Back in January I took a trip up to Noosa to visit some family friends and it was absolutely amazing! I arrived late in the evening and went down to the marina the next day to check out some fun water sport activities I could do. As I’ve never done stand up paddle boarding before, I thought I’d give it a try while I was there. Balancing myself on the board was quite strange and challenging in the beginning but I gave it a go and got the hang of it very quickly. After that I spent the next hour paddling around the marina (and sometimes falling into the water).

Noosa is a beautifully quiet small town in the Sunshine Coast. I fell in love with it immediately and ended up staying there for almost two months. I was paddle boarding mainly along the Noosa River and have been told of some bull sharks that cruise up and down occasionally. I was so stoked upon hearing that and even had my camera with me in the rare case that I was to spot one. Admittedly, the several times that I fell into the water, I would scare myself into thinking the shark would come to me and bite off my leg, then I’d quickly climb back onto my board after this heart pounding thought that would leave me filled with adrenaline. I am then reminded of why I love sharks so much. It’s because they both scare me and thrill me at the same time. And it’s that feeling you’re looking to get every time you see one. I absolutely love the thrilling sensation I get when I see a shark, it’s why I am an advocate for them. Their agile beauty keeps passionate divers such as myself in the water. We all hope to see one on our dives. We choose specific dive sites that we know they are at because of the excitement we get every time it swims by. So when I heard about bull sharks venturing into fresh waters from the ocean, I had to get on a board and see if I could spot one.

Unfortunately I was not able to see a bull shark upon my visit in Noosa but I did get to experience a lot of great things during my time there and that even included me seeing a Pelican for the first time. Yes, a Pelican. That was fantastic! Noosa has a great surfing community as well, so if you’re ever up in Queensland and find yourself with some spare time, I would definitely head over there, grab a paddle board and enjoy a day out in the water.