Australian Windsurfing Sites
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· Sites around Sydney and elsewhere in NSW
· Sites around Melbourne and elsewhere in Victoria
· Sites around Perth and elsewhere in Western Australia
· Sites around Adelaideand elsewhere in South Australia
· Sites around Brisbane and elsewhere in Queensland
· Sites around Cairns and elsewhere on the Barrier Reef - Queensland
· Links to other Australian Sports etc.
Long Reef beach - good wave beach for NE winds, Collaroy beach- NE winds, Palm
beach - ocean side are all good in strong Southerly winds 20-40 knots and in
the north or nor-easters 15-30knots. (People also windsurf off Newport Beach
and Queenscliff)
Flat Water
If you like flat water sailing try Palm Beach (other side - Pittwater),
Narrabeen lakes or Balmoral beach,
There are many well equipped stores in that area. Long Reef Sailboards, Mona
Vale Sailboards, Balmoral Sail and Ski.
People windsurf in Sydney Harbour but there are a number of restricted areas
which makes it difficult and its also very crowded. Further up the Harbour to
the west, Rod Point is a popular spot with Bai Sailboards close by. Also Hen
and Chicken Bay in a Strong Southerly is good fun. 1 hour south of Sydney is
Wollongong. There are many spots around W-gong for good wavesailing (Towragi is
one). Ask at one of the 2 shops, you will see them if you enter the city from
the North.
Going North from Sydney
Brisbane Waters - Gosford - Try from Green Point
Bateau
Bay for ocean sailing
Tuggerah Lakes - North of The Entrance Bridge
Lake Munmorah
Lake Macquarie- Belmont
Newcastle Beach?I've also heard that Newcastle, 2 hours north of Sydney is OK.
They have some slalom events there every year.
Ports Stephens- Tea Gardens or Shoal Bay
Wallis Lakes - Forster
The wind on the eastcoast tends to be strongest from August through to
November. The winds then die through summer particularily February to May.
Over on the West Coast is our best kept secret. The towns of Lancelin and
Geraldton (some 2 and 4 hours drive north of Perth) are a mecca for off season
professional windsurfers who frequent the PBA circuit. Excellent wind and waves
rivalling Maui, so much so that many of the major sail lofts now have R&D
branches there with well known sailors trying things out. I lot of Europeans
have moved to the area, for a laid-back perfect life of sailing.
South of Perth is Margaret River - the mouth of which is quite an extreme reef
break only for serious top notch professionals when it's going off. A
treacherous reef spells disaster for those who get it wrong - both for their
equipment and their body. Some say Hookipa in Maui is more forgiving.
Further south is Esperence - very good waves and excellent flat water too.
more WA information
even more WA
information
Travelling around Oz in an anti-clockwise manner brings you eventually to
Adelaide after about 3 days drive. Adelaide is a good windy city that picks up
the prevailing south-westerly, the product of the 'west-wind drift' that us
sailors at the bottom of the southern hemisphere benefit from all year round.
Adelaide boasts excellent beaches and a quiet life style.
Windsurfing sites in Victoria
This home page provides clickable maps of the best windsurfing spots around the state with current wind strength and direction at most of the beaches. The page also includes a discussion board, classifieds section and links to local shops.
The details below are provided by - Mark
'Cecil' DeFriest - cecil@netspace.net.au
A day's drive further east brings you to Melbourne and a wide range of sailing
options. The city itself sits on Port Phillip Bay - a bay so big you can't see
the other side... so you get a variety of conditions... even in one day! They
range from fairly flat water (0.5 meter chop or less) to 2.0 meter swell and
chop, perfect for serious air. Our prevailing wind here is a south-westerly -
pretty much all year round. I find myself sailing on average 2-3 days a week.
Sure, we get skunked for a week or more sometimes (usually around March/April)
but I've had periods where I've sailed for 7 straight days in a row. In this
area we have great wave sailing - at Point Danger, Torquay, where Jason Polakow
grew up... and many other beaches like Point Leo... far too numerous to
mention. (Point Danger, Torquay - 1.5 hours drive south west... and quite good,
ask Jason Palakow). And flat water blasting? The best place in the world, Sandy
Point, where the current world speed record was made by a sailing craft.... the
Yellow Pages catamaran - finally beating the record made by a windsurfer... :-(
damn!. Sandy Point has truly flat water, protected by a low sand bank, over
which blows a south-westerly to die for. (Sandy Point - 2.5 hrs drive south
east of Melbourne) Temperatures? Real hot in summer, cold in winter (not quite
snowing). I use a 3/4mm wetsuit during the colder months (I even wear booties
for 3 months during winter) and a thin spring suit during the rest of the time
- just a swimsuit during the hottest days... even though the water never gets
warm... we're too close to the south pole.
North of Brisbane
Sunshine Coast
Golden Beach: There is a channel to sail in, sandbars give some protection from chop. Best in a South-Easterly.
