Surfing World magazine Volume 9 number 3 June/July 1967 included a great
story about the Bluff at Alexandra Headland.
The photos, drawings and explanations are as they appeared in the story.
Club member and local legend Barry Coulter gets a mention. Fun surfing
in the year 1967 BL (before legropes).
We first ran this story as part of our April 1996 Alex Mal Club Newsletter.
Friday, April 28th, 1967 A drinking spree send off from the
guys at work then the crowded trip home on a public train. By 9pm I
was on the road at Asquith with board, suitcase, tripod and camera bag.
With two lifts I was at Newcastle and spent the rest of the night in
a shed at Gateshead.
Saturday, April 29th A lift through Newcastle on the back of
a truck and after a short trip on a public bus found myself at Raymond
Terrace. I made Taree by saturday night and by sunday morning was on
the road at Coffs Harbour.
The south east winds and rain which had followed me up from Sydney still
persisted with no immediate change forecast. The swell was averaging
about one foot and after a couple of days spent in Woolgoolga area a
forecast of bigger swell in Queensland had me out on the road again.
Bob Evans came past half an hour later and I was on my way to Brisbane.
Over the border and on checking Greenmount and Snapper Rocks found the
swell about 3 to 5 feet. Cyclone Dina had taken its toll on the beach
at Greenmount and on the banks from Snapper to Burleigh Heads. We arrived
at New Farm in Brisbane that evening where Bob was showing "High
on a Cool Wave".
We had a meal and after a phone call I stayed the night at a friend's
place at St. Lucia.
Bob McTavish at the Bluff
Wednesday, May 3rd I got a lift out to the highway that morning
and after three lifts arrived at Mooloolaba where I had been lent a
house. It was pouring with rain and from the back porch I could see
Point Cartwright with a big choppy uneven wave hitting it. Checked out
the town of Mooloolaba and bought some goodies.
Thursday, May 4th I got up early that morning and walked round
past the Bluff to Alexandra Headland. A 6 to 8 foot rather uneven wave
was breaking so after a short talk to Hayden Kenny, was on my way to
Noosa with Robert Conneeley. Noosa was about 5 to 7 feet and also uneven
but good rides were had by Robert, Wayne Parks the New Zealand champion,
Peter Lascelle, Glen Egglington and George Greenough on his belly board.
Wayne Parks at the Bluff
Friday, May 5th The swell at Noosa had evened out that morning
and hadn't lost any of its size. Bob McTavish arrived that morning and
had some great waves. After several tangles with the rocks a foot of
glass peeled back off the nose of my board taking with it a lot of foam.
Surfing that day had ended for me.
Saturday, May 6th Was spent borrowing boards round the Alexandra
Headland area. Pictures on saturday night in a funny little theatre
where you are allowed to smoke during the show.
Bob McTavish at the Bluff
Sunday, May 7th Sunday morning had me hurrying home for my cameras
after a checkout of the Bluff and Alexandra Headland. The Bluff was
working well for the first time since Cyclone Dina had pounded the beaches
in the later part of January.
A 4 to 5 foot even swell was coming through with a slight south west
off-shore wind blowing. There were about ten surfers in the water at
this stage and good nose riding could be seen on most waves. Local riders
Phil Foran, Robert Mofat and Jim Carney rode well with Parks, McTavish
and Conneeley really excelling.
Although it was weekend and school holidays in Queensland, the Bluff
wasn't too crowded. A very good wave of 5 to 6 feet was breaking one
hundred yards north off the point at the southern end of the beach at
Alexandra Headland. An occasional good left was breaking further north
but closed out at the end of the wave. The majority of riders were riding
these breaks. The tide was half out and an occasional left that ended
near the rocks at the Bluff was working.
Monday, May 8th The swell had dropped by monday but a 2 to 3
foot wave still worked. 100 feet of 16mm film and a few more still shots
then a walk over to check on my board.
Tuesday, May 9th The swell had dropped completely at the Bluff
but the beach at Alex had a small wave.
Wayne Parks at the Bluff
Wednesday May 10th through to Saturday 13th Was spent traveling
back down to Sydney. The swell in NSW was down to 2 feet by friday and
by sunday night I was back in Sydney.
LOCATION - The Bluff is situated on a rocky stretch midway between
the Headland and the point at Alex. A sloping drop of 100 foot
from the Headland and a short walk across the rocks is the main
access although some prefer the few hundred yards paddle from
the beach at Alex.
The
bottom consists of a flat rock ledge with small riverstones on
the edge of the base. A few pointy things live on the bottom but
don't give you much trouble.
Basically a three section wave of very fast inside take off section,
to the soft middle section then the fast wrapping section at the
end. Sand deposits after certain weather cycles sometimes complicate
the first and last sections but rides of 40 to 70 yards may generally
be taken.
SWELL - The
best swell is a 4 to 5 foot east north east but probably as on
Sunday, the most common is a south east to south south east wrapping
around Point Cartwright. All swell is fairly slow as it passes
over many outer reefs before hitting the Bluff. An even swell
is most essential.
WINDS - The
Off-shore winds of south west into the curl to south east are
ideal but the Bluff still works in an easterly side wind with
no slop being generated.
The inside take off section on a south south east swell over 5
foot tends to suck out then closes around 7 to 8 foot. The take
off section on those days moves over 10 to 20 yards.
The Bluff wasn't surfed by locals til Russell Hughes, Hayden Kenny,
Bob McTavish, Grud Times and Cooper surfed it. Algie Grud was
probably the first guy to work it over consistently. Regular surfers
are now McLardy, Barry Coulter, Hayden Kenny and John Walker.
Thanks must go to Bob McTavish for supplying a lot of technical
information on the Bluff.
