I slept next to my boat on the beach and had a laid-back morning sitting under a parasol gifted to me by the deckchair mafia, probably because they felt sorry for me cooking in the sun.

Late as usual, my one-time K2 partner and Waterside series nemesis Will Scammell appeared on the beach with his girlfriend Molly. Heading to the Tuscan hills on bicycles, it was a great coincidence that we crossed paths. We had a good catch up and I had the honour of sharing Will and Molly’s first swim in Italy (and their food). Will reminded me of the up-sides of paddling over pedaling – no hills and the freedom to cool off whenever. I guess I’ll appreciate that when I start the Insulin360 challenge. Great to see you Will and Molly!

We headed off in opposite directions, each going where the other had come from. I felt a bit lacking in energy today, but I must remember that I only paddled a dozen or so times in the 7 months prior to this trip. It’s bound to take some time to get strong again, I can’t expect too much from my body.

Mountains now rise up from the coast and stretch in to the misty distance. From the town of Sperlonga the coast was beautiful with awesome cliffs and I drifted along slowly .

My dexcom must’ve been out of calibration, because about 5kms from Gaeta it read 6.0, but I started feeling low. I ate some sweets and sat in my boat, but still felt really washed out and jittery, so I headed for shore. Feeling knackered, I devoured my pack of emergency biscuits, knowing they would send me high, but not caring.

After topping up my water, I came upon a hidden cove just below the castle at Gaeta. Just as I was unpacking my boat, something caught my eye just out to sea. Yes, there it was – a fin. I paddled out and was surrounded by a pod of dolphins arching out of the water and puffing air. They were hunting in pairs and were very focused on the task, systematically scanning an area. I just sat silently in my kayak watching this scene against the setting sun.

Moments like these make up for any number of hours slogging it across boring sandy bays. In fact, I don’t think they’d be so special if I hadn’t suffered some hardship on the journey.

Diabetes

This morning I really couldn’t stomach a high fat meal, so I had some carbohydrates. With everything diabetes related I think it’s better to stay open minded and not follow plans religiously. If my body says no to more fat and is craving fruit, then I’ll listen to it and adapt, because I need to get the calories in.

Those carbs did send me a bit high, and then I went low because of my faulty dexcom. I injected 2 units novorapid after my biscuit feast and that got things back on track for the night.