Northern NSW

Surf

18 June 2025

New South Wales (NSW) is a state in the southeast of Australia. It is the most populated state in the country, largely down to the fact it’s home to the most populated city in the country, Sydney.

The northern coastal area of the state is a surf mecca. Flying to Australia and driving the east coast is a world-famous surf pilgrimage.

This sub-tropical coastline, stretching around 250 km from Yuraygir National Park south of Yamba all the way to the Gold Coast border, is a kind of rural surfing dream. It’s where surfers first fled Australian cities back in the late 1960s, founding new kinds of surfing lives in the idyllic coastal landscapes.

Northern NSW is river country. The coast and hinterland is crossed by several significant bodies of water, including the Clarence at Yamba and the Richmond at Ballina, just south of Byron Bay. Sands and waters from these rivers give the area its defining surf zone markers — long white-sand beaches and points, most of which rely on the sand-flow to keep them in top shape. These qualities are reflected in the wide variety of surf cultures, from the fairly hard-core crew who ride the more testing waves at Lennox and Ballina to the busier yet more longboardy/Fish vibes of Byron’s Pass.

There are many four-wheeled missions worth doing in Australia, yet none tick all the boxes of one of the great surfing pilgrimages which is the trip from Sydney to the Gold Coast. The aptly named Pacific Highway traces the coast for 600-odd miles, and with the smallest of deviations, you can choose between empty beaches that stretch endlessly, iconic surf breaks, quiet off-grid surf towns and hyped-hubs like Byron Bay and Coolangatta. You can take two weeks, or two years, depending on your vibe, visa and income streams. 

Imagine stumbling across mile after mile of golden beaches, verdant headlands and hidden coves backed by wild, lush rain forest and fronted by sapphire blue seas onto which warm water swells break pretty much year-round. 

Today, of course, everyone wants a piece of this once idyllic action and, while breaks like Kira and Angourie are ideal spots to watch some of the highest performance surfing on Earth, they're not easy places to score wave after wave unless your name is Mick Fanning or Joel Parkinson (two more local latter day world champs).

But even the competition in the water and the urban sprawl on land is not enough to stop thousands of surf pilgrims giving it a go here every year.

But it's the right-hand point breaks that you really come here for. The aforementioned Kirra and Angourie along with other classics like Burleigh, Superbanks and Lennox Heads all offer world-class crystalline walls that sparkle an invite that's impossible to resist.

All are renowned worldwide for their speed, power, hollowness and all round perfection, and one good session at any of these spots will have you addicted.

One can but imagine what those halcyon days were like but even today, with crowds, traffic and twenty-first century madness all part and parcel of surfing the area, it has to be worth a visit. Just one good wave at Kirra or Lennox will convince you of that.

Whilst travelling to the east coast in search of surf is a very well trodden path, and Australia is a densely populated country with Sydney not far away, I am doing this a little different, and will base myself in a small, low-key coastal town, away from the crowds.

I’m here for a week-long surf retreat with Kale Brock, a surfer, coach and filmaker from Australia. I have spent many hours watching his informative surf tutorial videos, looking for tips to progress my surfing. Now I’ve got a week with him and his team to cram as much learning in as possible. 

The heat of summer in Australia would certainly be a struggle for me, combined with super busy beaches and thousands of surfers, it’s not an ideal place to increase your wave count. But during winter, Australia grows in appeal to me. The pleasant temperatures and consistent swell make for an ideal surf trip, with air temps of low twenties and water temps of around 18, plus low crowds and the ability to skip some of the winter in New Zealand, it was a very welcome change.

I was buzzing to get in the water, the only lingering thought was the potential shark encounter.

My trip started with a four hour flight across the Tasman from Wellington to Brisbane, followed by a three hour drive south down the coast.

Driving south from Brisbane on the ocean highway. 

Stopping in world renowned surf towns of Sunshine Coast, Burleigh Heads, Tweed Heads and Byron Bay. 

Well known Australian surf breaks are known for crowds, as the coast is heavily populated. 

However, in between these surf hotspots are heaps of small towns, even more beaches, and few people. I’d be joining a small group in a house for a week with a surf coach, Kale. 

From the house we could walk down to the beach or round the corner to the other beach or the points. 

Many options are littered along the coastline. 

We found a few locals here and there, but more often than not, we have waves to ourselves. 

Heaps of whales breaching as they migrate north up the coastline for warmer water. 

Kangaroos strolling into the back garden, sea turtles came to check us out, plus we shared waves with dolphins! 

And sat eating lunch watch whales breach during their migration north.

Everyone in the water grinning ear to ear in disbelief that the dolphins were so close. 

Initial concern over potential sharks quickly changed as the playful nature of dolphins became clear and they jumped through and on waves. 

Days were simple and focused around surf progression. We’d walk down to the beach or nearby point for a 2-3 hour morning surf, have lunch, and repeat. 

Evening video analysis of my surfing brought lots of progress through the week.

Post surf retreat, with a huge smile on my face but tired shoulders, I headed to Byron Bay for a few days to recover before continue north to Brisbane and flying home.

I ate lots, went to gigs, had back massages and napped in the afternoon sun. 

Byron is the quintessential Australian surf spot.

Crowds qickly increase, but with that you get all of the state of the art surf shops, cafes, bars and cool people to hang out with.

Cape Byron is the easternmost point in Australia. As a result it captures every ounce of swell going, including intermittent northwest swells and cyclone swells from the Coral Sea, and more consistent south swells from the Tasman Sea.

Super successful trip - scored waves, progressed my learning, probably doubled my time on waves, had fun. Until next time….

Further info

See more at: visitnsw.com.

Useful links: Surfline’s Northern NSW travel guide.

Short films: The (Un) Lucky Country….

Related reading:
- Surf Odyssey - The Culture of Wave Riding, Gestalten
- The Surf Atlas, Gestalten
- Barbarian Days - A Surfing Life, William Finnegan
- Surf Is Where You Find It, Jerry Lopez

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