Brent Sharp is just a summer away from achieving something only a handful of people have completed or even attempted.
The Port Taranaki site works co-ordinator, is closing in on a solo kayak circumnavigation of New Zealand – an odyssey that began nearly a decade ago when he set out from New Plymouth on the first leg of a journey that will take in more than 5,600km.
Having always been involved in ocean-related pastimes, Brent took up kayak fishing in his mid to late 40s. Then, in his 50s, he was inspired to tackle solo kayaking through the exploits of renowned Kiwi adventure kayaker Paul Caffyn, who has circumnavigated New Zealand, Australia, and Great Britain, among others.
“He’s a legend in the kayaking world. He triggered the inspiration, and I thought that’s something I could get my teeth into,” Brent says.
Each summer, Brent uses his annual leave and long weekends to bite off chunks of his mission – the North Island took three years, and this past summer he was to have completed the last stretch of the South Island, from just south of Kaikoura to Monkey Island in Southland.
However, just as the Covid pandemic and a family health matter interrupted the initial legs of his South Island voyage, this summer bad weather cut into his schedule and meant he ran out of time to complete the mainland circumnavigation, finishing at Curio Bay in the Catlins – just 140km short of his destination.
“I had expected to complete the South Island this year, but the east coast was more difficult than I had anticipated. I had some rough southerlies on the way down, which meant I was only able to paddle 50% of the days I was away, when it should have been about 70%,” he says.
However, Brent’s philosophical about coming up short.
“I am disappointed, but it is what it is, and it will still be there next year.
“Throughout the whole voyage I’ve never forced anything, and I don’t intend to start now. It’s not a race, I’m about doing it organically, not pushing it with a deadline.”
Next summer, he and his support crew, wife Sharon, will load up the campervan and head to the bottom of the South Island where Brent will complete the South Island leg, before eyeing up Stewart Island.
“I’ve decided to tack on Stewart Island. It’s scary as it’s the most daunting piece of ocean there is, alongside Fiordland, and Sharon would prefer that I didn’t do it, but I’m pretty determined and am already planning for it.”
Once complete, Brent will join a small group to have kayaked around New Zealand, and, at 68, will be the oldest.
“I’ve wanted to challenge myself, and even at my age I want to get as far as I can and strive to get better,” says Brent, who keeps fit during the ‘off-season’ by sweating it out at F45 high-intensity circuit training classes.
“With solo kayaking you have to really enjoy it because it’s hard. But I love it. Being out in the middle of nowhere and enjoying the peace and beauty – it’s right up my ally.
“The path least travelled and all that.”
Support vital
Through every kilometre of his journey, Sharon is a constant support – following in the campervan, appropriately named ‘Shaza & Shark-bait’, and stopping at lookouts and beaches along the way, while keeping tabs on her husband, often 12km off the coast, via a satellite tracker that pings his position to her phone.
“If it wasn’t for her following me around, it wouldn’t be as enjoyable,” says Brent.
“We’re doing it for our own leisure, doing it at our own pace and in our own time, and Sharon enjoys it as she gets to see parts of New Zealand that many don’t.
“She’ll stop at lookouts and get the binoculars out. There’ll be people there and they’ll get chatting and ask what she’s looking at and she says ‘oh that’s my husband out there’,” he laughs.
Brent spends months ahead of each summer plotting out his next leg, the coastline and possible landings and distances, then laminating maps to have on-hand for each day’s paddle.
“I generally aim to paddle 7-9 hours a day, point to point – the shortest route – so I’m usually about 2km off the coast, but that can get as far as 12km.
“I try to find a place where I can come in and meet up with Sharon for the night. If the weather and conditions are against you, that can quickly turn into 11-12 hours of paddling and you have to have a contingency, or escape plan, to get onto land.”
Some parts of the coastline, such as in Fiordland, are impossible for Sharon to access, so Brent hauls his kayak up onto the beach, finds a spot of land and pitches his tent.
“Depending on the weather, I can be in one spot for days. But I’m all self-contained and have enough food to last.”
Out on the water, Brent’s a bit old school. He swears by his trusty plastic kayak, and navigates with maps and a compass.
“I’ve got the roughest, heaviest kayak there is. I haven’t gone down the flash carbon route – I’ve got an old plastic thing. It needed to take the knocks, which it has, and I’ve got plenty of repairs to show for it.”
His technology is limited to a personal locator beacon, the satellite tracker, a mobile phone and a VHF radio.
However, the phone and radio “are usually tucked away and not much use as I’m out of range most of the time”.
On the edge
Journeying more than 5,000km on the open sea in a small kayak, there are times when Brent’s calm demeanour is pushed to the limit by treacherous conditions.
“I’ve been flipped end-to-end – a forward loop – by a wave, and there have been scary moments in the rough surf coming into land, such as at the Karamea Bight, north of Westport, which had me shaking in my boots before I attempted the landing.”
The bight is known, and feared, for its strong currents, high swells, challenging shore breaks, and winds.
“Luckily, I had a really good ride coming through the waves onto the beach, but I was shaking – it was very scary.”
On another occasion, on the far south-west of the South Island, Brent was stuck onshore in his tent for eight days because of bad weather.
“The weather improved and I got a forecast that it would be variable 10 knots – light for kayaking.
“So, I packed everything down and got out in the kayak to go around Puysegur Point for a relatively short paddle. Then out of nowhere, the weather blew up to 30 knots, and with nowhere to go I had to take it on. I managed to get through, but it was a pretty tense time.
“There’s been lots of scary moments, but that’s what it’s about, right?”
There have also been amazing encounters with wildlife.
“I’ve had orca pods come very close, and schools of blue fin tuna jumping all around me, with birds everywhere,” he says.
“There are lots of dolphins – so common they’re almost a daily event. And I love the birdlife, particularly albatross – there’s great birdlife around Fiordland and Otago peninsula.
“It’s a fantastic experience.”
Sharon Sharp keeps an eye on Brent from land in their campervan 'Shazza & Shark-bait'.
Brent Sharp heads out into the water to tackle a few more kilometres on his New Zealand circumnavigation odyssey.
