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Australia
Surf Guide
The
best breaks
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| Photo:
Snapper Rocks - Gold Coast - One of
the best right point in the world |
Gold
Coast, North NSW, Geelong
 Surf
in Australia:
In the beginning of the 1900's, it was
prohibited for anyone to swim in the sea
between 6:00 in the morning and 8:00 in the
evening. Whoever breached the law was
imprisoned and not seen well by the community.
One day, a gentleman, probably drunk decided
to take a dip at noon. He was wearing a jacket
and tie and many people came to watch him and
decided to imitate the act. The police quickly
came and everybody arrested and fined them!
The two main reasons for this law was that
farmers didn't like employers to leave the
work during hot summers to refresh themselves
at the beach, and secondly; Australia still
had prisoners at that time who did forced
work. It meant that if you had a tan, you
might have looked like a prisoner. But as time
passed, the law also lost its effect (VIP's
were breaching the law anyway) and 1901 was
the year it officially became legal for people
to swim at Australian Beaches outside of those
hours.
By
1950 the first imported wood surfboards
had arrived in Australia. They were copied and
adapted for Australian style and materials.
Australian surfboards became lighter than
their American and Hawaii counterparts,
smaller in size and weight. By the 60's the
Surf explosion had started and with it came
friction between surfers and life savers. The
biggest problem seems to be that surfers and
swimmers were not happy sharing the same sand
bar and life savers used to place the flags in
their boundaries. Fights were inevitable.
Later, a decision was made to distinguish
areas between surfers and swimmers. At around
the same time, the Council decided to charge a
kind of surfboard license, which consists of a
sticker glued on the board. This law and easy
council revenue didn't last long either. By
the 70's surfing was attracting multitudes to
the beach, provoking a revolution and a new
direction in the sport; becoming professional
and profitable . Led by fantastic surfers such
as!
Mark Richards, Rabbit Bartholomew, Terry
Fitzgerald and many others who impressed the
world with their surfing abilities, the sport
was taken up professionally and practiced by a
huge number of Australians.
Australia
has many nice surfing beaches,
both beach breaks and point breaks.
Unfortunately we can't yet describe all
Australian breaks on this website, but we will
give you a good idea about the surfing beaches, considered top of the range
for the quality of its waves.
Best Time for Waves = DECEMBER ->
APRIL (Cyclone Season)
Water Temperature = 19 (winter) ->
26 (summer) Celsius.
Predominant winds = S/SE (winter) E/NE
(summer)
Surf
Spots on the Gold Coast
South
Stradbroke Island
-South
Stradbroke Island - It is a sandy Island, very
beautiful with gorgeous vegetation and waves.
You get there by ferry (15 min crossing) or
alternatively you can paddle (15 min) from the
break water at the entrance of the bay. It is
a beach break with nice sand bars and some
point breaks. The beach break closes out when
big but the point....[Back
to Map]
The
Spit, Main Beach, Surfers Paradise,
Broadbeach, Miami e Nobby
- They
are all beach breaks with nice waves when
small and closing out when big. Shark nets
protect these beaches..[Back
to Map]
Burleigh
Heads
-Internationally
famous, this right hand point break has dream
waves but also nightmare crowds. Tip: get
there very early to avoid the crowd. The wave
is long and tubular especially after the drop.[Back
to Map]
Palm
Beach
-
The other
side of Burleigh Heads Hill, it is another
beach break with great fun waves when small
and some isolated reefs that produce good
peaks.
[Back
to Map]
Currumbin
- Another
great point break with nice waves. As with all
of the Gold Coast, point breaks can get really
crowded when waves are perfect. Long rides in
front of river mouth driving always to Palm
Beach. Also, a very beautiful location.
Sometimes strong rips are formed depending on
the tide. Has big swells as well..[Back
to Map]
Tugun,
Bilinga
-By
the north part of the beach there is a reef
called Elephant Rock that produces tubular
rights and lefts. The South part of the beach
is open with a sand bottom ideal for learning
how to surf when small. .[Back
to Map]
Kirra
-One of the
best right points in the world, with express
tubular waves. This place is one of the
favourite surf spots of many professionals
including Kelly Slater. 6- 8 feet is the ideal
size, but it also gets very crowded when the
waves are at their best.[Back
to Map]
Greenmount,
Rainbow Bay, Snappers Rocks
-
They are a
set of beaches, all of them having point
breaks 6-8 feet (the perfect size). Depending
on size and direction of the swell, these 3
points are joined together forming one of the
longest right waves in the world. When it is
good it gets really crowded. I mean really,
really, really crowded. Waves are fast,
sometimes tubular and perfect, breaking on
sand always in the bay.[Back
to Map]
Officially
here is the border between the states of
Queensland & New South Wales. Shark nets
finish here, and the water temperature gets a
bit cooler. The angle of the coast also
changes relating to the winds.
