Crossing the Ditch

Crossing the Ditch is the story of two young Australians, James Castrission and Justin Jones, a story of determination, dedication and triumph.
The skies are closing in; the Tasman Sea swell is angry; this is a confrontation between two exhausted young men and nature's wildest elements, where it's plainly obvious who are the outsiders in this battle for survival. They have been going around in circles, literally, for a week, buffeted off course by the tides, giant swells and winds that caused them to paddle an extra 800kms on top of the 3000km they had prepared for. With their leg muscles wasting, their body fat reserves depleted and their minds playing tricks - their determination refused to wander.
In their tiny kayak, they battled 10 metre towering waves, massive storms, sharks and currents that conspired against them. On January 13, 2008, After 3318 kilometres and 1.7 million paddle strokes, James Castrission and Justin Jones reached the sand at New Plymouth on NZ's North Island - and a place in history - 62 days after they set off from Forster on the mid-New South Wales coast.
They were sun-burnt, bearded, underweight, physically and mentally wasted ... but most of all happy to be alive.