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Snapper Rocks is a small rocky outcrop on the northern side of Point Danger at the southern end of
It is believed that Snapper Rocks were named by W.L. Edwardson, captain of HM Colonial Cutter Snapper which passed by Point Danger in July 1822.
Perfect wave reveals dark heart of surfing
The Age, 25 April 2007
NSW Government - Tweed River Entrance Sand Bypassing ProjectQueensland Government - Tweed River Sandbypassing ProjectJack Evans Porpoise Pool pictures
at
Snapper Rocks is a small rocky outcrop on the northern side of Point Danger at the southern end of Rainbow Bay
A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...
on the Gold Coast
Gold Coast may refer to:
Places Africa
* Gold Coast (region), in West Africa, which was made up of the following colonies, before being established as the independent nation of Ghana:
** Portuguese Gold Coast (Portuguese, 1482–1642)
** Dutch G ...
, Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
, Australia. It is a famous surf break and today the start of the large sand bank known to surfers as the Superbank.
History
It is believed that Snapper Rocks were named by W.L. Edwardson, captain of HM Colonial Cutter Snapper which passed by Point Danger in July 1822.
Surfing
Snapper is a point break, which as of 2007, forms the first part of the man-made "Superbank"surf break
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.
Since 1995 the Tweed River sand bypass system
Sand is a granular material composed of finely divided mineral particles. Sand has various compositions but is defined by its grain size. Sand grains are smaller than gravel and coarser than silt. Sand can also refer to a textural class of ...
has pumped sand from the Tweed River mouth to beaches to the north to ensure the river mouth is safe for shipping, and to stabilise coastal erosion
Coastal erosion is the loss or displacement of land, or the long-term removal of sediment and rocks along the coastline due to the action of waves, currents, tides, wind-driven water, waterborne ice, or other impacts of storms. The landward ...
north of the river. This has resulted in a large build-up of sand between Snapper Rocks to Kirra, which as of 2007, has extended the beaches in this area seawards around 100-200m, and created a new, world-class sandbar surf break called "the Superbank".
The Superbank extends from Snapper Rocks Point, through Rainbow Bay, Greenmount Point, Coolangatta Beach, and Kirra, for a distance of around . Multiple barrel sections can now occur at any point along this length. The quality of the surf in the first 4 of these sections has markedly improved since the 1990s, creating one of the longest, hollowest and best waves in the world. However, the quality of the last section, Kirra, which has long been regarded as one of the world's best waves prior to the formation of the Superbank, has suffered. There have been calls to modify aspects of the sand bypass system to attempt to restore Kirra to its former quality, although exactly how this is to be done is not clear. It is possible that an optimum, medium build-up of sand (such as was reportedly the state in the early 2000s) may create the longest and best waves over the entire length, including Kirra.
The sheer quality of the man-made wave has greatly increased the level of surf tourism in the region, which has also resulted in extreme crowding of the wave. On a good day, over 500 surfers can be counted over the distance, with multiple drop-ins.
Pool
In 1956 Jack Evans built the Snapper Rocks Sea Baths, with an adjacent shark pool for public viewing. Later that year the Boyd brothers, local fishermen, caught twobottlenose dolphin
Bottlenose dolphins are aquatic mammals in the genus ''Tursiops.'' They are common, cosmopolitan members of the family Delphinidae, the family of oceanic dolphins. Molecular studies show the genus definitively contains two species: the common ...
s in the Terranora Creek
Terranora is a town located on the northern boundary of New South Wales, Australia. At the , Terranora had a population of 3,365 people.
The town is part of the Tweed Shire local Government area. Its postcode is 2486. Two schools are locat ...
which Evans took and put in the pool for the Jack Evans Porpoise Pool show. The pools moved to the mouth of the Tweed River near to Duranbah beach
Duranbah Beach ( ), officially known as Flagstaff Beach, is the northernmost beach in New South Wales. Located in the Tweed Shire, Duranbah Beach is situated between the mouth of the Tweed River and the rocky headland Point Danger which also ma ...
in 1961. Only remnants of the pools remain today.
See also
*Rainbow Bay
A rainbow is a meteorological phenomenon that is caused by reflection, refraction and dispersion of light in water droplets resulting in a spectrum of light appearing in the sky. It takes the form of a multicoloured circular arc. Rainbows c ...
References
*Perfect wave reveals dark heart of surfing
The Age, 25 April 2007
External links
NSW Government - Tweed River Entrance Sand Bypassing Project
at
Picture Australia
The National Library of Australia (NLA), formerly the Commonwealth National Library and Commonwealth Parliament Library, is the largest reference library in Australia, responsible under the terms of the ''National Library Act 1960'' for "mainta ...
{{Australiansurf
Surfing locations in Queensland
Coolangatta
Surfing locations