Unemployed and confined to his house during Melbourne's fifth lockdown, Andrew Englisch was depressed.
To keep his mind occupied, the father of two began searching online for a new hobby.
Mr Englisch discovered wing foiling, which he said was "essentially a cross between windsurfing and hydrofoiling".
"The board is about five feet long, it's pretty small and has a hydrofoil attached to the bottom of it [so it] hovers above the water.
"There are wings and it has a little tail that sits below the water and elevates the board.
Sights set on major challenge
After only doing the sport for about a year, Mr Englisch decided he wanted to be the first person in the world to cross Bass Strait on a wing foil.
Starting at the north-eastern tip of Tasmania at Cape Portland, he island-hopped his way up the coast of Flinders Island then onto Deal Island and Refuge Cove.
"These are incredible places, like stunningly rugged, remote, very windy and very wild.
"Bass Strait is notoriously treacherous, it can have seas up to 10 metres, it can have winds that are 40 to 50 knots, and lots of boats perish out there.
"I had no idea if I'd be able to actually get going in those conditions."
At night, Mr Englisch would seek refuge on a support boat with his crew before continuing his adventure in the daylight.
The journey from Roydon Island to Deal Island was about 60 kilometres, with periods where there was no land in sight.
Mr Englisch said it was a peaceful and surreal experience because, "normally you're always surrounded by land, you can see boats and people".
"Then out of the mist, I saw Deal Island, the rugged, almost Jurassic Park-looking environment."
When he was about 400 meters from Victorian waters, the wind died down and Mr Englisch thought he was going to have to swim the final distance.
He drifted in the water, contemplating what to do next, when all of a sudden the wind picked up and carried him to the finish line: he had made it.
Over four days, Mr Englisch achieved his goal, covering about 220 kilometres.
Not just a physical challenge
One of the reasons Mr Englisch decided he wanted to be the first person in the world to cross Bass Strait on a wing foil was to show people that he was still capable, despite being just shy of 55 years old.
"To show the kids that an old bugger like me can still do stuff, still have an active, adventurous life — and hopefully it will inspire them to do the same.
"So many people around my age tend to start limiting themselves, and I'm not talking in an extreme way, but they say 'I've reached an age, I can't do that anymore,' and I don't think that's true.
"Hopefully this may inspire somebody, not necessarily to cross Bass Strait, but to find their own little adventure or world first because the whole journey is amazing and it'll make you feel better."
The journey was also a fundraising mission for Waves of Wellness, a surf therapy charity that delivers support programs for people with mental health challenges.
Mr Englisch has raised $7,000 for the charity so far, with a goal of reaching $10,000.
"Quite often when you're in that state of darkness, you don't want to leave the house, and I've been there, where I couldn't be bothered getting out of bed.
"But the minute you take a few steps or a few strokes you feel better and for me, part of my medicine is being in the ocean."