Kings Beach ??:Good flat water sailing in a South Westerly or North-easterly, also easy to get out into the waves for wave sailors.
Maroochydore: Main Beach: Open water sailing for experienced sailors. Best in SE to N winds.
Cotton Tree: Excellent flat water sailing. Access to surf. There is an excellent sailing school here. Best in NE to NW winds.
Lake Cootharaba: Salt water lake, (not very salty though). Very large lake, all waist deep. Good camping facilities, Nice quiet place where everyone sails cats or windsurfers. Best in SE-NE
All of the above are about 1/2-1 hour North of brisbane.
Tin Can Bay: 1&1/2 hours north of Brisbane. Sheltered sailing in large area with some sandbars and sandflats. Never sailed there but have been fishing there a lot and seen people sailing. probably best at high tide. Best in NW-SE
Rainbow Beach : 1&1/2 hours North of Brisbane. Open surf sailing. Best in SE.
Hervey Bay:2&1/2 hours North of Brisbane
South of the Boat Harbour: Conditions SE wind and High Tide. Choppy bump&jump conditions in shallow safe waters. Or for experienced sailors, large swells across the channel to round island and woody island.
Next to the Urangan Pier: This is one of the best spots in Hervey Bay. Sailable in almost any wind but avoid it in a S-SE. Shallow protected water.(sometimes too shallow). Flat fast runs behind a large sandbar. You can sail from dead flat water through to big rough stuff. The water gradually changes due to the angle of the sandbar as you go north along the beach. If you want to have a great sail with beatiful gybing, come here in Northerly at low tide.
Beaches at Torquay, Scarness and Pialba: Good in a Northerly but not worth going to if you can get to the Pier.
Point Vernon:The Gables: Only sail here if you are experienced with waterstarts and gybes. Deep water, large swells. Only conditions to sail here in are SE-NE winds, and low tide.
Gatakers Bay: only sailable conditions are High tide, NW winds. The most awesome place in Hervey Bay to sail. It is only sailable a few times a year. If there is a strong Northerly blowing and no-one is at the Pier then you can bet they're at Gatakers. Really nice long-breaking swells (usually 3-6 foot). Clean wind. Nice flat water between the waves. This is the place to go if you are a full on wave sailor or even just a person who enjoys a bit of bump&jump. Be careful of the current and also a couple of sandbars which cause waves to stand up and pound you.
Toogom:1/2 hour North of Hervey Bay: Sailable in Northerly. Good flat water sailing behind a sandbar. And open water sailing for very experienced sailors only.
Burrum Heads:3/4 hour North of Hervey Bay: Best spot around when a SW is blowing. Good bump&jump conditions in NW-NE winds. Deep water, some sandbars. strong currents.
Elliot Heads: 3&1/2 hours North of Brisbane: This is the ultimate flat water sailing experience. Sail only in a SE and preferably at low tide. The currents and rips are strong.(no swimming allowed here) But the sailing is amazing. You can sail within 1/2 metre of a sandbar and the only noise you can here is you board skipping across glassy water. The gybes are amazing too. It is no wonder they held the Queensland slalom comp here. At high tide swells roll in so the conditions improve. Glassy water maxed out sailing straight onto small swells and straight up. The open water sailing is good too.
Emu park/Yeppoon: 7 hours North of Brisbane: Emu Park is good sailing in a SE.
Yeppoon main beach: SE-NE winds. Ok open water sailing. Bump&jump conditions.
Wind and Weather Conditions
September-February SE-NE averaging about 15 knots
February-May SE averaging 15 knots
May-August SW averaging 15 knots
August-September SE averaging 15 knots.
These values of wind speed are fairly conservative, we get periods of good 15- 25knot winds and periods of nothing. Generally the best times are October-February for Northerlies And Feb-May South Easterlies.
Now drive two days further north, all the way to the tropics, and you're in
Cairns and Port Douglas. Paradise. The water's flat because of The Great
Barrier Reef. And it's warm. The wind is light so bring a large volume short
board - say 125 litres and a big sail - say 7.0 meters. I've sailed up there
for the last three winters and had a wonderful time. But be careful of the
'stingers' in the summer months. These 'box jellyfish' are deadly. Get stung by
one of these and you're dead in minutes - really. If you wear a lycra stinger
suit you feel nothing - but if not ... you die if you get more than a meter of
tenticle on your body.
Port Douglas (just north of Cairns) off the sailing club (not the yacht
club).The wind is light - so ensure you have a 'floaty' board (I was using a
BIC Presto at 124 litres) and big sails (Pryde V8 7 meter for me most of the
time).
In Cairns they sail off of Yorkey's Knob, Tides are a minor problem, often with
a 2.8 meter differential - but the bottom is lovely sand (well, some coral so
watch your feet) so you just have to walk out a bit.
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