Well, who knew being a sock tossed around relentlessly in a washing machine could be so enjoyable?

That’s what my first experience of surfing felt like and I can’t wait to try it again.

My family and I travelled to Newquay on the north Cornwall coast and it’s easy to see why it’s Surf Central as far as this country is concerned.

Pounded by the Atlantic waves, the conditions are just right on Fistral Beach which is where we met our instructor Karl from the Newquay Activity Centre.

Essentially a mountain with a beard and a voice like Jethro shouting through a 10,000 watt PA system, Karl’s a former surfing pro who has been teaching for more than 20 years.

He knows his stuff and his endless patience with a numpty like me, plus the ability to make himself heard and understood over the Atlantic roar was more than helpful.

After wrestling with our wet suits in the changing room, we marched down the road to the shore, carrying our boards.

Like most of our coastline, the heavy storms earlier this year caused quite a lot of damage, with buildings and shorelines changed or wrecked beyond belief. Such was the impact of the weather that a lot of sand had been shifted along the coast, and leaving dangerous rocks exposed.

Our two-hour lesson was scheduled for low tide, at 2pm.

It seemed to take ages to walk to the water’s edge but when we got there, we parked our boards in a circle. My sons, aged 19 and 13, and my 16-year-old daughter then lay on our boards and began to paddle in the wet sand. My wife, perhaps wisely, watched from the comfort of the car.

“ Hmmm, this is far too easy,” I thought, as we went through the routine, paddling, wait to be picked up, quickly move to the kneeling position and then up on two legs , standing sideways, leaning forward, extending both arms.

I could just about hear the music to Hawaii 5-0 in my ears when Karl said: “Ok, now let’s try it in the water.” DOH.

The weather was kind to us on the early spring Saturday afternoon, with a gentle breeze and waves of to three or four feet.

“Never underestimate the power of a wave,” Karl told us, and how true that was as I tried to push through a two-footer which knocked me over, my board banging on my bonce as I resurfaced.

My eldest son was up and running within minutes, thanks to previous surfing experience in Australia, and my youngest boy was showing huge progress, thanks to Karl’s enthusiasm and encouragement.

Catching a wave, paddling and getting upright, they both managed to make it look so easy and effortless.

My daughter seemed to enjoy the falling off bit the best and retired worn out with laughing after about an hour or so. My aching and ageing limbs kept on going for more than two hours before exhaustion caught up with me.

It was a truly memorable experience and we all slept soundly that night.

The NAC also offers instruction in coasteering, bodyboarding and a whole host of packages for families, stag and hen parties, school groups, etc.

With such a dramatic and exciting coastline, surfing is not the only action sport on offer.

Earlier that day we drove across town to Lusty Glaze, a small cove sheltered between two giant cliffs and not, as I initially thought, a female star of some rather dubious films from the 50s and 60s.

Now, if the idea of launching yourself off the top of a 150ft cliff hanging by a rope attached to a wire floats your boat, you’re in the right place at Lusty Glaze.

It’s one of the highest, longest and fastest zip wires in Europe and, thanks to its set-up, you only get to realise just how high you are when you’ve stepped off the platform. And by then it’s too late… The thing with most zip wiring is that you go from a place high up, zoom downwards with a gentle degree but at high speed until you land at another platform some distance away.

Lusty Glaze is different. You go from one cliff top, across the cove, to another cliff top, and back again, and back again until you run out of momentum.

Then you do some dangling, about 100ft up. Quite a lot of dangling in my case, as I struggled with the release button which feeds out your safety rope slowly as you lower yourself to the safety of the sand below.

We stayed in the Squarehouse, which we worked out was probably called that because it’s a house and it’s square.

Not no ordinary house, this, it’s a mahoosive six-bedroom, beautifully decorated and furnished behemoth right in the centre of town, so ideally for large groups or extended families.

It’s handy for the nearby supermarket, has parking for three cars and is just one minute’s walk from the main drag with all the pubs, clubs and shops.

So if you’re looking for an action-packed and enjoyable weekend or even longer, I’d certainly recommend Newquay.

  • Useful websites: www.newquayactivitycentre.co.uk www.lustyglaze.co.uk