The light was good and the day had dawned full of fresh hope as I left Brisbane and headed for the coast.
It seemed like a perfect couple of days to get out of town and try out some fishing gear my Dad had given me.
Over the past few months I had developed an interest in rock fishing around the Gold Coast area and was reciting to myself the rules I had heard time and again.
Always fish with someone else.
Never fish off rocks with a vertical wall behind you.
Always wear a life jacket and bike helmet.
Invest in some good rock climbing gear and crampon yourself to some rock hole which is secure.
And here I was alone with no safety gear, ah well I would have a look at the waves at least before I started in case I needed to swim home.
I had packed the swag as usually the weather could turn rainy and I had a couple of new books to read including Laborde's Influencing with Integrity which I had been trying to get for years.
Rain or sun I had a bit of camp food and was looking forward to a few days of peace and quiet.
The first thing to do was to find a good spot to camp as with all the new rules you couldn't camp near the fishing spots and I wasn't that keen on setting the swag up in a caravan park full of families.
I could get enough of that at home.
Time to make a call to a bloke I knew who had a key to the government fisheries area and ask him if he needed some help with the research they were doing.
Mid morning by the time I arrive and set up the swag and the rain has set in and the water looks a bit choppy so I decided to settle in under the tarp with a small bottle of rum and a couple of books.
Looks like the fish will have to wait till later.