Kite surfer’s crash landing to croc, jellyfish and shark infested harbour

A DARWIN man who crashed his kite surfing in the harbour while his arms and legs were tangled in its lines prayed as he swam through croc, jellyfish and shark infested water for 40 minutes before being rescued by police with a garden hose and then getting a free beer

Isaac McNichol in the centre, poses with the police who rescued him after he crashed his kite surfer in Darwin Harbour. Picture: Isaac McNichol

A DARWIN man who crashed his kite surfing in the harbour while his arms and legs were tangled in its lines prayed as he swam through croc, jellyfish and shark infested water for 40 minutes before being rescued by police with a garden hose and then getting a free beer

Isaac McNichol went kite surfing on Saturday afternoon because of rare strong winds but without a stinger suit (because other kiters didn’t use them) and in a secluded spot.

“Note to self for next time: secluded is not a good thing when kitesurfing,” he said.

It went wrong quickly as a twig got stuck in his lines, which he thought would just fall off.

“Lesson number two: it turns out that just cause you really want something to happen doesn’t mean it will,” he said.

“When I got out into the stronger winds out from the shore the twig still wouldn’t budge and then I realised that I couldn’t control my kite properly!”

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Mr McNichol being rescued by police near Pee Wee’s. Picture: Isaac McNichol

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He said he was pulled out into the bay.

“After trying to free the twig for a while I realised it was more attached than a co-dependent lover and I needed to put into practice the self rescue technique I’d been taught in my beginner lessons,” he said.

Mr McNichol tried to deflate the kite but the stick stopped it and he got pulled out further.

Crocodiles both like living in the water and eating people. Picture: Sue English

“I wrestled the kite and managed to pull myself towards it winding my bar around the lines as I’d been taught,” he said.

“As I was getting close to the kite I heard a big pop and my kite deflated completely. My first thought was, ‘Did a croc just bite my kite?

“I waited nervously for half a minute but saw no signs of life.”

Mr McNichol is an architect in Darwin. Picture: Isaac McNichol

He said he was about 300m from shore, with the dead weight of a massive kite which was filling with water, in croc and jellyfish infested waters.

“The kite was an expensive investment and being of Scottish ancestry it never actually crossed my mind that perhaps I should leave behind this heavy death trap of a kite, which was now acting more like an underwater parachute …” he said.

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“I never was a particularly good swimmer though and I found that needing one arm to hold my board and having both my legs partially tied up did little to improve my technique,” he said.

“I had plenty of time to think about life and everything as I paddled back to shore. I was thinking about my family and that thought of thing.

“I have to admit that at that point I began to pray. Some of my friends are paddle boarders and they tell me they see crocs out there all the time.

“And considering how completely tangled up in my kite I was by this stage, I realised that if a croc came with any appetite whatsoever I was as good as gone.

“In that moment I realised they’d never even find my body.”

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Then he saw a group of people on the cliffs in the distance.

“After what I learned later was about 40 minutes, I could see some police arrive on the scene,” he said.

“I was headed towards a secluded restaurant, Pee Wee's, on the cliffs. One of the managers of the restaurant kindly lent the police a garden hose and, when eventually I was within garden-hose-throwing distance (second try lucky), I was slowly hauled to shore.

“Post-croc-swimming highlights: getting a free ride in the police paddywagon back to my car, complete with selfie.

“Getting a free beer and architectural tour of the beautiful restaurant which is always wanted to see in person.”