraz, and danced with a few locals back in town on school break. After a few hours we headed back home, back to the bar, and back to bed around the time we were meant to rise for the waves.

But on a flat winters day, its when you really notice what a way of life surfing is. Everyone grows restless and annoyed. Those of us for whom surfing for two days has been quiet difficult on certain muscles, I thanked god and hire a video.