Crossing
the New South Wales Border
Duranbah
- This is
one of the most popular beaches for Gold Coast
surfers, simply because Duranbah will always
have waves when everywhere else is flat.
Duranbah will always have something good to be
ridden. It holds big swells as well as small.
Peaks are spread all over the beach extension
and it always has a crowd.[Back
to Map]
Cabarita
( 50km away)
- If you driving south of the small village of
Kingscliff, there is a great right point break
called Cabarita (also name of the town). When
it gets big it's is a very powerful wave that
enters the short bay until it reaches the
beach. Some times it gets crowded, but is much
less than other northern points. When waves
are big, Cabarita is tough to paddle out and
the only way is walk back by the beach. On the
other side of the hill a beach break has some
good waves for the left handers. [Back
to map]
Byron
Bay (120 km away)
- Surfie and Hippie Mecca during the 60's,
Byron is an extraordinarily beautiful place.
Today, Byron
Bay is a must for anyone
travelling Australia, surfie or not. The place
is a meeting place of 3 smaller bays, with a
hill and lighthouse on the top. The view from
the top is fantastic and down below there are
those beautiful and perfect waves rolling in
onto a sandy bottom. It is inconsistent, and
may take a while to break decently, but when
it does, it really does. Very long rides, fast
and tubular waves, clean and blue water that
makes you feel like you are floating on air,
and depending on the day, many Dolphins will
share the waves with you.[Back
to Map]
Lennox
Heads, Ballina (140 km away)
- South of Byron Bay, this right point is
sometimes scary, but it is also perfect. Waves
are heavy and powerful, breaking on rocks and
sand. Water is clean but has a dark blue
coloration because of the ocean depth. It is
home to white pointer sharks also, and
poisonous snakes on the hill. Easy to find,
all you have to do is follow the road south,
because the road passes in front of the point.[Back
to Map]
The
Great Ocean road
is
only 20 minutes from Geelong, the Great Ocean
road starts officially, from Torquay and winds
along the Surf Coast to Lorne and beyond.
Torquay,
centre of the surf world:
Torquay
is located 95 kilometres south west of
Melbourne. Travel by car via the Surf Coast
Highway.Daily rail services is available from
Melbourne to Geelong. Local bus services are
available from Geelong. While at it’s busiest
in the hot summer months, Torquay is a
year-round destination offering more than just
amazing beaches. There are great walks, shops,
eateries and excellent accommodation. Torquay is
definitely Australia's surfing capital and the
official start of the Great Ocean Road. Some of
the biggest names in surf wear and accessories
are headquartered here, with huge retail and
seconds outlets at Surf City Plaza. Nearby
Surfworld Museum captures the spirit of
surfing.
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Bells
Beach: Victoria's
surfing Mecca and the home of the
longest-running professional surfing
event in the world, the Rip Curl Pro, is
just a short drive from Torquay, off the
Great Ocean Road. Keen surfers
"discovered" Bells Beach in
the early 1950s and it became the
world's first "surfing
reserve" in 1971 The Bells area
consists of a number of breaks,
including Wink pop, Bells Bowl, Rincon,
Centreside and Southside. Bells'
powerful waves are not for beginners. |
 |
Jan
Juc:
The
cliff-lined sandy beach is popular with
swimmers and surfers. It is just off the
Great Ocean Road, near Torquay.
Lifesavers patrol daily in peak holiday
times and on weekends at other times
during the warmer months, usually from
late November until the end of Easter.
Birdrock is the name of the surfing spot
for beginners to advanced |
Anglesea:
Anglesea is 109 kilometres southwest of
Melbourne, located on the Great Ocean Road.
Anglesea has something for all ages - beaches,
bush, river, and a friendly shopping precinct,
with a variety of restaurants and accommodation
available.
Anglesea
has some of the best beaches along the Great
Ocean Road. In fact, they rank among the best
you will find anywhere in Australia.
For some serious surfing action
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Urquhart
Bluff:
Off the Great Ocean Road, before Aireys
Inlet. Long sandy stretches, hidden
coves, rock ledges and rockpools.
Swimming, surfing, walking and fishing
are among pastimes. |
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Eastern
View:
This long sandy stretch beside the Great
Ocean Road provides plenty of
opportunities for surfing, walks,
swimming, fishing and just relaxing. |
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Fairheaven:This
is the main surf beach, and one of the
longest along the Great Ocean Road at
6km, for swimming and board-riding. |
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Lorne:
Lorne and its wide, sandy beach has been
a popular holiday destination since
Rudyard Kipling, the English writer;
came here in the 19th
century. It will be one of the venues
for the world lifesaving championship-
Rescue 2007. |
Lorne:
Lorne and its wide, sandy beach has been a popular holiday
destination since Rudyard Kipling, the English writer; came here
in the 19th century. It will be one of the venues for
the world lifesaving championship- Rescue 2007.
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