"Scott knows there's not a lot he can do about this, he's been preparing for this for ages and he just has to hunker down and rest up."
Mr Donaldson was within sight of Mt Taranaki, but poor weather halted his attempts to make it to land, three months after he set off on his journey.
A ship sent to shadow Mr Donaldson to shore was forced to returned to port yesterday because of bad weather.
The MV Reef Spirit set sail from New Plymouth on Monday with the intention of remaining with him to the finish. But weather conditions became so bad, it was deemed too dangerous for the vessel to stay.
Despite the wild weather, Mr Donaldson remained unfazed, Mr Funnell said.
"He's done three months of it ... he's faced these conditions out in the mid-Tasman in the past - this is all part of his psyche, he just knows he's got to take it easy.
Conditions were expected to abate by Saturday and Mr Donaldson was expected to reach landfall at Port Taranaki by Sunday or Monday, Mr Funnell said.
"[Mr Donaldson] sends texts to everyone, generally annoys them all day to fill the day in."
He hadn't paddled at all yesterday as the weather was too rough, Mr Funnell said.
Mr Funnell, who has made three supply drops to Mr Donaldson, said he had never met him and became involved only after Mr Donaldson's wife Sarah appealed for him to help.
"His wife rang up and said 'my husband's kayaking the Tasman and he's run out of food'."
Mr Donaldson left Coffs Harbour in New South Wales on April 19, hoping to be the first person to kayak solo across the Tasman.
