Danny Griffiths jumped on a wave at Pedra Branca in March 2017 and his board was nowhere to be seen when he resurfaced, he told CNN on Thursday.
Despite looking for the shiny green plaque specially made with the help of friends, Griffiths was forced to give it up and “I never thought we would see it again,” he said.
However, in the last week or so, word got around the local surfing community that a Tasmanian surfboard had been found in North Queensland – about 1,700 miles in a straight line – and Griffiths saw a photo.
“As soon as I saw it, I knew it was my board,” he said. “Even with the barnacles on it, I could say it was mine.”
Two brothers found the board covered with barnacles.
Courtesy Danny Griffiths
The plaque was found two years ago by two brothers fishing on Magnetic Island, North Queensland, who took it home, cleaned it and exposed it at their home, he said.
Then, the brothers’ parents took a trip to Tasmania and began to tell the locals how their children had found a board made in the region.
After the news spread, Griffiths contacted the pair, who agreed to return it to the original owner.
Griffiths spoke to a marine scientist who told him that the direction of the ocean currents means that the council must have traveled through New Zealand en route to Queensland.
Griffiths portrayed surfing the Pedra Branca on the board.
Andrew Chisholm
He calculates that the board spent 16 months at sea, surviving thanks to the robust construction of large wave boards, which are much more resistant than the standard models.
That means it would have withstood any collision with rocks or seabird pecking, which would make holes in a normal board and eventually make it sink, he added.
The board was made especially for surfing Pedra Branca.
Courtesy Danny Griffiths
Griffiths said he had the board made specifically for surfing at Pedra Branca, a small island located about 26 kilometers (16 miles) off the Tasmanian coast that he can only surf once every two or four years when conditions are right.
In a strange coincidence, Griffiths and his friends were surfing the scene a few weeks ago, and the conversation turned to the long-lost board.
Griffiths said he had several replacement plates made, but none looked as good as the original.
“Nothing was working so well,” he said.
However, he hopes to meet with the lost board next week or later, and plans to test whether it is still in use.