"I let go of my kite and started paddling towards the [beach] and that's where I found the board. The board was a bit yellow, but had a new-looking wax job and was in relatively good condition, Bon told the Guardian. Bon could tell the board was handmade and shaped for larger waves, but he did not recognise its make. Then I flipped it around and it was covered in barnacles and mussels."
"It was then he realised it may have come from the South Island or Australia. I knew the currents and it was definitely possible. When I brought it back, all my surf mates were so stoked, everybody was so excited. The board sat in his garden for another few days until the smell of the rotting barnacles and mussels compelled him to clean it up."
Alvaro Bon, a French surfer in New Zealand, found a surfboard in the dunes at Raglan while kite surfing on 15 October after his kite caught in the water and he began drifting. The board appeared yellowed but had a fresh wax job, was handmade for larger waves and was encrusted with barnacles and mussels, indicating long ocean drift. Bon kept the board briefly, then cleaned it and posted photos in Australian and South African surfing groups. Responses identified the owner as Liam, who lost the board off Tasmania on 10 May 2024 about 2,400 km away, and the two were connected.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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