Kayaker goes full circle in middle of Tasman Sea

and New Zealand, but over the weekend wind and sea conditions pushed him to do a loop in the middle of the ocean.

While it might seem a circuitous route, Donaldson’s team leader, Nigel Escott said it was a planned move to get him out of the rough weather.

‘‘He’s a bit frustrated at the moment as he’s at the mercy of the wind and tide. He’s trapped in a wind and tide pattern that he’s struggling to get out of.’’

He said the wind had pushed Donaldson about 100km north and off course.

‘‘We have a plan, which will involve him travelling in an anticlockwise direction, so you’ll see him do a circle on the website tracker,’’ Escott said on Facebook on Friday. The extra distance has also been factored into the trip, with Donaldson expecting at the outset to paddle an extra 1000km because of conditions.

It’s not the first time Donaldson has found himself paddling in circles. During his 84-day failed attempt to kayak from Australia to New Zealand in 2014, the same thing happened.

‘‘The positive is that he has made tremendous progress to date, and will make forward progress again once he gets into the more favourable wind and tides in a few days,’’ Escott said.

The journey has already been tough for Donaldson, who has had to battle six metre swells had a shark biting his rudder at the end of May.